MARQUETTE, Mich. – Piecing together one of its best all-around shooting performances of the season, the Northern Michigan men's basketball team defeated Tiffin University 83-75 in a Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference matchup on Thursday (Dec. 8) at the Berry Events Center.

With the win, NMU improves to 3-4 on the season and 1-1 in the GLIAC, while Tiffin falls to 4-5 and 0-3 in the GLIAC.

The Wildcats opened the contest with a 13-6 lead at the 15:53 mark off of a jumper from senior center Jared Benson.  The Dragons took their first lead at the 10:34 mark with a layup from Travis Spahr.

NMU retook the lead for good at 20-19 with a 3-pointer from freshman guard Haki Stampley with just nine minutes left in the first half.  The 'Cats maintained their lead throughout the rest of the stanza, taking a 42-34 lead into the break.

The 'Cats grabbed a double-digit lead for the first time at the 17:57 mark in the second half off of a pair of made free throws from junior forward TJ Cameron.  NMU worked with a double-digit lead through most of the second half, never leading by less than seven points thanks to a 57.1 percent shooting performance.

The 'Cats were led by senior center Jared Benson, with 25 points and 11 rebounds for his first double-double of the season.  Freshman guard Haki Stampley netted a career high 19 points and was 3-5 from beyond the arc.

The Dragons were led by Karl Finley, who totaled 17 points and three rebounds.

NMU shot only 56.9 percent (29-51) from the field and 50 percent (3-6) from 3-point land.

The 'Cats won the battle of the boards, outrebounding the Dragons 47-33. 

NMU returns to the court on Saturday (Dec. 10) hosting Ohio Dominican University.  Tipoff is set for 3 p.m.