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OH, SO CLOSE: Wildcat Ladies Fall To No. 2 Lakers
 This story was written by NMU Sports Information. Click the AUDIO button to hear comments from Wildcat Coach Casey Thousand. MARQUETTE, Mich. - The Northern Michigan women's basketball team (18-8, 12-5) took the No. 2 Grand Valley State Lakers (25-2, 16-1) to overtime on Thursday night at the Berry Events Center, but ultimately fell 74-67. Makaylee Kuhn was stellar, scoring 27 points on 11-19 shooting, with 17 of those coming in the second half and overtime. The Wildcats found themselves down much of the night, but continued to chip away and finally pull even on the last bucket of regulation, a three-point splash from Kuhn with eight seconds left, sending the game to an extra session knotted at 58 apiece. The Lakers scored the first four in the bonus five minutes and didn't look back, securing its 10th straight win while halting Northern's six-game winning streak. GVSU's Rylie Bisballe paced the Laker attack with 28 points. GVSU was first on the board with an early layup and three-pointer. Sophomore CJ Romero stole the ball back for the 'Cats to move the ball to senior Makaylee Kuhn for a clean two points and get the home squad on the board. Sarah Newcomer had a quick three-pointer in the first 30 seconds of the second quarter to hold a 13-9 lead, the largest NMU would see. The half remained close with the 'Cats within five points until Jacy Weisbrod's three-pointer and Ana Rhude's successful free throws pulled NMU to a two-point deficit, 29-27, to welcome halftime. Out of halftime, Weisbrod hit her second three pointer in the opening minutes of the half followed by a successful two points from Kuhn. With an assist from Weisbrod, Kuhn dropped another pair of points on the Lakers. Weisbrod grabbed two points of her own before Newcomer dropped a three pointer to keep the Wildcats within four points. With a ticking clock, Weisbrod had three successful free throws to combat the deficit. Newcomer and Kuhn grabbed three pointers to tie the game with seconds remaining in regulation. The back-and-forth scoring continued throughout overtime. Abi Fraaza and Kuhn had points early, keeping the 'Cats in the game. The Lakers were just out of reach at the end of overtime and took the 74-67 win. The Wildcats look ahead to honor their seniors on Saturday, March 2nd against the Davenport Panthers. Tip-off is scheduled for 11 a.m. at the Berry. |
