Wildcats were 15 of 23 from behind the arc
| MARQUETTE, Mich. – Those in attendance Saturday afternoon at Vandament Arena witnessed one of the best three-point displays from the Northern Michigan women’s basketball team in program history, as the Wildcats sank 15 triples to defeat the Wayne State Warriors 91-71, securing the weekend sweep. NMU’s 15-23 performance from three was not only a season-high, but it was one of their best performances from deep in program history. Overall, the ‘Cats were 33-57 (57.9%), their best output of the year. The Warriors were 26-65 (40.0%) overall and just 7-22 (31.8%) from three. Leading the way was Sarah Newcomer, who scored 22 points on a near-perfect 6-7 mark from three. Right behind her was Jacy Weisbrod as she poured in 21 points and converted 5-7 triple attempts. Sydney Whitehouse added 15 points. CJ Romero orchestrated the offense to perfection, dishing out a career-high 11 assists to fuel NMU’s season-high 24 helpers. After much back-and-forth play early in the game, the Wildcats were able to build a double-digit lead by halftime with a dominant second quarter (22-11), then followed it up with another double-digit edge in the third frame (27-16) to pull away. The Wildcats’ record in conference play is now 8-2, and 17-3 overall. Before the start of the game, Weisbrod and Alyssa Hill were honored for each reaching the 1,000-point mark earlier this season. How It Happened Newcomer opened the scoring for the ‘Cats with a three-pointer. The teams remained locked in back-and-forth play for much of the opening 10 minutes. A layup from Faith Walder put the Wildcats in the lead for the first time in the game with four minutes left to play in the quarter (7-6). These efforts were backed up with three layups from Hill and a make from beyond the arc by Weisbrod, setting the score to 16-10. The score going into the second quarter showed 19-16 in favor of the Wildcats. Wayne State remained close until Wesibrod assisted a layup for Jordyn Schmittdiel for her first of the game in attempts to reestablish the Wildcat lead. NMU kept pressing, as Addison Pytleski was successful from deep. Hill and Whitehouse then both found success from below the rim (28-22). Despite continuous pressure from the Warriors, the ‘Cats were able to close the second on another 8-0 run and gain a lead of 14 points at halftime (41-27). The first points in quarter three came off the hands of Pytleski for two. The Wildcats continued this momentum with makes from Weisbrod and Newcomer, keeping the Warriors scoreless until the seven-minute mark. Newcomer aced a three-point shot and immediately grabbed a steal, which she turned into another three for six quick points in 15 seconds. Coming out of a timeout, Newcomer returned to the arc to drain yet another three, setting the Wildcat edge to 56-37. The ‘Cats continued to be dominant on both sides of the ball, increasing the lead to 22 points heading into the final quarter of play (68-46). Weisbrod opened the fourth by continuing the three-point barrage. Walder also added a three to extend the advantage. The Warriors began to gain some slight momentum, hitting four straight threes after a 1-15 start to make it 81-63, but Weisbrod quickly put it to rest with back-to-back threes. Up Next The Wildcats will travel downstate next week for games against Grand Valley State and Davenport. The team will play the No. 1 Grand Valley State Lakers first on Thursday, Jan. 29, at 5:30 p.m. and Davenport on Saturday, Jan. 31, at 1:00 p.m. | |
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