MARQUETTE, Mich. - The Northern Michigan men's basketball team returns to the Berry Events Center for the final games of the regular season, as they'll host Grand Valley State and Davenport this weekend.
Northern Michigan (20-8, 13-3) will first take on the Lakers of Grand Valley (12-14, 9-7) on Thursday, February 29 at 7:30 p.m. The Green and Gold will then host the Davenport Panthers (9-17, 4-12) on Saturday, March 2 at 1 p.m for Senior Day.
Carson Smith,
Sam Schultz, and
Connor McCance will be honored.
The 'Cats have earned at least a share of the GLIAC regular season title with Lake Superior State (19-7, 11-5), but NMU will look to win it outright with one more victory. The last time the Wildcats won at least a share of the regular season crown was in 1992-93. NMU has locked up the No. 1 seed in the GLIAC Tournament due to tiebreakers with LSSU.
Follow the Action
Follow @NMUMensBBALL and @NMU_Wildcats on Twitter for continuous updates throughout the week.
Thursday, February 29 - vs. Grand Valley State at 7:30 p.m.
Tickets |
Watch |
Live Stats |
Listen
Game Sponsor: Vango's
Saturday, March 2 - vs. Davenport at 1 p.m.
Tickets |
Watch |
Live Stats |
Listen
Senior Day
A Word From Matt Majkrzak
"Grand Valley has been playing its absolute best basketball, they took it to Ferris and Lake State, we know it's going to be a challenge and we know what we're in for. Davenport has three all-conference guys and is well-coached. It's going to be tough and we have a lot on the line."
Last Time Out
Northern fell at Wayne State by a 84-80 margin on Saturday afternoon. The Warriors jumped ahead 45-37 after the first half behind a strong 17-28 (60.7%) shooting performance. WSU stretched its lead to double figures five minutes into the second half and held its largest lead at 63-49 with 11:20 to play. NMU battled back, closing it to single digits on a few different occasions, but ultimately couldn't battle all the way back.
The guards led the way for NMU, with
Carson Smith scoring 22 and
Brian Parzych adding 19.
Dylan Kuehl (14) and
Riley Brooks (11) also found double figures. Wayne's Colin Golson Jr. scored a career-high 27 points on 10-14 shooting to lead the Warriors.
Cat Nips
- In the latest D2CSC national poll, the Wildcats are ranked at No. 17.
- The Berry has been one of the toughest environments for road teams in all of Division II. Since February of 2022, the Wildcats are 23-1 (.958) on the hardwood in the BEC. The only loss during that stretch came to GVSU on January 19, 2023, a 82-77 defeat.
- For a program that has been around for well over 100 years (since 1906), the Wildcats tied the longest winning streak in program history earlier this season at 13 games, set in 1984-85.
- Sam Schultz continues to lead the GLIAC at 9.4 rebounds/game, which is good for 19th in the country. He also leads the conference in all offensive and defensive rebounding categories.
- Over his last 9 games (missed the last three) Max Weisbrod has been one of the best players in the country, averaging 22.3 points/game while shooting an efficient 32-68 (47.1%) from beyond the arc. On the season, he now sits fifth in the GLIAC in scoring (16.9), third in assists/game (4.3), and third in three-pointers made (71-177, 40.1%). In conference play, his 19.1 ppg ranks third and his 44 triples are first.
- Over his last three, Carson Smith is averaging 20.3 points/game, shooting 22-38 (57.9%) from the field and 7-14 (50%) from three. He has scored 13+ points in seven of the past eight.
- The 1.66 assist/turnover ratio for the 'Cats is the seventh best mark in the country. Northern is also averaging 5.1 more rebounds a contest than its opponents, good for 32nd in the nation and second in the GLIAC to Ferris State (6.3). NMU is only allowing 7.5 offensive rpg, also the best mark among conference teams.
- The Wildcats average 79.3 ppg while allowing 71.9 ppg. The 79.3 points per game is second in the GLIAC. Northern has allowed the fourth fewest points/game in conference play (74.4). NMU is ranked third in the conference in FG%, shooting 47.8% from the floor.
- The 'Cats are near the top of the conference in both creating assists on offense and preventing assists on defense, as its 15.6/game is the fourth most while the 10.1/game they allow is the fewest.
- The Wildcats are 84-53 (.630) under 5th year head coach Matt Majkrzak. With 25 victories at Bryant and Stratton before he got to NMU, Majkrzak hit the 100 collegiate wins milestone in NMU's victory at Grand Valley earlier this season.
Notes on Grand Valley State
The Lakers are 12-14 overall and 9-7 within conference play. GVSU has won its last two, but gets on the road this week where they are 2-10 away from Allendale.
Grand Valley averages 73.8 ppg while allowing 71.6. They shoot 43.0% from the floor, which is a bottom mark in the GLIAC, and 35.3% from beyond the three-point line. The Lakers have dominated the glass this season, as their 12.0 offensive rebounds per game is first in the conference. The Laker attack is led by sophomore forward Ethan Alderink scoring 12 ppg. Marquette native senior forward Marius Grazulis leads the team in rebounding with 7.5 rpg.
The two programs last saw each other earlier this year in January where NMU won 63-61. Northern trailed 35-27 at halftime, but outscored the Lakers 36-26 in the second half while holding them to a 7-26 (26.9%) shooting clip.
Dylan Kuehl led the way with 16 points while Smith contributed another 15. Schultz also found double figures with 10 points to go along with eight rebounds. Ethan Alderink led the Lakers effort with 15 points and seven rebounds.
Notes on Davenport
The Panthers enter the weekend's matchup at 9-17 overall and 4-12 in the GLIAC. They have dropped its last 5 games and are 1-8 away from home court. DU scores 73.6 ppg while allowing a conference-high 77.2. The Panthers shoot 44.8% from the floor and 34.1% from three. Taking care of the ball has been an issue for Davenport, as they cough up the ball more than anyone across the GLIAC, giving up 12.8 turnovers/game.
The offense is led by GLIAC Preseason Player of the Year Marcedus Leech Jr., averaging the third most points in the conference at 17.6 points/game. He's been the go-to for the Panthers, as his 13.8 shots/game is over three more than anyone else on the team.
The two programs last saw each other earlier this year in January where NMU won handily 81-63. Weisbrod tied a career high with six threes for a game-high 28 points. Myles Belyeu led the Panther effort with 13 points.
