Northern Michigan University’s Sydney Whitehouse, center, drives the lane during a GLIAC women’s game played against Ferris State at Vandament Arena in Marquette on Feb. 15. (Photo courtesy Cara Kamps)

MARQUETTE — The Northern Michigan University women’s basketball team is in an advantageous position to host a first-round quarterfinal game in the upcoming GLIAC Tournament.

And the Wildcats could secure the No. 2 position that might also include hosting the semifinals and championship game if league leader and nationally ranked Grand Valley State falters in its quarterfinal.

NMU is 19-7 overall and 13-5 in the league headed into its final two games of the regular season — a game today in Kenosha, Wisconsin, against Wisconsin-Parkside at 6:30 p.m. EST, then on Saturday at Hammond, Indiana, against Purdue Northwest at 2 p.m. EST.

Northern is tied with Ferris State for second place. Parkside (17-8 overall) is right behind them in fourth place at 12-6, while Purdue NW (6-20 overall) is in second-to-last-place at 3-15.

Ferris’ schedule is similar to NMU’s in strength — the Bulldogs play at fifth-place Wayne State tonight and at eighth-place Saginaw Valley State on Saturday.

But the Wildcats should prevail in a tiebreaker with Ferris as Northern blitzed the Bulldogs by 27 and 30 points in their games this season.

Grand Valley has easily locked up the conference’s regular-season championship at 28-2 overall and 18-1 in league games. The Lakers moved back up to No. 2 in NCAA Division II in this week’s Women’s Basketball Coaches Association poll, not far behind No. 1 Texas Woman’s as the latter team received 12 first-place votes and GVSU got seven.

The highest-place team to survive the GLIAC tourney opening round on Wednesday gets to host the semifinals and championship game the following weekend.

Today’s and Saturday’s NMU games can be watched online on FloHoops and are also available on radio station WUPT 100.3 FM The Point. Or follow @NMU_WBBall and @NMU_Wildcats on X (formerly Twitter) for updates leading up to and during games, or visit the NMU athletics website at nmuwildcats.com and look under the women’s basketball schedule for links to live video, live audio, live statistics, game previews and team histories.

The Wildcats got into their current position with a 90-52 victory at GLIAC newcomer Roosevelt on Monday in Chicago. The 90 points was Northern’s highest point total this season and only the fourth time it has exceeded 80 points, and it also represented NMU’s highest output since scoring 93 vs. Lake Superior State in game in January 2019.

Northern broke open a relatively close 34-25 game at halftime to take a 61-39 advantage by the start of the fourth quarter.

Sarah Newcomer led four Wildcats scoring in double figures with 20 points, hitting 5 of 7 on 3-pointers and 3 of 3 free throws. Jacy Weisbrod contributed 16 points with a trio of triples, while Negaunee High School graduate Alyssa Hill had 14 points on 7-of-11 shooting and Sydney Whitehouse added 10 points coming off the bench as she hit a pair of 3s.

Northern’s 27 assists on Monday was its highest total in at least two decades, too.

In its previous game on Feb. 20, NMU lost at Michigan Tech 64-59 to break a five-game winning streak.

Like the Northern men, the Wildcats women’s team relies on defense for its success, ranking second in the league only to powerful GVSU in fewest points allowed per game at 57.4 as its offense is middle-of-the-pack in sixth at 65.8 ppg.

Weisbrod leads NMU and is eighth in conference scoring at 13.6 ppg, and led most of the season in GLIAC 3-point shooting, both in volume and accuracy. She still leads the league with 2.8 made per game, but has slipped to fourth in percentage at 37.7%. She was also 13th in the nation in 3-point makes entering this week.

Also averaging at least 7 ppg are Newcomer at 8.9 ppg, Alyssa Nimz at 8.4 ppg, Abi Fraaza at 8.1 ppg and Hill at 7.3 ppg. Nimz is tied for 10th in league rebounding at 6.7 per game and Mackenzie Holzwart 10th in assists with 2.8 per contest.

Parkside, just a game behind the Wildcats, is 6-4 at home this season and can brag about giving high-flying Grand Valley its only conference loss, a 79-77 decision on Feb. 15.

The Rangers are somewhat similar to NMU in scoring, ranking third in offense with 71.1 ppg and fifth in scoring defense at 64.9 ppg.

Their 43.2% field goal accuracy is second only to Grand Valley, while their rebounding is No. 1 at 41.4 each outing, a tenth of a rebound better than GVSU.

Parkside leading scorer Cassidy Arni is sixth in the league at 14.4 ppg, while Chloe Van Zeeland is at 12.0 ppg, Sheridan Flauger at 10.7 ppg and Peighton Nelson at 9.9 ppg.

NMU won their matchup in Marquette in early December, 72-67.

Purdue Northwest snapped an eight-game losing streak with a recent win at Lake Superior State, while Northern prevailed in their December matchup against the Pride at Vandament Arena 70-48.

Purdue NW’s scoring defense is by far the worst in the GLIAC at 80.3 ppg, seven points worse than anyone else, and they’ve scored 64.5 ppg, ranking eighth of 11 teams.

The Pride’s Alyssa Cole is right behind Weisbrod in scoring at 13.5 ppg, ranking ninth, while her rebounding ranks seventh in the conference at 7.0 a game.

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.