MARQUETTE, Mich. - The Northern Michigan University men's basketball team closes out its regular season home games and will look to improve GLIAC Tournament seeding this weekend against conference opponents Parkside and Purdue Northwest. The Wildcats (18-7, 10-5) are third and currently sit two games behind first place Parkside (18-6, 11-3) in GLIAC play, with a healthy cushion over Purdue Northwest (11-13, 4-10), who currently sit in seventh. 

The 'Cats will first play the Rangers on Thursday, February 16, at 5:30 p.m., then host the Pride on Saturday, February 18, at 11 a.m. to close out the home portion of the regular season schedule. 


Thank You Seniors
The Wildcats will honor seniors Max Bjorklund and Ben Wolf before Saturday's matchup against the Pride.


Follow the Action
Follow @NMUMensBBALL and @NMU_Wildcats on Twitter for continuous updates throughout the week.  

Thursday, February 16 - vs. Parkside at 5:30 p.m.
Tickets  |  Watch  |  Audio  |  Live Stats  |  Game Notes

Saturday, February 18 - vs. Purdue Northwest at 11 a.m.
Tickets  |  Watch  |  Audio  |  Live Stats


Last Time Out
The 'Cats had a pair of road matchups last weekend traveling to Davenport and Grand Valley State that saw an 81-64 victory over Davenport and an 81-75 loss to Grand Valley. 

Against Davenport, Max Weisbrod recorded a 14-point, 13-assist double-double, Max Bjorklund chipped in 19, and three other Wildcats reached double figures as Northern Michigan used a balanced attack to defeat the Panthers. Weisbrod's career-high 13 assists marked a single-game high in any GLIAC matchup this season. 

In a game that saw 21 lead changes and over half the game being played within a possession, the Wildcats fell short by an 81-75 score at Grand Valley State on Saturday. The game was tied 71-71 with 3:29 to play, but a 6-0 run from GV took the wind out of the Wildcat sails. Max Bjorklund led NMU with 23 points.


Cat Attack
The Wildcats are 18-7 (10-5 GLIAC) and are tied for third place in the GLIAC behind Parkside and Ferris State. Northern is averaging 81.6 PPG while holding the opposition to a mark of 72.0 PPG.

For as young as the 'Cats are, they have the lowest turnover clip per game in the GLIAC at 10.2. That is the 11th-lowest turnover average in Division II. The Wildcats also do a good job cleaning up the glass, averaging 6.1 more rebounds per game than the competition. No one in the GLIAC allows fewer offensive rebounds than the 'Cats, limiting opponents to 7.3/per game. 

NMU is led by Max Bjorklund, scoring 20.3 per contest, the second-best mark in the GLIAC. Freshman Dylan Kuehl is averaging 13.4 PPG and leads the team with 6.3 RPG, good for third best in the GLIAC. His 58.9 FG% is tops in the GLIAC and second best among Division II freshmen. Max Weisbrod is averaging double figures at 11.5 PPG and leads the team in assists at 5.2 APG, good for second across the conference landscape and runner-up in the country among first-year players.   

Max Bjorklund has accrued 15 or more points in his last five games. In that span, he's averaged 34.2 minutes per game, 20.8 points per game, shooting 36-81 (.444) from the field and 12-29 from deep (.413), with a 20-27 mark from the charity stripe (.740). 


Coach Majkrzak Interview

 

Scouting Parkside
The Rangers are coming into the weekend on a hot streak having won five in a row, including an impressive 20-point victory over second-place Ferris State. The Rangers average 74.2 points per game while holding opponents to 67.7 points per game, the best in the GLIAC. 

Rasheed Bello averages 18.8 PPG, leading the Ranger attack and third-best in the GLIAC. 


Previous Matchup vs. Parkside
Despite a valiant effort in the second half, the Wildcats fell to Parkside by a score of 76-68 in Kenosha on December 3. 

Carson Smith led the Wildcats with 18 points on 7-16 (43.8%) while Brian Parzych was second with 17 points on 7-15 (46.7%) shooting from the floor.


Scouting Purdue Northwest
The Pride come into the weekend on a three-game losing streak and will play Michigan Tech on Thursday before traveling to Marquette for Saturday's game. The Pride average 76.5 PPG while their opponent averages 74.9 PPG. 

Alou Dillon leads the Pride with 17.1 PPG, followed closely by Mikell Cooper with 16.4 PPG. 


Previous Matchup vs. Purdue Northwest
After a slow start in the first half, NMU outscored the Pride 55-37 in the second half en route to an 85-77 win on the road back on December 1.

The Wildcats were 6-10 from the three and made 19 free throws in the second to help turn around the evening after a slow start in the first 20 minutes of action. NMU's leading scorer was Max Bjorklund, who poured in 20 points. Dylan Kuehl tallied 17 of his own, shooting 9-10 at the FT line and pulling down eight rebounds.


In the Polls
In the latest D2SIDA Midwest Regional poll, the Wildcats are ranked tied for fifth.