Wildcats can clinch top seed in GLIAC Post-Season Tournament with a win Saturday
MARQUETTE, Mich. – In a high-scoring affair on Thursday night, Northern Michigan outlasted the Roosevelt Lakers 100-87, backed by a career-high 36 points from Dylan Kuehl.
Kuehl was sensational, pouring in his 36 points on 13-20 (65.0%) shooting. He scored 16 points in the first half and added 20 more after the break. He added seven rebounds and five assists. His 22.8 points per game in conference play lead the GLIAC by a 1.5-point margin.
Jackson Dudek added 19, while Charlie Miller (14) and Cal Klesmit (10) each reached double figures. Northern shot 36-64 (56.3%) for the game, its fourth-best performance of the season. It was their third time reaching the century mark.
The Lakers put together one of their best offensive showings of the year, going 33-58 (56.9%). They were led by Mikey West with 29 and Dante Sawyer with 24. The two combined to go 22-36 from the field.
Northern dominated the glass 38-18, with Bennett Basich leading the ‘Cats with 10. NMU held a 13-2 advantage on the offensive glass. With that, the Wildcats led in second-chance points 25-2.
NMU dished out 22 assists as they were moving the ball throughout the night. Basich also led the team with six. The Lakers finished with eight, as the majority of their baskets came in isolation.
NMU is now 24-5 overall and 15-4 in conference play. Michigan Tech won at the buzzer to also improve to 15-4, while Grand Valley snuck out a win in their finale to finish 15-5. A win on Saturday and the Wildcats clinch at least a share of the regular season title as well as the No. 1 seed.
How it Happened
Northern jumped out to a 4-0 lead by attacking the rim, but Roosevelt answered with a 9-2 run, fueled by a pair of threes, to lead 9-6 at the first media timeout. The Lakers hit their first three attempts from deep to extend the margin to 14-8. Dante Sawyer scored 11 of Roosevelt’s first 18 points before Dylan Kuehl responded with five straight to tie the game 18-18.
A Trevor Polite and-one, followed by threes from Charlie Miller and Jackson Dudek, pushed NMU ahead 27-22 midway through the half. A 5-0 burst stretched the lead to 37-27 with 3:57 remaining. Roosevelt stayed in it by shooting 58.6% in the half and with a buzzer-beating three, Northern led 50-45 at the break.
The Wildcats dominated the glass early, grabbing eight offensive rebounds that turned into 17 second-chance points. They did not allow an offensive rebound and did not commit a turnover in the first half. The efficiency helped offset Roosevelt’s hot shooting and kept NMU in front.
Kuehl opened the second half with back-to-back threes to reach 24 points, and a Cal Klesmit triple made it 63-53 just 3:30 in. The teams traded baskets before a Miller three pushed the lead to 74-65 at the 11:17 media timeout. Roosevelt trimmed the deficit to five midway through the half and cut it to two 90 seconds later.
Northern answered with six straight points to regain control. Kuehl and RU’s Mikey West traded scores before the Wildcats restored a double-digit edge at 88-78 with five minutes left. A Klesmit three stretched the lead to 94-80 with 3:30 to play.
Kuehl delivered an emphatic two-handed dunk for a 98-84 advantage with one minute remaining. Bennett Basich added a two-handed finish late to bring Northern to the 100-point mark.
Up Next
In the final game of the regular season on Saturday, Feb. 28, at 3 p.m., the Wildcats will host Parkside in hopes of clinching at least a share of the GLIAC regular season title and the No. 1 seed for the conference tournament.
