Ferris State Men's Basketball Rolls Past NMU To Complete Weekend League Sweep

Coach Bronkema Postgame Interview 

Big Rapids, Mich. - The Ferris State University men's basketball squad completed a weekend home sweep as the Bulldogs rolled to a 96-79 triumph over the Northern Michigan Wildcats on Saturday (Jan. 16) afternoon in Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) action at FSU's Jim Wink Arena.

The Bulldogs improved to 13-3 overall and 7-3 in the GLIAC by beating the Wildcats for their second home win in as many contests after a big victory over Michigan Tech on Thursday evening.

In Saturday's tilt, FSU jumped out to a 43-36 halftime lead against Northern Michigan and then tallied 53 second-half points while nearly reaching the century mark. NMU dropped to 4-10 overall and 2-8 in the GLIAC with the loss.

The Wildcats, who are guided by former Ferris State head coach Bill Sall, kept the game close early, but never lead after the opening two minutes of action. FSU shot 50% in the first half and connected on eight-of-16 (50%) three's to jump in front.

Ferris State finished shooting 51.6% overall and sank 11-of-25 (44%) three's while knocking down 21-of-31 (67.7%) free throws. It marked the second-straight game in which the Bulldogs made 11 three's on their home floor at Wink Arena.

Senior forward James Chappell got the Bulldogs off to a quick start and finished with 20 points and seven rebounds against NMU. Meanwhile, junior guard Quentin Ruff came off the bench and tallied a personal career-high 20 points in a Bulldog uniform while sinking six-of-nine three's to get offensive going.

Ferris State placed five in double-figure scoring as senior center Jared Stolicker came on late to finish with 17 points and 12 rebounds in another double-double performance. FSU also received 11 points from sophomore forward Noah King, including three treys, along with 10 by sophomore guard Drew Cushingberry.

In addition to the scoring output, FSU also outrebounded NMU 39-32 for the day and tallied 14 offensive boards to nine for the Wildcats. Ferris State outscored Northern Michigan 17-10 in second chance production.

Junior guard Marcus Hall paced Northern Michigan with 19 points and the Wildcats also received 14 from guard Jordan Perez along with 11 by senior guard Terry Nash. NMU shot 49.1% overall and was five-of-12 (41.7%) from downtown along with 18-of-24 (75%) at the line.

Ferris State's offensive attack was aided by strong ball distribution as the Bulldogs dished out 24 assists, including eight from Cushingberry and six by senior guard Jibreel Jackson. The Bulldogs also were strong on the help side with nine blocked shots and totaled four steals, which helped lead to a 25-9 margin in fast break production. Stolicker paced FSU with five blocks while redshirt freshman center Zach Hankins had three for a FSU team that leads all levels of college basketball in blocks per game.

Northern Michigan netted 13 assists with five from point guard Naba Echols and totaled four steals with three blocks in the game.

Finally, the Bulldogs also received 39 points off the bench to only 20 for the NMU reserves.

Ferris State will hit the road for its next three outings starting with a visit to Northwood on Thursday, Jan. 21, at 8 p.m. (ET) in Midland. FSU will not return home until hosting current divisional leader Saginaw Valley State on Jan. 30.

With Saturday's win, FSU moved into a tie for second place in the GLIAC North Division standings behind the Cardinals.