Huskies Pull Away for 72-62 Win over Northwood
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Northwood (8-7, 5-5 GLIAC) | 15 | 10 | 21 | 16 | 62 |
|
Michigan Tech (11-4, 7-3 GLIAC) | 17 | 15 | 13 | 27 | 72 |
HOUGHTON, Mich. – The Michigan Tech women's basketball team used a strong fourth quarter to pull away for a 72-62 Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference victory over Northwood Thursday night in the SDC Wood Gym. The Huskies outscored the Timberwolves 27-16 in the final period and got a career high 27 points from sophomore Elizabeth Kelliher to secure the win.
"I think that Northwood is a really good team and during parts of the game they were really tough to stop," Michigan Tech Head Coach Kim Cameron said. "I'm proud of our effort to come out in the second half and set the tone. I felt like we got into a lull though and they went on a huge run. However, I couldn't be proud of our players and how they responded in the fourth quarter enabling us to come out with the win."
Michigan Tech (11-4, 7-3 GLIAC) started the game cold from the field, permitting Northwood (8-7, 5-5 GLIAC) to build a 7-3 edge. The Huskies only points during the opening stretch came on a triple by redshirt junior Kelli Guy at the 8:10 mark of the first quarter.
The Huskies grabbed their first advantage, in a game that saw eight lead changes, on back to back buckets by senior Morgan Anderson and junior Lindsay Winter. Anderson found the bottom of the net on a layup and Winter connected from behind the arc to make it an 8-7 score with 4:31 left in the first quarter. The teams traded baskets for the remaining portion of the first quarter that ended with a 17-15 Tech lead courtesy of another trey by Winter.
Winter's triple sparked what turned into a 12-0 Michigan Tech scoring burst that carried all the way to the 5:53 mark of the second frame. Kelliher had two field goals while sophomore Michelle LaFave tacked on five points during the span, resulting in a 26-15 lead for the Huskies. Tech created a 12-point gap at 30-18 with 3:19 left until the break on a Winter layup and maintained a double digit lead going into the final 1:30 of the second. The Timberwolves took a bit of momentum back on a pair of jumpers by Hannah Orwat to close the half and bring Tech's lead down to 32-25 at intermission.
With 7:44 to play in the third, Orwat had pulled Northwood to within two points at 36-34 on a triple, but Kelliher helped pushed the Tech advantage out to six points again at 40-34 thanks to two free throws and a layup. However, the Timberwolves were not going to go quietly as they engineered a 10-2 run to reclaim the lead at 46-42 with 1:50 left in the third. Northwood's go to player and leading scorer Jordyn Nurenberg recorded the first five points followed by a jumper from Orwat and a three-point basket by Maddy Seeley.
Fortunately, the Huskies were able to halt the charge with the final three points in the third quarter on a layup from Kelliher and a free throw by Anderson. The trio of points allowed Tech to go into the fourth quarter down only one at 46-45 which proved to be big. The Huskies came out of the break and proceeded to tack on five more points. Guy pushed tech in front again 48-46 on a triple and then Kelliher got open in the paint for another layup to make it a 50-46 lead.
The Huskies would hold the edge the rest of the way although the Timberwolves stayed within striking distance until late in the fourth quarter. A Nurenberg layup shaved Tech's lead to 66-60 with 1:17 on the clock after Guy had made it a three possession contest with a jumper a few seconds earlier. However, the next six points would be awarded to the Huskies due to some clutch free throw shooting by Winter and Anderson, resulting in a 72-60 advantage with 15 seconds to go. The final points of the night were registered on a Nurenberg layup, but at that point it was too little too late for Northwood.
Kelliher was 11 of 18 from the field and a perfect 5 for 5 at the free throw line on the way to her career high 27 points. Kelliher, who was the GLIAC's leading shot blocker going into the game, posted two more blocks on Thursday night. Guy followed with 13 points and was 5 of 7 from the field with a team high five assists while Winter rounded out the double digit scorers with 10 points. Anderson and Guy shared the team lead in rebounds with five apiece.
The Huskies converted 25 of 55 shots from the field (45.5%), were 4 of 7 from behind the arc (57.1%), and 18- of 20 at the free throw line (90.0%). The percentages from three-point land and the charity stripe were both season highs. Rebounding was even between the two clubs at 30-30.
The Timberwolves were paced by Nurenberg who posted a game high 31 points on a 14 of 16 shooting night from the field. Orwat followed with 13 points off the bench and was the only other double-digit scorer for Northwood in the game. Nurenberg, Orwat, and Delaney Kenny shared the lead in rebounds with six each while Orwat had the upper hand in assists with five. The Timberwolves were successful on 26 of 54 shots from the field (48.1%), 3 of 11 from three-point range (27.3%), and 7 of 12 at the free throw line (58.3%).
The Huskies will be back on the floor Saturday afternoon when they play host to Lake Superior State. The Lakers fell to Northern Michigan on Thursday night 60-44. Saturday's tip-off is scheduled for 1 p.m. at the SDC Wood Gym.
