MARQUETTE, Mich. – Moving up three spots to No. 10 in the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) Poll, the Northern Michigan Wildcats will take their top-10 ranking to the Grand Rapids, Michigan area this weekend.
First, the Wildcats (18-2, 9-1) will visit No. 23 Grand Valley State (15-3, 8-2) on Thursday, Jan. 29, at 7:30 p.m. The Green and Gold will then compete at Davenport (11-7, 5-5) on Saturday, Jan. 31, at 3 p.m.
Each game will be streamed on FloCollege and can also be heard live 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) and @nmu_mbb on Instagram for updates throughout the weekend.
About the Wildcats
At 18-2, the Wildcats are ranked No. 10 in the NABC Poll, their highest national ranking since Jan. 11, 1993 (No. 8).
The Wildcats are tied for first place in the conference standings with No. 6 Michigan Tech. Northern has won five straight games, including an 83-62 victory over Wayne State most recently. To open the new year, NMU downed Davenport 101-65 and Grand Valley State 72-60.
Dylan Kuehl continues to lead the way for the Green and Gold. In GLIAC games, he is tied for first in scoring (22.1 ppg), third in field goal percentage (56.8%), and first in blocks (1.7 bpg). Over his last eight games, he is averaging 24.0 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 2.0 blocks per game, all while shooting 58.9% from the floor.
The Wildcats have established themselves as one of the most efficient teams in the nation through 20 games, leading the country with a +12.6 rebounding margin. They are also top 10 in assist/turnover ratio (2nd, 1.83), three pointers per game (6th, 10.9), three-point percentage (8th, 39.7), and scoring defense (10th, 62.5).
A large part of the success beyond the arc is
Cal Klesmit, who is second in GLIAC play with 3.2 threes per game and first in shooting 45.7% from beyond the arc. Through 10 conference games, he is ninth at 15.2 points per game. He can take over a game from three, notching five or more triples seven times this season.
Bennett Basich has also been an all-around force in league competition, averaging 12.4 points, 7.1 rebounds, and 0.6 blocks per game. He has scored in double figures in seven of the past eight games straight and notched a 13-point, 14-rebound double-double on Jan. 17 vs. Saginaw Valley State.
A Look at Grand Valley State
The Lakers have won six straight and are now ranked No. 23 in the nation with their 15-3 overall record. Last weekend, they defeated Parkside 77-67 and Roosevelt 87-69. They do a lot of things well, including scoring defense and rebounding, where they rank 22nd and 27th in the country.
Guards Mason Docks (3.88) and Trevor Smith Jr. (3.81) are first and second in Division II in assist/turnover ratio. Smith Jr. is third on the team with 13.3 points per game, just behind Ethan Alderink (14.1) and Jalen Charity (13.4).
A Look at Davenport
The Panthers went on the road last weekend and defeated Roosevelt 78-60 and Parkside 68-54. They will present another challenge on the glass for the Wildcats, as their 29.1 defensive rebounds per game is sixth in the country. They also rank 22nd in field goal percentage defense (40.0).
Ken Walker leads the way at 22.1 points per game and is tied with
Dylan Kuehl for the conference lead. Dylan Smith is also in double figures at 10.6 points per game while leading the team with 7.1 rebounds.
