The Northern Michigan University men's basketball team won all three games in sunny Puerto Rico this weekend, using its entire roster, and improving to a best-in-school-history 11-1 season record.
The following summary and photos are courtesy of NMU Sports Information.
SATURDAY GAME RECAP
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – The Northern Michigan men's basketball team won its 10th straight game on Saturday night, defeating UPR Bayamon 97-54 to sweep the Puerto Rico Clasico heading into the holiday break.
The Wildcats had it going from beyond the arc throughout the night, knocking down a season-high 17 three-pointers. Cal Klesmit led the way with seven triples and a game-high 23 points, while Jackson Dudek went 3-3 from deep and added 14 points. Dudek is now 24-41 (58.5%) from three this season. Isaiah Allen also reached double figures with 13 points.
As they have all season, Northern controlled the glass, 42-24, and the assist column, 22-9. Every Wildcat recorded a rebound, and Charlie Miller led the team with five assists.
The Wildcats also forced Bayamon into 19 turnovers, turning them into a 27-7 advantage in points off turnovers. Northern notched a season-high 16 steals, while Klesmit's four paved the way.
Northern continued to showcase its all-around efficiency while improving to 11-1 on the season. NMU ranks first nationally in scoring defense (57.3) and assist-to-turnover ratio (1.9), while also sitting in the top three in both scoring margin (27.1) and rebound margin (14.3).
FRIDAY GAME RECAP
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – The Northern Michigan men's basketball team won its ninth straight game Friday night, defeating UPR Rio Piedras 81-42 in game two of three at the Puerto Rico Clasico.
The Wildcats jumped out to a 15-0 lead and never looked back, controlling the game wire-to-wire. NMU carried a 38-20 advantage into halftime and stretched the margin to as many as 40 in the second half.
Dylan Kuehl led Northern with 15 points, while Jackson Dudek added 13. The Wildcats shot 30-66 (45.5%) from the field and 11-31 (35.5%) from beyond the arc. Defensively, NMU limited Rio Piedras to 11-44 (25.0%) shooting and just 4-18 (22.2%) from three, forcing 18 turnovers and holding a 22-4 edge in points off turnovers.
NMU is now allowing just 57.5 points per game, the top mark in all of Division II. The win also improved its scoring margin to +25.6, ranking fourth nationally, and its rebound margin to +14.0, ranking second.
THURSDAY GAME RECAP
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – The Northern Michigan men's basketball team opened the Puerto Rico Clasico with a commanding 85-47 victory over Interamericana on Thursday night.
NMU dominated the glass 46-16 and offensive boards 13-2, leading to a 17-2 edge in second chance points. With such command on the glass, eight Wildcats grabbed at least three rebounds, while no one from Interamericana managed more than two.
The Wildcats shot 30-63 (47.6%) overall and 11-30 (36.7%) form beyond the arc. Northern was lock down on defense as they've been early this season. The Tigres were 15-51 (29.4%) from the field and 3-25 (12.0%) from three. NMU's points allowed per game dropped below 60 to 59.1.
Interamericana got off to a good start with the first three points and a 13-12 edge just over six minutes in, but the Wildcats started to get hot to reclaim the advantage. Cal Klesmit knocked down a pair of threes and a key 13-0 run late in the first half had Northern in front 39-24 at the break.
Charlie Miller and Jackson Dudek each hit a three early in the second half in an 8-0 run to build a sizable 51-30 lead. Another 12-0 came in the middle stages of the half to stretch the lead over 30 and the 'Cats didn't look back from there, getting 16 guys on the court, with no one playing over 22 minutes.
Dudek led the way with 19 points, going a near-perfect 8-9 from the floor and hitting both of his shots from three. Klesmit added a dozen and Brooks Hinson also reached double figures with 11. Isaiah Allen and Ross Robertson each went 4-5 from the field for eight points and Keller Hanson hit each of his triple attempts for six points.
Dylan Kuehl led NMU with eight rebounds and eight assists. Cristopher Soto led Interamericana with 10 points.
