PREVIEW: Tech heads home for two games

HOUGHTON, Mich. - Michigan Tech men's basketball is back on their home court this week to host Wayne State Thursday at 7:30 p.m. followed by Saginaw Valley State Saturday at 3 p.m. Both games can be heard on Mix 93.5 FM WKMJ. MTU Athletics encourages fans to wear pink Thursday and Saturday this week to promote breast cancer awareness.

LAST TIME OUT

• Freshman Dan Gherezgher posted 17 points and Michigan Tech held off a late charge to defeat Lake Superior State 76-71 Saturday afternoon at Ronald Cooper Gymnasium.
• The Huskies picked up their first road win of the season and led by as many as 18 before the Lakers closed the gap in the second half.
• Gherezgher finished 7-for-14 from the field and added six rebounds. Adam Hobson also scored 15 points (6-9) and Pete Calcaterra added 12.
• Michigan Tech (5-14, 2-8 GLIAC) shot 50.9 percent overall (27-53), including 43 percent from beyond the arc.

THE MATCHUP

• The Huskies pushed Wayne State to overtime at Wayne State Fieldhouse on January 7 but fell 72-65.
• Nate Abel gave the Huskies the lead with four seconds left in regulation but Antonio Marshall answered with his own triple at the final horn and Wayne State drew separation in overtime.
• Michigan Tech led 31-24 at halftime.

FOR THE HUSKIES

• Gherezgher leads the team with 11.3 points per game. The freshman made a critical layup to help the Huskies late against Lake Superior State.
• Gherezgher also passed a season high five assists and has 13 games in double figures. His season high 27 point total came against McKendree on November 13.

TERRIAN CHIPS IN

• The Huskies often look to Josh Terrian when a defensive stop is needed.
• The Pewaukee, Wisconsin native has also been productive offensively with 25 points over the past three outings.
• Terrian leads the team in assists per game (2.0 apg) with six assists on the road last week.

FOUNTAINS OF WAYNE

• The Huskies were all business last year against Wayne State with a season sweep in the season series, culminating in an 82-57 exclamation point on senior day at SDC Gymnasium.
• At the time it was the Huskies' ninth straight victory and senior Owen White posted 23 points and 12 rebounds.

DOWN THE STRETCH

• With seven regular season games remaining, the Huskies need to pick up two spots in the GLIAC standings to qualify for the conference tournament quarterfinals on March 1.
• Currently, the team is tied at 2-9 with Davenport (DU has tiebreaker) and two game short of Purdue Northwest (4-7) for the final postseason position.

GLIAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK

• Ferris State's Solomon Oraegbu led the Bulldogs to a pair of impressive GLIAC home wins over the weekend as FSU stretched its winning streak to six consecutive games. 
• The sophomore standout averaged 23.5 points along with 5.0 rebounds in back-to-back wins over Michigan Tech and Northern Michigan.
• Oraegbu shot 54% from the floor on the week and went 19-of-21 (90.5%) at the free throw stripe.

SCOUTING THE WARRIORS

• Wayne State missed the GLIAC Tournament after closing out 2021-22 with a 5-18 overall record (4-16 GLIAC). The Warriors struggled mightily on the road (0-11).
• Head coach Bryan Smothers returned to coach his alma mater this year after spending time on the coaching staffs of Wayne State (other one), Michigan, and Niagara.
• Seven returners this season include Avery Lewis, Antonio Marshall, Ray Williams Jr., Kylin Grant, Tyree Martin, Cortez Jackson, and Nate Talbot. They joined seven newcomers.
• The Warriors play at Wayne State Fieldhouse (opened in 2021-22), also home to the Detroit Pistons G-League affiliate, the Motor City Cruise.
• Wayne State suffered its third consecutive loss Saturday, falling 61-48 to visiting Saginaw Valley State in Detroit.
• Lennox had a team-high 15 points and three assists, while Gordon scored a career-high 11 points (he had nine career points prior to today's contest).  Williams, Jr grabbed a team-best six boards. Wayne State shot 30 percent (17-of-56) from the floor, and just 28 percent (8-of-29) from beyond the arc.

SCOUTING THE CARDINALS

•  SVSU was selected to finish seventh in the GLIAC this season after tying for third place in the standings last year.
• Tre Garrett is a top returner after he averaged a career-high seven points per game, along with 1.6 steals.
• He has upped his rate to 15.5 points per game and shoots 55-percent from the field.
• So far, junior Freddie McIntosh has excelled in a larger role at guard this season. His 3.5 assists per game ranks fifth in the GLIAC.
• Head Coach Randy Baruth's Cardinals finished 19-11 overall in 2021-22, including 12-8 in the GLIAC.
• Michigan Tech and Saginaw Valley State split last year's season series with each team winning on their home court. Adam Hobson scored 11 points with five rebounds at SDC Gymnasium on February 17 in a 77-71 win.

BIG PICTURE

• Tech has been selected for entry in the NCAA Region Tournament two of the last three years and has not finished below .500 overall since 2018-19. 
• In 101 seasons, the squad has made 11 NCAA appearances and won three GLIAC Tournament titles.
• The Huskies were selected fifth in the D2SIDA preseason midwest region rankings poll.