Great Lakes Wire

Northern Michigan University's men's basketball team faced a challenging match against the Michigan Tech Huskies, resulting in an 88-65 defeat. This game marked Northern's first loss in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) this season.

The Wildcats struggled against a strong performance by the Huskies, particularly in the first half. At halftime, NMU was trailing 51-25 as Michigan Tech shot an impressive 71.4% from the field and 60.0% from three-point range. In contrast, Northern found it difficult to find their rhythm, shooting only 33.3% overall and a mere 10.0% from beyond the arc.

Michigan Tech's guard duo of Marcus Tomashek and Ty Fernholz led their team's offensive efforts. They combined for 37 points in the first half with high shooting percentages—Tomashek scoring a total of 31 points on 64.7% shooting and Fernholz adding another 22 points at a rate of 66.7%.

Despite the loss, Dylan Kuehl stood out for Northern with his contribution of 20 points on efficient shooting alongside six rebounds. Kuehl remains NMU's leading scorer with an average of 16.1 points per game.

Jackson Dudek contributed significantly off the bench with a season-high of 14 points, while Derek Merwick added nine points along with three rebounds and two assists.

Although NMU managed to outscore Michigan Tech in the second half and reduced their deficit to just fifteen points late in the game, they could not overcome their early disadvantage.

Overall shooting statistics reflected NMU's challenges: they shot only 35.6% from the floor and made just over one-quarter of their three-point attempts compared to Michigan Tech’s more successful shooting performance both inside and outside the arc.

This defeat brings NMU's record to ten wins against three losses overall this season and four wins against one loss within conference play while improving Michigan Tech’s standing similarly within GLIAC competition.

Looking ahead, Northern will attempt to recover when they face Roosevelt Lakers on January thirteenth—a matchup marking these schools’ first encounter on court.