NMU Women's Basketball Falls Flat In 4th Quarter

This story was written by NMU Sports Information. Click the AUDIO buttons to hear post-game comments from Coach Casey Thousand, and

MARQUETTE, Mich. - The Northern Michigan University women's basketball team (12-9, 7-5) battled it out against the Saginaw Valley State University Cardinals (12-9, 7-4), falling by a slim 46-43 margin at the Berry Events Center on Thursday.

Mackenzie Holzwart led the team with 10 points and three assists, while also accumulating four rebounds. Following behind her was Makaylee Kuhn with eight points. She also cleaned the glass for 10 rebounds, all on the defensive end. Tori DePerry led the Cardinals with a dominant 21-point, 14-rebound double-double.

Turnovers plagued the Wildcats, as they fumbled it over to SVSU 17 times while the Cardinals committed just nine mishaps. SVSU also had 17 points off NMU turnovers. NMU shot 19-55 (34.5%) from the floor while SVSU was 15-52 (28.8%). SVSU got to the line much more often than the 'Cats, converting on 13-17 (76.5%) while NMU saw just a 1-3 (33.3%) clip.

After a slow start to the game that saw the offenses struggling early, both teams finally hit double-digits by the end of the quarter. Vivianne Jende and Abi Fraaza were the leaders during the opening ten minutes, each adding 4 points. NMU went into the second quarter with a 3-point lead, 14-11.

The second quarter was a whirlwind with the Cardinals catching up to the 'Cats. Two more buckets came from Fraaza while Mackenzie Holzwart and Sarah Newcomer added a couple of connections from beyond the arc.

NMU jumped ahead 26-16, but SVSU broke out on a 12-0 tear to gain the lead. A Sarah Newcomer triple in the final seconds gave NMU the slightest 29-28 edge at the halftime break.

The 'Cats continued to shoot hot from deep, with Holzwart and Newcomer each connecting on their second of the game in as many attempts. NMU maintained a 39-36 lead with the final 10 minutes approaching.

With over half of the final quarter in the books, NMU remained scoreless while SVSU added 10 points to go ahead 46-39. Despite closing it down to three with a couple of buckets late, the Wildcats fell short 46-43.

Mackenzie Holzwart was the lone Wildcat to dip into double figures, scoring 10 points on the night. She added four rebounds and three dimes for a balanced scoresheet.

Makaylee Kuhn pulled down 10 rebounds with eight points.

Tori DePerry had an impressive 21 points and 14 rebounds. She also contributed four steals.

The Wildcats held the lead for nearly 70% of the contest.

Each side shot cold from the field, with NMU shooting 19-55 (34.5%) while SVSU was 15-52 (28.8%).

SVSU got to the line much more often than the 'Cats, converting on 13-17 (76.5%) while NMU saw just a 1-3 (33.3%) clip.

Northern also struggled keeping care of the ball, turning it over 17 times. The Cardinals committed just nine.

You can catch the Wildcats back in action when they take on the Wayne State University Warriors in the Berry Events Center on February 4, 2023 at 1 p.m.