Armga Leads Huskies to Win in Home and Season Opener

HOUGHTON, Mich. – Austin Armga carried the Michigan Tech men's basketball team to a 78-58 victory over Minnesota Duluth in the season and home opener at the SDC Gym on Saturday (Nov. 16) afternoon. Armga tied a career-high with 29 points on 12-for-19 shooting from the floor.

The Huskies used a 15-3 run late in the first half to gain control of the game. Leading 39-25 at halftime, Ben Stelzer scored seven points in a row early in the second half to give the Huskies an 18-point lead at 48-30.

Connor McLeod hit a 3-pointer with 12:02 left for a 22-point lead and the Huskies held on from there, leading by as many as 23 late in the game.

"I think it's important that after a long and tough preseason that we find some success early," Tech coach Kevin Luke said. "It's awesome to win but it's important that our players believe and understand our systems both offensively and defensively.

"Duluth's got a good, athletic team and I feel fortunate to come out on top and to have our guys get that level of confidence after the first game."

Stelzer finished with 18 points while Jason Hawke added nine in his first game as a Husky. Jordan Chartier and McLeod combined for 14 points.

Tech shot 52 percent (27-for-52) from the field and made 18-of-22 free throws (82 percent).

"We stayed engaged defensively all night and that was the key for us," said Luke. "Our offense stayed aggressive for most of the game. We got a little passive in the second half and they made a run but we finished strong."

UMD (1-1) hopped out to an early 6-0 lead three minutes into the game. The Huskies battled back and took the lead for good after a 3-pointer by Hawke. A 15-3 run to make it 33-19 gave Tech a 14-point lead with 3:29 left in the first.

Reece Zoelle led the Bulldogs with 16 points while Peter Crawford added 12. UMD shot 44 percent from the floor and made only 4-of-19 from 3-point territory.

Armga scored 29 points in his first game as a Husky against Bemidji State in Nov. 2010.

The Huskies are back in action on Friday (Nov. 22), hosting Southwest Minnesota State at the SDC Gym.