MARQUETTE, Mich. — Naba Echols posted a career-high 31 points, but the Northern Michigan men's basketball team fell short of upsetting GLIAC front runner Saginaw Valley State, 83-79, Thursday night at the Berry Events Center.

The Wildcats found themselves in an early 9-2 hole with 16:37 to play but answered with a 6-0 run on back-to-back three pointers by Jordan Perez and Echols to cut the Cardinal lead to 28-17 with 7:29 on the clock.

The Cardinals responded by growing their early lead to 16, 35-19. Echols cut the lead to 11, at 35-22, with 4:29 to play in the half by netting his second of six three-point shots. Northern Michigan headed into the locker room behind, 43-34.

The Wildcats came out hot in the second half to get back into the game. To start the half, Terry Nash found Echols in the corner for three as part of a 5-0 run, cutting the lead to 43-39. Echols once again connected from beyond the arc to draw the Wildcats within three, 45-42, with 18:17 on the clock.

Later in the half, Alex Mustert knocked down a jump shot to cut the Cardinal lead to two, 48-46, with 16:20 to play. Saginaw Valley State responded by growing the lead back up to eight, 54-46.

Echols continued his hot streak from downtown, knocking down a three pointer and drawing the foul. He made his free throw to complete the four-point play and cut the deficit to four, 54-50, at the 14:10 mark.

With 12:16 to play, Echols made a jump shot that hit nothing but net to give Northern Michigan its first lead of the night, at 55-54. Both teams ran the floor and traded possessions to deadlock the game at 61 with 9:34 to play.

Northern Michigan came out of a media timeout by growing its largest lead of the game, 67-63, after a pair of Echols free throws. The Cardinals answered by fighting back to steal the lead, 73-72, with 5:15 on the clock. The Wildcats stayed in it when Echols found Nash for three, bringing the score to 77-75 with 3:01 to play in the game.

Saginaw Valley State stole the lead for good after a late layup by C.J. Turnage put them ahead, 78-77, with 1:22 to play. Echols was able to connect on a late lay up to draw within two, 81-79, with two seconds remaining, but the Wildcats fell just short of the upset bid.

Nash also enjoyed a career-best performance, posting 19 points. He added a team-high five assists.

With the loss, Northern Michigan moves to 4-11 (2-9 GLIAC) on the season. The Wildcats will return to the court Saturday at 3 p.m. to take on Hillsdale. Fans can grab their free tickets at Art Van Furniture and Household Appliance as part of Northern Michigan's game day host program.