North Michigan News

Northern Michigan University's men's basketball team claimed the GLIAC regular season title after defeating Davenport University 83-64. This marks NMU's first outright conference title since the 1992-93 season. The Wildcats ended their regular season with a 21-9 overall record and a 14-4 mark in conference play.

Carson Smith led NMU with 16 points, while Sam Schultz contributed a double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds. The team shot over 50% from the field for the eighth time this season, hitting 31 of their 57 attempts (54.4%), compared to Davenport's 25 out of 60 (41.7%).

The game was closely contested for the first half, with NMU trailing by three points at one stage before ending the half on a strong note with a buzzer-beating three-pointer from Max Weisbrod, giving them a ten-point lead at halftime.

In the second half, NMU extended their lead to as much as 21 points following an impressive run that included a notable dunk by Dylan Kuehl. Although Davenport managed to reduce the deficit to twelve points late in the game, NMU secured victory comfortably.

Post-game celebrations saw players and staff cutting down the nets in recognition of their championship win.

Looking ahead, NMU enters the GLIAC Tournament as the top seed and will face Purdue Northwest on March 6 at home. A victory would allow them to host further tournament games through to the final scheduled for Sunday.