MARQUETTE, Mich. - In what will be one of the biggest regular season weekends in recent history in GLIAC Men's Basketball, the Northern Michigan Wildcats will host the Lake Superior State Lakers on Thursday, February 13 at 7:30 p.m. and the Ferris State Bulldogs on Saturday, February 15 at 3 p.m. in its final regular season home games.

With six games left in the regular season, Northern (16-6, 10-4) is currently tied with Ferris State (20-5, 10-4) and a game back of Lake Superior State (20-4, 11-3) and Michigan Tech (16-6, 11-3). 

The No. 15 Lakers and No. 20 Bulldogs will also visit Michigan Tech, making for a highly-anticipated weekend in the Upper Peninsula as each of the top four teams, all within a game of each other, will be battling it out with sights set on a GLIAC regular season title. 

Each game can be watched on the FloSports app, or Casey Ford will have you covered on the airwaves of 100.3 The Point. 


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

Thursday, February 13 - vs. Lake Superior State at 7:30 p.m.
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Saturday, February 15 - vs. Ferris State at 3 p.m.
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Hear from Matt Majkrzak
"We have to get in the mindset that if we are happy with our four-game winning streak, it's going to end really sad for us on Thursday night. We have to be at a different level of anger and aggression that we haven't seen in awhile."



About the 'Cats
The Wildcats are winners of four straight, most recently knocking off Saginaw Valley State 82-68 and Wayne State 66-61 on the road. The Wildcats average margin of victory is 18.8 points during its four-game winning streak. In 10 games at home, NMU is 8-2. 

A change in the starting lineup four games ago has been a key to the Wildcats recent run. Over the last four, NMU has held an average lead of +4.8 points at the first media timeout, a stark difference of a -7.8 point deficit at the first media stoppage in the four games prior. 

Playing a key role in helping Northern get off to a quick start has been redshirt junior Jackson Dudek, who is averaging 15.8 points per game, shooting 27-35 (77.1%), to go along with 7.3 rebounds per game since entering the starting lineup on January 30 against Grand Valley.

Dudek's frontcourt teammate Dylan Kuehl is 11th in the conference averaging 15.1 points per game. The two-time GLIAC Offensive Player of the Week has scored in double figures in 21 of 22 games. In conference games only, he is also 11th at 15.6 points per game, 5th in field goal percentage shooting 48.5% from the floor, and 6th in rebounding at 6.6 per game.

Kuehl 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.

Julien Smith is second on the team averaging 11.8 points per game. Smith scored in double figures in each of the first five games, but then only reached that mark in three of the next nine before returning to early season form as of late, scoring 10+ in five of the past seven.

Defense continues to be the mode of operation for Northern through 22 games. While its offense holds 7th out of 11 teams in the conference at 73.5 points per game, the scoring defense ranks 2nd, allowing only 66.5, good for a top-20 mark nationally. NMU is also allowing a league-low 31.6 opponent rebounds per game and holds a +4.4 margin on the glass. 


A Look at Lake Superior State
The Lakers, currently at No. 15 in the latest NABC poll, are 20-4 overall and 11-3 in conference play, holding a 4-3 record away from home. Most recently, LSSU fell to GVSU 71-68 before bouncing back with a 79-58 win at Davenport. 

Lake State is averaging 79.8 points per game while allowing a league-low 66.2. They have shot over 40% in 18 of its contests, going 16-2 in those games. Its +13.6 scoring margin is tops in the GLIAC and 9th in the nation. The Lakers are also top-10 across Division II in assist/turnover ratio (1.62) and three pointers per game (10.4). 

Senior guard Tyson Edmondson leads the team averaging 16.1 points per game, good for 7th in the GLIAC. Hunter Soper has been one of the best at the rim, ranking 3rd in the conference at 7.1 rebounds per game, 6th in blocks per game at 1.1, and 2nd in steals per game with 1.6. Soper is also averaging 11.5 points per game, one of five Lakers on pace to hit double figures each night. 

Northern holds a 70-47 advantage in the all-time series that dates back to 1947-48. NMU fell at LSSU earlier this season 79-49. 


A Look at Ferris State
The Bulldogs, slotted in at No. 20 in the NABC poll, are 20-5 this season, holding a 10-4 record in conference play. Last weekend, FSU defeated Davenport 67-56 before suffering a 94-62 setback at Grand Valley State. Ferris is 6-4 on the road. 

Ferris is averaging a GLIAC-high 84.1 points per game while surrendering 70.8 for a +13.4 scoring margin, a mark that is the 12th best nationally. The Bulldogs are 11th in the country in field goal percentage defense (39.8) and 6th in defensive rebounds per game (29.4). 

Ethan Erickson is 4th in the conference averaging 16.8 points per game while leading the league with a 91.0% free throw percentage. Nathan Claerbaut cleans up the glass at a rate of 7.1 per game while averaging 9.6 points. Tyler Hamilton is second on the team averaging 11.2 points per game while Jimmy Scholler is 2nd across the league dishing out 4.0 assists each contest. 

The Wildcats hold a slim 76-72 all-time series lead over the Bulldogs. FSU has won the last two, a 81-65 win in last year's NCAA Tournament and a narrow 85-79 victory last month in Big Rapids.  

 
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.