PREVIEW: Huskies head into stretch run

HOUGHTON, Mich. - The Huskies continued to roll last week with a pair of road victories to extend their overall win streak to seven with four games left in the regular season. This week, Michigan Tech hosts Saginaw Valley State (17-7, 11-5) Thursday night at 7:30, followed by Wayne State (5-14, 4-12) Saturday at 2 p.m. on Senior Day. 

The team will recognize seniors Trent Bell, Jalen Carter, Kyle Clow, Carter Johnston, TeeAaron Powell, and Owen White pregame. Bell was named GLIAC North Division Player of the Week on Monday. Both games can be heard on Mix 93.5 FM WKMJ with Mitch Lake on play-by-play.  Tickets are available at michiganteechhuskies.com. 

The Huskies are in second place in the GLIAC standings behind Ferris State and are 9-1 in Houghton this season. The Huskies rank 10th in the nation in assist to turnover ratio (1.52) and 27th in team defense (64.8 points against). Senior forward Trent Bell (Negaunee, Mich.) was announced as men's basketball GLIAC North Division Player of the Week on Monday. Bell totaled 36 points, 24 rebounds, and seven assists in two games last week. He leads the team with nine double-doubles this year.

LAST TIME OUT

• With four players in double-figures and Trent Bell's block on the final play of the game, Michigan Tech men's basketball sealed its seventh straight victory with a win over Grand Valley State at GVSU Fieldhouse Arena 75-67 Saturday afternoon. The Huskies closed their longest road trip of the season 5-0 and avenged a loss in Houghton to the Lakers on January 20.
• "This is a group I am really proud of," said head coach Josh Buettner. "To finish off the trip a perfect 5-for-5 is a testament to their mental toughness. We battled hard and made enough plays down the stretch to hold off a really good GVSU team."
• Owen White marked his seventh 20-point performance and knocked down 8 of 16 shots from the field with a pair of threes. Carl finished with 14 points and went 5-for-10. Bell collected his ninth double-double of the season with 12 points and 13 boards. Bell and White also batted a pair of blocks apiece.
• Following a career-high 28 point night earlier in the week, Adam Hobson put up 18 points and four rebounds Saturday. Michigan Tech forced 10 turnovers, committed eight, and passed 20 assists. Including Thursday night's win over Davenport, the Huskies posted 47 assists compared to 19 turnovers on the week.

HUSKY GLIAC RANKS 

• Points - 73.6 (9th)
• Points Against - 64.8 (1st) [27th NCAA Division II]
• Rebounds - 34.2 (7th)
• Assists - 17.5 (3rd) [12th NCAA Division II]
• Steals - 6.9 (4th)
• Blocks - 3.3 (4th)
• Field Goal Percentage - 47.6 (3rd)
• 3-Point Percentage - 38.0 (2nd)

SCOUTING THE CARDINALS

• The Cardinals held Michigan Tech to 49 points in a win at James E. O'Neill Arena on January 15. The Huskies shot just 33-percent from the field. Trent Bell scored 21 points with 10 rebounds. The Cardinals took over midway through the first half and held off a run by Tech to start the second half to win 66-49.
• Saginaw Valley State visits Houghton with a five-game win streak intact. Last week, SVSU picked up a 76-68 home win over Wisconsin Parkside, then downed Purdue Northwest 86-68. While the Cards have been a stellar 12-2 at home, they have been a manageable 5-5 on the road.
• SVSU averages 79.7 points per game (2nd) and is a veteran-laden group, led by three senior starters. 
• Delano Smith (Guard - Novi, Michigan) transferred from Davenport but has been with SVSU for three season. He leads the team at 16.7 points per game (7th GLIAC) along with 6.3 rebounds.
• Darnell Hoskins Jr. (Guard - Dayton, Ohio) started 18 games as a freshman and has increased his minutes every season since. This year, Hoskins Jr. is up to 14.4 points, 2.2 rebounds, and 1.4 steals per outing.
• Tyler Witz (Forward - Clearwater, Florida) averages 13.2 points per game and previously attended Olney Central College and North Dakota State University. He leads the Cardinals with 6.9 rebounds and shoots an efficient 57.4-percent from the floor. At 6-feet-9-inches, Witz was effective in the post in the first meeting with Michigan Tech, scoring 12 points with 11 rebounds.
• Last season, the Cardinals finished 5-12 overall, 4-11 in GLIAC play. They made a run to the GLIAC Semifinals, with postseason wins over Wisconsin Parkside and Wayne State before bowing out to Ashland 83-57. Tech swept the regular-season series in 2020-21.
• Head coach Randy Baruth is in his 10th season. He has also coached at University of Utah (Director of player development), Colorado State University (Director of Basketball Operations), Northern State University (Assistant Coach), and North Dakota State University (Assistant Coach).

SCOUTING THE WARRIORS

• The Huskies picked up a road win over Wayne State 62-51 on January 13. Adam Hobson scored 17 points and Owen White notched a double-double with 15 points, 12 rebounds, and three assists. Wayne State shot 36.4-percent overall and won the boards battle 40-36 with 15 turnovers. 
• Last weekend, the Warriors turned around their recent struggles with home wins over Purdue Northwest (W, 56-53) and Wisconsin Parkside (W, 72-67). 
• The team struggled enormously on the road (0-9) but holds a respectable record (5-5) in their own building. 
• The Warriors returned almost everyone from their squad, which went 12-5 in the GLIAC last season, and qualified for the NCAA Midwest Region quarterfinals (L, 76-61 vs. Ashland). Despite that fact, WSU currently ranks last in the GLIAC with 64.7 points per game. The Warriors do excel in rebounds (39.7 - 2nd) and defense (72.1 points against - 4th). 
• Senior (fifth year) Brailen Neely (Guard - Detriot, Mich.) and redshirt junior Avery Lewis (Forward - Ann Arbor, Michigan) each average 13 points per game. Lewis leads the team at 7.5 rebounds per game.
• E.J Haralson was named interim head coach in November following the retirement of 20-year head coach David Greer. He served 19 seasons as an assistant coach at Wayne State.

BELL APPROACHES 1,000

• Senior forward Trent Bell (Negaunee, Michigan) has 987 career points and 700 career rebounds since his start in 2017-18.
• Last season, Bell started all 23 games and led the team with 7.7 rebounds per game with five double-doubles. This year Bell continues to improve.
• He is currently second in the conference in rebounding (8.8 rpg) with a team-high nine double-doubles.

COACH BUETTNER AT THE HELM

• For 27 seasons, Kevin Luke led the Huskies as head coach. Luke announced his retirement in April after amassing 471 career victories. He is the school's all-time winningest coach.
• Longtime assistant coach Josh Buettner was named head coach one day later after serving 13 seasons as assistant coach and one as associate head coach. Buettner (a former Husky all-American player) hired Ben Stelzer as assistant coach.
• Stelzer is another former all-American for the Huskies (2011-15) and played basketball professionally in Spain before beginning his coaching career.

PRESEASON POLL

• Michigan Tech men's basketball was selected to finish first in the GLIAC North Division this season the league announced Tuesday in its preseason coaches' poll.
• The Huskies begin the regular season as defending North Division Champions with four of five starters returning, including CoSIDA All-American combo guard Owen White.

HUSKIES AT A GLANCE

• With returning All-American combo guard Owen White and four starters back in the fold for 2021-22, Michigan Tech men's basketball hopes to again reach the NCAA Midwest Region tournament, where they fell 65-62 to Truman State in the Championship game last spring.
• The Huskies finished 15-8 overall, including 12-6 in the GLIAC North Division, and took second place in the conference tournament.

LAST YEAR RANKS

• Last year, the Huskies ranked ninth in the conference in scoring (67.9 points), second in defense (63.7 points against), second in 3-point percentage (37.4-percent), and 10th in rebounding (31.3 rebounds).
• Tech began non-conference play with a pair of games in the Lewis Tournament November 12-13. After facing a trio of Northern Sun opponents (Minnesota Crookston, Minnesota Duluth, and St. Cloud State), the team started GLIAC action at Northwood on December 4. The Huskies have a pair of four-game win streaks this season.

NORTH DIVISION PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Trent Bell - Michigan Tech

• Senior forward Trent Bell (Negaunee, Mich.) was announced as men's basketball GLIAC North Division Player of the Week on Monday. Bell helped the Huskies to a pair of road wins with double-doubles in both games.
• He totaled 36 points, 24 rebounds, seven assists, three steals, and five blocks.
• Thursday night, Bell shot 10-for-15 from the field at Davenport for 24 points. He tallied 11 rebounds (five offensive) and five assists.
• On Saturday afternoon, Bell marked 12 points and shot 4-for-8 with 13 rebounds and two blocks. Bell currently ranks first in the conference in steals per game (1.7 spg), second in rebounds (8.8 rpg), seventh in blocks (0.9 bpg), and 29th in points (11.2 ppg). 

SOUTH DIVISION PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Delano Smith - Saginaw Valley State

• Senior guard Delano Smith (Novi, Mich.) recorded a pair of double-doubles for SVSU last week starting with 17 points and 13 rebounds in a win over Wisconsin Parkside on Thursday. He led SVSU to a win over Purdue Northwest on Saturday, scoring 14 points and pulling down 19 rebounds, just three short of the Cardinal program record for a single game. Smith is averaging 16.7 points, 6.5 rebounds, and 2.8 assists per game this season. SVSU is 17-7 overall and 11-5 in the GLIAC.

HONORABLE MENTION 

• NORTH: Max Bjorklund (NMU), Kemon Bassett (LSSU), Lee Higgins (FSU), Anthony Barnard (PNW)
• SOUTH: DeSean Munson (NU), David Hughes (WSU), Chris Rollins (DU)