MARQUETTE, Mich. - Winners of four straight, the Northern Michigan men's basketball team will host the Northland College Lumberjacks on Saturday, December 21, at 2 p.m.

The Wildcats (7-2, 2-0) are coming off of a thrilling 79-76 victory over No. 25 Upper Iowa last weekend in Wisconsin Dells. Dylan Kuehl was named the GLIAC Offensive Player of the Week following a 19-point, 7-rebound performance. 

Northland College (Ashland, WI) is a member of the Division III UMAC. The Lumberjacks are still looking for their first win, entering the weekend at 0-9. 

The game can be heard on 100.3 The Point, with Casey Ford on the call. 


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Follow @NMU_MensBBALL and @NMU_Wildcats on X (formerly known as Twitter) for updates leading up to and during the race. 

Saturday, December 21 - vs. Northland College at 2 p.m.
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About the 'Cats
NMU defeated No. 25 Upper Iowa last weekend in Wisconsin Dells, 79-76. Dylan Kuehl led the way with 19 points on 8-11 (72.7%) shooting. He scored eight straight points late in the game. Julien Smith, who scored 15, then scored nine straight for NMU in the final 90 seconds to help secure the win. Kuehl was named the GLIAC Offensive Player of the Week.

Kuehl leads the Wildcats with 15.4 points and 6.6 rebounds per game. He has scored at least 12 points, made at least five field goals, and shot 50.0% or better from the floor in each of the last seven games. He surpassed the 1,000 career-points plateau earlier this season, becoming the 35th player in program history to join the exclusive 1K club, and the first since Max Bjorklund (2/17/22). Kuehl was selected to the All-GLIAC Preseason First Team after being named to the All-GLIAC First Team and All-Defensive Team in each of his first two seasons.

Smith (13.4) and Sam Privet (10.4) are also averaging in double figures while Brian Parzych (9.4) and Gerald Gittens Jr. (8.8) are also contributing. The team is currently 1st in the GLIAC allowing just 28.6 rebounds per game and 2nd in the conference allowing 68.7 points per game. 

Now in his sixth season at the helm, Matt Majkrzak is looking to bring the 'Cats to a third consecutive NCAA Tournament after his teams have earned a spot in the big dance in back-to-back seasons. The last two seasons have been two of the best in program history. In 2022-23, Northern captured its first GLIAC Tournament title since 2000. The Wildcats went 25-8 that year, the most wins in program history, and made it to the Round of 32. Last year, the Green and Gold followed it up with a 22-11 season that saw them win the GLIAC regular season title for the first time since the 1992-93 season with a regular season conference record of 14-4. 

Majkrzak is the reigning GLIAC Coach of the Year. In his 6+ seasons, NMU has gone 93-58 (.616). Last year, Majkrzak and the Wildcats hosted the GLIAC Tournament for the first time since 1992-93. He is only the second leader of the program to be named conference Coach of the Year, joining Dean Ellis in 1993. For a team that dealt with injuries all season long a year ago, Majkrzak continued to make it work for the Green and Gold, plugging and playing different lineups with seemingly no interruptions. The Wildcats also tied the longest winning streak in program history last year at 13 games, originally set in 1984-85. NMU averaged 79.2 points/game and allowed 76.7 last year. 

On the court, NMU fields a 17-player roster. Of those, only six players return to the lineup who saw playing time with the Wildcats a season ago. Losing GLIAC Player of the Year Max Weisbrod to Division I Northern Iowa will be a lot to overcome, but Kuehl and his freakish athleticism will certainly be up to the task. 

In the backcourt, NMU added a quartet of guards in Julien Smith (Missouri S&T), Gerald Gittens Jr. (Mary), Derek Merwick (Midland), and Biggie Luster (Clarke) in the transfer portal. Smith is amongst the nation's returning scoring leaders as he's mustered 1,623 career points (15.9 ppg) over his four seasons at Missouri S&T while Gittens averaged 13.8 ppg last year at the University of Mary. These guards will join Brian Parzych who is the established veteran in the backcourt. Parzych has averaged 10.6 points/game and over the last two seasons and 3 assists/game over his career, as the three guards that are expected to lead the way in the backcourt. 

Majkrzak will look to returning bigs Sam Privet and Jackson Dudek, as well as redshirt freshman Peter Lattos to step into a bigger role than they held in 2023-24.

Northern has added four freshmen to the fold in Michael McNabb, Cody Schmitz, Jonny Ingalls, and Isaiah Allen. The four combined for a remarkable 8,216 career points in high school and the class will look fit right in with the veterans around them. 


A Look at Northland College
Northland College is 0-9 this season, being outscored by an average of 33.8 points per game. Six players average over five points per game, with Jahlani Thornton (9.4) leading the way while also pacing the team at 7.4 rebounds per game. 

Northern Michigan and Northland College have matched up 84 times dating back to the first meeting in 1923-24. The Wildcats have won the last 23, with an 86-47 victory in Marquette in 2010 marking the most recent match between the two schools.  


Superior Dome Showdown vs. Michigan State
On October 13, the Wildcats played its most notable preseason exhibition in program history when they hosted DI blueblood Michigan State in front of 11,500 fans in the Superior Dome Showdown, the largest indoor event in the history of the Upper Peninsula. In a weekend that was much more than the game on the court that included the retirement of NMU alum Tom Izzo's #10 jersey and icons Bill Raftery and Lisa Byington announcing the game, the Wildcats put up a valiant effort and fell 70-53 to the Spartans. Jackson Dudek led the way with 14 points.