Women's Basketball Claims 74-65 Road Win Over Grand Valley State
| Final | 1 | 2 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Northwood (9-9, 7-5 GLIAC) | 26 | 48 | 74 |
|
Grand Valley St. (12-4, 8-4 GLIAC) | 26 | 39 | 65 |
The Northwood University women's basketball team earned its second straight win over a first-place team Saturday night (January 19), claiming a 74-65 road win over Grand Valley State.
Northwood, which beat Ferris State Thursday night, improves to 9-9 overall, 7-5 in the GLIAC. GVSU falls to 12-4 overall, 8-4 in the GLIAC.
Both teams struggled from the floor in the opening half, but the Timberwolves led the majority of the time. NU led by as many as seven, but a late surge by GVSU allowed the Lakers to tie the game 26-26 at the break. Northwood shot 25.8 percent from the floor (8-31) while Grand Valley State shot 37.0 percent (10-27).
GVSU got off to a strong start in the second half, scoring the first four points to take their biggest lead of the game. The Lakers eventually led 43-40 with 13:19 remaining when Northwood took over. The Timberwolves scored 20 of the next 24 points in less than eight minutes, putting Northwood up 60-47 with 6:58 to go. Grand Valley State got no closer than eight the rest of the way.
After struggling in the first half, Northwood's offense came to life after halftime. The Timberwolves scored 48 points in the second half, thanks to shooting 50.0 percent from the floor (12-24) and connecting on 23 free throws (23-27).
For the game, Northwood shot 36.4 percent (20-55) while GVSU finished at 40.3 percent (25-62). The Timberwolves earned the win at the foul line, out-scoring the Lakers 32-10 from the charity stripe.
Sophomore point guard Gabrielle Rivette (Fenton, Mich.) led the way for Northwood, finishing with a career-high 21 points. She also added seven rebounds, four assists and two steals. Backup point guard Janell Smith (Kalamazoo, Mich./Loy Norrix) also had a career-high 12 points for the Timberwolves off the bench. Aleigha Wylie (Hemlock, Mich./Midland) and Jordyn Nurenberg (St. John's, Mich.) added 11 and 10 points, respectively.
Northwood returns to action Thursday (January 24) against Michigan Tech. Game time is set for 8 p.m.