UNIVERSITY CENTER, Mich. - The Northern Michigan women's basketball team (17-7, 11-4) took to the road on Thursday night, defeating the Saginaw Valley State Caridinals (9-17, 6-10) 63-50 in the Lower Peninsula to extend its winning streak to five games. 

The Wildcats were led by Jacy Weisbrod with 21 points on a remarkable 8-12 shooting including five triples. It was the fourth game this season the La Crosse, Wisconsin native recorded over 20 points and the fifth time she has connected at least five times from beyond the arc. Weisbrod got the 'Cats going early on, scoring 18 of her 21 in the first half after a 7-9 shooting display through 20 minutes. 

Not far behind was Makaylee Kuhn with 18 points on a 8-14 mark from the field. Kuhn added on 10 rebounds for her eighth double-double of the season. Makaylee was also stellar on the defensive end, notching three steals. 

The only deficit the Wildcats faced on the night was a brief 3-2 score as the fans were still settling into their seats. After starting 4-4 from the floor and going 7-10 in the first, the 'Cats built out a 18-11 margin after one frame. The Green and Gold then held the Cardinals to just two field goals in the second, outscoring SVSU 17-6 throughout the quarter for a 35-17 lead at intermission. Weisbrod alone outscored Saginaw in the first half with her 18 points, but the 'Cats also made a difference with 18 points off turnovers in the opening 20 minutes. 

Northern's largest lead of the night was 47-22 part way through the third, but the Cardinals were able to go on an extended 16-4 bleeding into the fourth quarter to close the deficit to 51-38. That's where the run stopped as NMU countered with the next nine to open the game right back up and put the game on ice. 

The 'Cats shot the ball efficiently from the floor, going 24-48 for the second straight game with an even 50% shooting. It is the third time this season that Northern has made at least half of its shots. SVSU was just 18-50 (36%). 

With the victory, NMU improved to 17-7 on the season and 11-4 in the conference. The Wildcats remain in good position to host a GLIAC Quarterfinal game as they sit in third place with a two-game lead on Michigan Tech (9-6) in fourth place. The 11th conference win is the most since the 15-5 conference mark in the 2018-19 season and also overcomes a spell of plateauing at 10 GLIAC wins, which has happened in three of the four seasons since that 2018-19 campaign. 


Up Next
Northern will look to extend its winning streak to a season-high of six games on Saturday, February 24 when the 'Cats visit the Motor City for a conference clash with the Wayne State Warriors at 1 p.m.