Northern Michigan University women’s basketball team clamps down on defense for 47-40 win at Davenport

Northern Michigan University’s Sarah Newcomer protects the ball while driving to the basket during a game played against Wisconsin-Parkside at Vandament Arena in Marquette on Dec. 7. (Photo courtesy Cara Kamps)
- Northern Michigan University’s Sarah Newcomer protects the ball while driving to the basket during a game played against Wisconsin-Parkside at Vandament Arena in Marquette on Dec. 7. (Photo courtesy Cara Kamps)
- Northern Michigan University’s Alyssa Nimz, center, gets fouled while driving toward the basket during a GLIAC women’s basketball game played against Wisconsin-Parkside at Vandament Arena in Marquette on Dec. 7. (Photo courtesy Cara Kamps)
The Wildcats broke a two-game losing streak from before Christmas to improve to 9-2 overall and 3-0 in the GLIAC, good for a tie for the top spot with Grand Valley State and Ferris State.
NMU faces GVSU at 1 p.m. today in Allendale as the Lakers are ranked No. 1 the country at 13-1 overall and 3-0 in league after beating Michigan Tech 93-52 also Thursday.
Davenport, meanwhile, is skimming along near the bottom of the conference at 1-2 and 3-8 overall.
Twice the Wildcats didn’t have a double-digit scoring quarter, but in each of those periods — the first and third — neither did the Panthers.

Northern Michigan University’s Alyssa Nimz, center, gets fouled while driving toward the basket during a GLIAC women’s basketball game played against Wisconsin-Parkside at Vandament Arena in Marquette on Dec. 7. (Photo courtesy Cara Kamps)
The big difference was Northern’s 22-point second quarter that turned an 8-4 deficit at the start into a 26-21 advantage by halftime.
The Wildcats played DU just about even in scoring over the last two quarters to get the win.
NMU did it with balanced scoring and good rebounding. Sarah Newcomer and Mackenzie Holzwart scored 12 points apiece to pace Northern as Holzwart made 4 of 5 free throws and grabbed 10 rebounds.
Teammate Alyssa Nimz added eight points and led Wildcats rebounders with 11 as each team pulled down 40 caroms.
Northern’s Alyssa Hill, a Negaunee High School product, scored six points and grabbed nine rebounds while making two steals.
Both teams had rather anemic shooting, though the glaring stat had to be NMU’s 3-point production — or lack of it — as the Wildcats made good on just 1 of 17 shots from long range, a 5.9% success rate. That might’ve been expected as Weisbrod is not only Northern’s, but the GLIAC’s leading 3-point shooter in both volume and percentage made. She’s already made 32 of them in 10 games, and with 88 tries, hits at a 36.4% rate.
Davenport was led by Lillee Gustafson with 12 points and a game-high 15 rebounds.
The Panthers led throughout the game’s first 17 minutes, though NMU made its first inroads when CJ Romero made a fast-break layup with 5:57 left in the second quarter to pull her team within 13-12.
After about three more minutes, Northern find caught all the way up, tying it 16-16 on a Newcomer jumper. That came in the middle of a 7-0 run that produced a 19-16 NMU lead with 2:25 left before halftime on a Holzwart “traditional” three-point play, a layup and free throw.
The Wildcats took a five-point lead, 26-21, into halftime, and it never got bigger than that in the third, though they kept a 35-30 advantage headed into the final period.
Northern then built its biggest lead, 39-30, two minutes into the fourth following Holzwart and Hill layups. But the Panthers had one more run in them, going on a 7-0 streak to cut the deficit to 39-37 with 5:12 left.
NMU’s lead remained at one or two possessions just about all of the rest of the way.
Information compiled by Journal Sports Editor Steve Brownlee. His email address is sbrownlee@miningjournal.net.