Lake Superior State vs. Northwood

Opening Tip        

Lake Superior State women's basketball closes out the 2015-16 season at home against Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference travel partner Northwood at 5:30 p.m. ET inside the Bud Cooper Gymnasium.

The Lakers (5-22, 4-17 GLIAC) look to snap a four-game losing streak on Thursday while the Timberwolves (16-11, 12-9 GLIAC) are looking to improve their seeding for the upcoming GLIAC Tournament. Northwood is currently tied with Northern Michigan for the final seed and need a victory or loss by the Wildcats against Michigan Tech on Thursday to secure a seventh place finish and a meeting with Saginaw Valley State or the Huskies in the quarterfinals.

Last Time Out for the Lakers

Last week the Lakers finished their road schedule for the season with games against Upper Peninsula rivals Northern Michigan and Michigan Tech.

The Lakers opened Thursday's contest against the Wildcats sluggish, falling behind 40-19 at halftime. Despite a better performance in the second half, the Lakers eventually fell 73-57.

Junior guard Mackenzie Edwards finished with 17 points to lead the Lakers in scoring. Seniors April LaCross and Megan Manninen each recorded four steals to help the Lakers record 11 thefts in the game and force the Wildcats into 26 turnovers. Freshman reserve guard Courtney Jacobsen scored 13 points on 4-of-5 shooting from the floor and was a perfect 4-for-4 from behind the arc.

Manninen led the Lakers with a season-high 15 points, matching her career-high, in Saturday's 78-52 loss against the Huskies. Manninen, a native of Ishpeming and playing in her final game against the Upper Peninsula rivals, also matched a season-high three shots made from behind the arc. Starters Rachel Novotny and Mackenzie Edwards each chipped in nine points, while freshman reserve guard Courtney Jacobsen scored 10 points for LSSU.

The road defeat against Tech on Saturday left the Lakers with a record of 0-13 away from home for the 2015-16 season.

The Series vs. Northwood

Against the Timberwolves all-time, LSSU holds a 48-24 advantage overall but Northwood has claimed the last six meetings between the teams.

When the teams met Feb. 1 in Midland, the Timberwolves captured a 73-57 victory. Jordyn Nurenberg, who leads NU and ranks second in overall GLIAC scoring with 17.7 points per game, scored 21 points, hauled in 12 rebounds and registered three blocked shots.

Nurenberg leads the Timberwolves and ranks third among GLIAC players with an average of 10.6 rebounds per game while shooting 57.8 percent from the floor, which ranks second in the conference.

Edwards led the Lakers with 17 points on 7-of-10 shooting from the field in the first meeting. Center Tamara Novic produced 12 points and five rebounds in 17 minutes of reserve action.

Laker Log

• Edwards leads LSSU scorers and ranks ninth in overall scoring with 14.5 points per game.
• Despite being a reserve in 26-of-27 games this season, Novic ranks second on the team with an average of 9.1 points per game and leads the team in rebounding with 4.5 rebounds per game.
• Novic leads the Lakers in field goal percentage with a 51.5 percent mark from the floor.
• Starting center Rachel Novotny ranks second on the team shooting 46.4 percent from the field.
• Novotny averages 6.3 points and 3.7 rebounds per game plus 1.1 blocks per game.
• Novotny is tied for ninth in the GLIAC for total blocks this season with 30.
• Manninen ranks seventh in the conference in overall assists per game with an average of 3.7 helpers per contest.

Keeping Tabs on the Timberwolves

• Following Nurenberg in scoring, the Timberwolves are bolstered by 15.6 points per game from senior Lauren Robak.
• Robak also contributes 3.2 rebounds and 1.4 steals per game.
• Maddy Seeley, a sophomore, contributes 12 points per game.
• The Timberwolves rank fourth in the GLIAC against conference opponents with 71.1 points per game.
• Overall, the Timberwolves lead the GLIAC with 20.5 free throw attempts per game.

Senior Night

The Lakers will host a special presentation to honor their three seniors Manninen, LaCross and Katie Wollan immediately following the game against the Timberwolves and prior to the men's game at 7:30 p.m.

Tickets

Tickets can be purchased online at http://lssutickets.universitytickets.com, or by calling the Norris Center Ticket Office at (906) 635-2602.

Laker Club

The LSSU Laker Club is the principle fundraising initiative for athletics at Lake Superior State University. With the help of a strong and active membership, the club will work to increase fan support at all LSSU athletic events. Membership also supports athletes in the classroom through Laker Club funded scholarships. LSSU athletes are high achievers inside and outside of the classroom.

Laker Club Membership Form