UNIVERSITY CENTER -- Saginaw Valley State University climbed out of a big hole, but Northern Michigan University hit crucial shots down the stretch and held off the Cardinals 81-78 in O'Neill Arena Saturday.
     SVSU fell behind by 20 points in the first half, 42-22 with 7:20 left in the first half, but chiseled away at the lead and pulled within six points late in the period.
     NMU went back up by 12 points early in the second period, but the Cardinals ran off 11 straight points and eventually took the lead 65-64 with 6:33 left in the game.
     The lead changed hands 10 times down the stretch and the Cards had a 78-77 lead with 1:30 remaining. Damian Matacz hit a layup with 59 seconds left to put NMU ahead to stay.
     The Cardinals missed a shot on their next possession and Wildcat senior Cory Brathol nailed a long two-point jumper as the shot clock was running out to put his team up by three points.
     After a timeout, SVSU's Josh Ode (Freeland) couldn't connect on a potential tying three-pointer with four seconds left and the Cards were saddled with their third loss of the week.
     Brathol led all scorers with 36 points, while Matacz was the only other Wildcat in double figures with 21 points and a game-high 11 rebounds.
     Senior Rashard Carson (Toledo, OH/Rodgers) led SVSU with 20 points, including 16 in the first half. Junior Vernon Malone (Kankakee, IL) scored 18 points off the bench and junior Sean Stewart (Tyler, TX/John Tyler) added 10 points. Carson and Stewart, a pair of 6-0 guards, led SVSU with eight rebounds.
     Senior guard Brian Vaughn (Saginaw/Buena Vista), who returned Thursday night from a knee injury that sidelined him for 12 games, played only four minutes in the first half.
     Northern Michigan out-shot SVSU 47.6 percent to 38 percent from the floor.
     NMU won its ninth straight game to improve to 11-3 overall and leads the GLIAC North Division with an 8-2 mark. The Cardinals fell to 7-9 overall and 2-8 in the league.
     SVSU faces a critical stretch of games in pursuit of a GLIAC post-season tournament berth. The Cards will play five straight North Division opponents on the road, beginning next Saturday at Lake Superior State University.

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