MARQUETTE, Mich. - The Northern Michigan women's basketball team (12-5, 6-2) will look to carry the winning momentum into the weekend as they prepare to host rival Michigan Tech (8-8, 4-4) for an in-conference clash on Saturday, January 27 at 1:00 p.m. This is the first matchup between the two programs this season.
The game will be broadcast locally on Fox-UP, with Mark Evans and Dave Ellis on the call.
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Saturday, January 27 - vs. Michigan Tech at 1 p.m.
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A Word from Casey Thousand
"We have to defend and we have to control the pace. I think we will be up and we will be ready, but at the same time it's Michigan Tech and it's always a fun game between the two teams."
Last Time Out
Northern was last on the court on January 20th at UW-Parkside. The Cats' put on a scoring clinic finishing with a single-quarter season-high 28 points in the second, while holding Parkside to a season low six points in the same quarter to win, 83-76. The Cats tenacious defense held the Rangers to 2-9 (22.2%) shooting and forced them to eight turnovers in the second.
Northern continued to struggle shooting, going 28-72 (38.9%) from the field and 9-30 (30.0%) from beyond the arc. The 'Cats did shoot efficiently from the charity stripe shooting 18-23 (78.2%).
Jacy Weisbrod scored a career-high 27 points on 9-16 shooting and a 6-10 clip from deep.
Cat Nips
- Makaylee Kuhn is first in the conference averaging 17.2 ppg and is fourth at 7.2 rpg. Kuhn is 58-70 (82.4%) from the free throw line this season, good for seventh in the GLIAC. She is a three-time All-GLIAC First Teamer and was named to the Preseason First Team.
- Northern leads the GLIAC in fewest turnovers/game (11.9), which is the fourth best mark in the country. Northern is second in the conference in rebounding margin (8.2) and FT percentage (76.4%). As a team, NMU allows just 5.6 offensive rebounds/game to opponents, the first fewest across conference teams.
- After struggling from the three-point line a season ago where they went just 121-454 (26.7%), the 'Cats have made tremendous progress beyond the arc so far this season, as they lead the GLIAC in made threes (136-401 - 33.9%). Jacy Weisbrod has led the way from downtown, as she is first in the GLIAC with 43 made threes. Sarah Newcomer has made a triple in all but one game this season and her 33 triples are tied for third across GLIAC competition.
- Mackenzie Holzwart is averaging 7.2 ppg, 3.7 apg, and 5.9 rpg. Holzwart also leads the team with 19 steals on the season. She is sixth in the GLIAC in total assists and is first among conference guards in defensive rebounds (4.6).
- The Green and Gold present a balanced scoring attack, as nine different 'Cats have recorded a double-digit output game this season.
- Ana Rhude ranks second in the conference in blocks (23).
Notes on Michigan Tech
The Michigan Tech Huskies heads into Saturday's rivalry matchup with an overall record of 8-8 and a GLIAC record of 4-4. Tech shoots 40.6% from the field, 30.8% from three, and 79.0% from the charity stripe. MTU is first in the conference and fifth nationally in free throw percentage.
After averaging 70.1 points/game last season, the MTU offense has taken a step back, as they are seventh in scoring in the conference at 60.9 points/game. They are led by junior guard Isabella Lenz who is averaging 12.2 points/game. Senior guard Katelyn Meister is second in command averaging 10.9 points/game along with 5.8 rebounds/game.
Northern has dropped the last 13 matchups in the rivalry, not winning since January 30, 2017, when Bre Gaspervich led the way for the Green and Gold scoring 20 points and racking in 5 steals.
