This story, photo courtesy of NMU Sports Information. Click the AUDIO button to hear RRN's Casey Ford interview NMU Coach Matt Majkrzak.
KENOSHA, Wis. – Cal Klesmit exploded for a career-high 30 points to lead the Northern Michigan Wildcats to an 82-78 victory over the Parkside Rangers in the GLIAC opener on Thursday night.
With a previous career-high of 13 points, Klesmit more than doubled his best, shooting 9-19 (47.4%) from the field, 6-10 (60%) from three, and a perfect 6-6 from the free throw line, including two in the closing seconds that helped ice the game. The redshirt sophomore hit three triples in each half and added five rebounds, two assists, and two steals.
His scoring came at crucial moments. He hit two threes in the early minutes to help NMU start strong. He added another six points late in the first half to withstand a Parkside run and send the game to halftime in a deadlock. After a couple of early buckets in the second half, he went on a personal 8-0 run to help NMU pull away.
Behind Klesmit, Dylan Kuehl added 18 points along with a career-high seven assists and seven rebounds. Trevor Polite reached double figures for the first time in his career with 10 points on a perfect 4-4 from the field, also contributing five rebounds and three assists. Charlie Miller added 10 points, including the final two free throws in the closing seconds, to make it a two-possession game.
Luka Mateski and Paxton Warden each scored 23 for the Rangers.
Northern attempted 12 more shots than the Rangers, going 31 of 65 (47.7%) from the field and 10 of 23 (43.5%) from three. Parkside had similar numbers, shooting 47.2% from the floor and 45.8% from beyond the arc.
The Wildcats committed a season-low five turnovers, fueling a 15-2 advantage in points off turnovers.
Northern improves to 5-1 overall and 1-0 in the GLIAC, while the Rangers fall to 3-2. The win also marks NMU's sixth straight victory in the series.
