UNIVERSITY CENTER, Mich. – The Saginaw Valley State University men's basketball team rallied back from a 20-point deficit before falling 71-68 to Northern Michigan on Saturday evening. The Cardinals (8-7, 3-2 GLIAC) outscored the Wildcats (13-3, 6-1 GLIAC) 42-25 in the second half but couldn't close the gap completely before time expired.
Freddie McIntosh led the way for SVSU with 16 points, six rebounds, four assists, and four steals. Maurice Barnett added 12 points while Chansey Willis Jr. scored 11 points and hauled in six rebounds and dished six assists.
Northern Michigan started fast with a 19-3 run in the opening 6:30 minutes of play. The lead grew to 20 by the end of the half as the Wildcats held a 46-26 advantage at the break.
The Cardinals halved the deficit at 10:06 of the second before NMU extended things with a 5-0 run. SVSU responded with a 10-0 run that spanned 3:03 of play to put the score at 62-57 with 5:36 left to play. Willis Jr. hit back-to-back threes to hold the margin at six points before hitting two free throws to cut it to 69-65 with just under two minutes remaining. McIntosh chipped in with a big three-point jumper to bring Saginaw Valley State within a single point (69-68), but the Wildcats held on with two free throws at the end of the period to escape with the win.
UP NEXT
The SVSU men's basketball team will hit the road to face Davenport on Thursday, January 12. The Cardinals will tip things off with the Panthers at 7:30 PM.
