PREVIEW: Huskies host Wildcats on Senior Day

HOUGHTON, Mich. - The Huskies were scoreboard watching Thursday night and received positive news on all fronts with losses by Davenport, Purdue Northwest, and Wayne State.

With one game left to play, Michigan Tech has found its way back to the GLIAC Tournament and will be on the road Wednesday night. 

Before the team heads to the postseason, they have some unfinished business at SDC Gymnasium against rival Northern Michigan Saturday at 3 p.m. The final contest of the regular season will be broadcast via radio waves on Mix 93.5 FM WKMJ with accompanying FloSports video stream.

Locals can also catch the action on Fox-UP with Dave Ellis (play-by-play) and Mark Evans (color commentary). The Huskies will celebrate their senior players, Devin Schmitz and Eric Carl in a ceremony prior to tipoff.

LAST WEEK

• Last Thursday night's 71-70 victory over Purdue Northwest was critical for the Huskies chances to make the GLIAC Tournament.
• With 3.3 seconds left, Pete Calcaterra drove to the basket and made it to the free throw line to help Tech over the top.
• Calcaterra finished with a double-double of 22 points and 10 rebounds after shooting 9-for-16 from the field.
• The Huskies fell 76-58 to Parkside on Saturday at SDC Gymnasium.
• Adam Hobson had a positive outing with a team-high 15 points, but the Rangers scored 46 points in the paint and pulled away in the second half after a 22-5 run heading into halftime. 

SENIOR STATUS

• Senior guard Eric Carl developed into one of the GLIAC's premier 3-point shooters in 2020-21.
• After winning the Bob Olson Outstanding Newcomer Award as a freshman, Carl led the conference with 64 threes as a sophomore, including a season-high 24 points against Saginaw Valley.
• Carl scored 13 points in the Midwest Region Championship game against Truman State. 
• Last year, Carl finished fourth in the league in triples and started all 28 games, with 11.1 points per game.
• This winter, Carl is shooting a respectable 41.1 percent from downtown and has embraced a leadership role helping a group of talented freshmen adjust to the collegiate level.
• Carl is working toward a degree in Mechanical Engineering.
• Senior guard Devin Schmitz attended Dollar Bay High School before getting the chance to play for his hometown Huskies.
• After redshirting in 2018-19, Schmitz appeared in eight games in 2019 and another five in the pandemic-shortened 2020-21 campaign.
• Schmitz posted a career-high 11 points against Finlandia on December 15, 2021.
• He majored in sports and fitness management and with an added year of eligibility, may take the option to lace up the sneakers in 2023 but with graduation on the horizon, Schmitz's career may instead be wrapping up.

SCOUTING THE WILDCATS (20-7, 12-5)

• Michigan Tech suffered a 90-65 defeat to NMU at Berry Events Center on December 14.
• Dylan Keuhl had a 19-point, 17-rebound double-double.
• Max Bjorklund returned to the starting lineup and led the attack with 22 points, extending NMU's then-win streak to eight straight.
• Northern Michigan is in third place with one game left behind Ferris State (13-4) and Parkside (13-4). No tournament seedings have been determined in the men's standings yet.
• The Wildcats took care of business against Purdue Northwest on Saturday, February 18 in Marquette 84-78 and topped Wisconsin Parkside 73-47 last Thursday.
• Bemidji State transfer Bjorklund (Orono, Minnesota) leads the GLIAC in scoring (20.5 ppg).
• Kuehl (Iron Ridge, Wisconsin) ranks second in the league in rebounds (6.6 rpg) and third in field goal percentage (55.9-percent). 
• Freshman Max Weisbrod (DeForest, Wisconsin) has proved dangerous as well, with 11.9 points per game in 18 starts.
• Head coach Matt Majkrzak was hired by NMU to lead the program in 2019. 
• The 'Cats posted a stellar 18-12 season in 2021-22 and the team won nine of their last ten to reach the GLIAC Championship game for the first time since 2000.
• Northern Michigan defeated Michigan Tech in Houghton in the semifinals 78-71.
• The Wildcats posted the most 3-pointers in school history (292) last season and are on pace to do it again. NMU has the seventh best 3-point percentage in the GLIAC (36.3).
• They have been exceptional in protection of the basketball and top the conference with 9.9 turnovers per game, good for ninth best in Division II.

LEAGUE NEWS

• Ferris State guard Solomon Oraegbu tallied a personal career-high and game-best 38 points on Saturday as the Bulldogs knocked off league rival LSSU 72-58 in Sault Ste. Marie. He was named GLIAC Player of the Week.
• In FSU's lone action of the week, Oraegbu helped FSU avenge an earlier loss to the Lakers, scoring 38 points on 15-of-25 (60%) shooting in the triumph. 

Thursday Night Scores...

• Saginaw Valley -83 , Purdue Northwest -80
• Ferris State -90 , Davenport -75
• Lake Superior State -65 , Grand Valley State -57
• Wisconsin Parkside -69 , Wayne State -47

GLIAC Tiebreaking Procedures...

NCAA REGION RANKINGS

• The NCAA released its first region rankings on Wednesday.