Northern Michigan University’s Sarah Newcomer readies to pass the ball to teammate Alyssa Hill, at bottom, during a college women’s basketball game played against Roosevelt at Vandament Arena in Marquette on Monday. (Photo courtesy Cara Kamps)

MARQUETTE — Two wins at home this weekend would go a long way toward keeping the Northern Michigan University women’s basketball team in the upper echelons of the GLIAC.

The Wildcats are in a three-way tie for second place at 5-1 with Wisconsin-Parkside and Ferris State, all trailing national No. 1 Grand Valley State at 6-0. While NMU is 11-3 after an 8-0 start to the season, the Lakers are 16-1, their only loss to NCAA Division I and Big 10 member Ohio State.

Northern hosts the next two teams behind them in the standings, Wayne State at 5:30 p.m. today and Saginaw Valley State at 1 p.m. Saturday at Vandament Arena.

The games can be watched online at the FloSports app and will be broadcast on radio station WUPT 100.3 FM The Point.

Fans can also follow @NMU_WBBall and @NMU_Wildcats on X (formerly Twitter) for updates leading up to and during the games, or visit the NMU athletics website at nmuwildcats.com and look under the women’s basketball schedule for links to live video, live statistics, ticket information, the weekend program, game previews and series histories.

“This weekend is going to be a battle,” Northern head coach Casey Thousand said. “The fight and grit no matter who we play against has been really good, and any given night can be anybody’s night, and we are excited about that.”

Though she has missed the Wildcats’ last four games, Jacy Weisbrod is fourth in the GLIAC in scoring at 15.5 points per game, scoring in double figures and making multiple 3-pointers in all but two games. Her 3.2 triples each contest still ranks No. 1 in the conference and No. 2 in NCAA Division II, while her 36.4% shooting on those long shots is also tops in the league.

Alyssa Nimz is second for NMU in scoring at 9.7 ppg after a career-high 18 points vs. Roosevelt, which Northern edged 60-56 at home on Monday. Nimz is also ninth in the GLIAC with 7.1 rebounds a contest.

Sarah Newcomer is third for the Wildcats in scoring at 8.7 ppg, while she is also eighth in the GLIAC at 3.0 assists a game and third league-wide with a 1.8 assist-to-turnover ratio.

Other than the near-perfect GVSU team, NMU has the lowest point-per-game output for opponents at 59.8.

Wayne State is alone in fifth in the league at 3-3, also 8-6 overall with a respectable 2-2 mark on the road. The Warriors dumped Purdue Northwest 98-54 at home on Saturday.

WSU is third in the GLIAC and in the top 30 nationally with 16.4 assists per game as Shea Tripp leads them in that department with 3.9 a contest.

She’s also her team’s scoring leader at 12.4 ppg, 11th in the GLIAC, with Taylor Thompson at 12.1 ppg and McKenna Ferguson at 11.6 ppg close behind.

The Warriors average 69.2 ppg while giving up 63.4 ppg, making 41.3% from the field overall and 31.7% on 3s.

All-time, Northern is 37-27 vs. WSU, including wins in their last three. Last season, NMU prevailed 81-66 in the regular season in Marquette and 51-48 in the GLIAC Tournament quarterfinals.

SVSU has the same 8-6 record as Wayne State but is only 2-4 in conference games, tied for sixth. Last week, the Cardinals dropped Purdue NW 80-56 before losing to Parkside 72-60.

A more overall defensive team than Wayne State, Saginaw Valley scores 61.6 ppg but gives up just 60.6. The Cards are also third in the league and in the top 30 in the nation with 11.7 steals per game, lead by Lydia Meredith at 2.6 and Saniaa Walker at 2.4 per outing.

Scoring-wise, despite less offense than Wayne State, SVSU sophomore Megan McCalla is second in scoring in the league at 17.4 ppg and third in shooting at 48.1%. Senior Aleshia Jones is a threat from the outside, averaging 14.9 ppg, making 44.8% on her shots and averaging almost two triples a game.

Overall, NMU is 58-33 in their series, including a 65-41 win last season in Marquette and 63-50 at University Center.

Story contents based on Northern Michigan University Sports Information press release previewing the games. Journal Sports Editor Steve Brownlee’s email address is sbrownlee@miningjournal.net.