SAGINAW, Mich. -- The Northern Michigan Wildcat men's basketball team battled back from an 18-point deficit but couldn't finish an upset bid of Saginaw Valley State on the road Friday night as they fell to the Cardinals, 83-73.

The Northern Michigan University team came out strong in the first half with sophomore Ben Wolf leading the charge, posting 12 points through the first 20 minutes of action. At the half, the Wildcats trailed the Cardinals by four, 40-36, looking to overtake the lead in the second half.

The team nearly did just that as they cut the Cardinals' lead back to four points late in the game but when the final buzzer sounded it was SVSU walking off the court with the victory.

After facing an 18-point deficit in the second half, the Wildcat men came storming back to nearly knot things up, forcing SVSU to call a timeout with 5:37 left with the score flashing 68-62 on the board. 

The Wildcats continued to pressure the Cardinals but were unable to overtake the lead late as they ultimately dropped night one on the road to SVSU.

Justin Kuehl and Dolapo Olayinka both scored 15 points for NMU. Wolf added 14.

Myles Beyleu had 19 points and Malik Ellison adcded 17 points for the Cardinals.

NMU takes the court again Saturday afternoon, looking to avenge Friday's close loss. That game is scheduled to get underway at 3 p.m., and it will be broadcast on FM-100.3 in Marquette and FM-93.5/AM-600 in Escanaba.