NMU men’s b-ball edged by Northwood

Courtesy of NMU Athletics

MIDLAND, Mich. – The Northern Michigan University men’s basketball team was edged, 68-67 at Northwood University on Saturday (Feb. 22) in a Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference game.

After the loss, NMU is 5-20 overall and 4-17 in the conference. Northwood improved to 17-12 and 13-8 in the GLIAC.

The Timberwolves jumped out to a 5-0 lead to start the game before NMU got on the board. However, a three pointer by junior forward Justin Newell and a layup by sophomore guard Terry Nash tied the game at five. The first half consisted of six ties and eight lead changes.

With 49-seconds remaining in the half, NMU trialed by four (34-30), but another three pointer by Newell cut the Northwood lead to one 28-seconds left. A pair of free throws with 11 seconds remaining, gave the Timberwolves a 36-33 lead at the break.

Newell led NMU at the half with 11 points, and freshman guard Marcus Hall added eight. The Wildcats shot 13-30 (43.3 percent) from the floor.

The Wildcats opened the second half on a layup by Hall and a three pointer by Newell to take the 38-36 lead. Soon after, the Timberwolves went on an 8-0 run to gain an eight point (48-40) lead, its largest of the game. The Wildcats answered back with their own 5-0 run (48-45) with just over 12 minutes left.

With 3:10 remaining in the game, NMU held a 67-63 advantage. A dunk and free throw by Northwood’s Will Bowles cut the NMU lead to one (67-66) with two minutes left. The Wildcats held the lead until 28 seconds left when Dylan Langkabel made a layup to put Northwood up 68-67.

Newell led the Wildcats with 20 points and went 6-8 from three point range. Hall (16), junior guard Ethan Blackwell  (14) and Nash (13) also scored in double figures for NMU. Senior forward Michael Smith led NMU with seven rebounds.

The Wildcats shot 24-59 (42.4 percent) and were 3-3 (100 percent) from the free throw line.

Wes Wilcox scored a game-high 24 points for Northwood while Will Bowles added 14. The Timberwolves shot 25-49 (51 percent) and were 13-21 at the charity stripe.

NMU closes out the regular season at 7:30 p.m. Thursday (Feb. 27) against Michigan Technological University at the Berry Events Center.