David Archambeau/For the Gazette Michigan Tech guard Pete Calcaterra attempts a layup during a game against St. Cloud State on Wednesday, Nov. 27, at the SDC Gym in Houghton.

By DAVER KARNOSKY

dkarnosky@mininggazette.com

HOUGHTON — With a win over St. Cloud State last Wednesday, the Michigan Tech Huskies men’s basketball team is riding a wave of positive feelings as they open their GLIAC season with a pair of games this weekend against Wisconsin-Parkside and Purdue Northwest.

After knocking off St. Cloud State, the Huskies are 4-3 overall. Coach Josh Buettner was pleased with how quickly his group was able to turn things around, but still feels that they have a long way to go.

“I think we tried to keep it positive, and, obviously, St. Cloud had beaten us two years (in a row), so I think they were pretty motivated for it,” he said. “It was the home opener, a team that we hadn’t played well against, and, honestly, just because you win the one against a ranked team, doesn’t mean you’re a good team yet. We have a long way to go, and I think the guys are hungry to try to show that they’re an improved team. I thought they did that on Wednesday.”

Buettner is happy with his team holding a winning record as they hit the opening weekend of conference play.

“With how good the teams are, and with the first six all being on the road, I think we’re in an OK spot,” he said. “The games we lost, I think the teams, they beat us, I don’t think we’ve given any away yet. Obviously, I would have liked to play a little bit better on a couple of those road games, but credit to it, we felt like we weren’t that sharp defensively against Winona (State), and they’re beating everybody. I’m assuming they’re going to be a Top-20 team this week when the polls come out.

“We played really good competition. I think it’s done a nice job of preparing us for a conference.”

In the win over St. Cloud, Buettner felt that the Huskies played their best game of the season offensively.

“I think offensively, for sure, it was the most complete game we had,” he said. “Defensively, I don’t think we were bad, and it was pretty good. It did feel like a little bit at the beginning where things were going so well for us offensively, that we forgot about playing defense a little bit. It’s a little more comfortable doing that at home, because I think you can keep scoring.

“When we were at Winona, it felt like we were getting in that, we were scoring with them. In the beginning, it felt like a similar start of the game. It’s just when you’re on the road against a good team, it’s harder to maintain that scoring, and it kind of played out that way. I do think we got a little sloppy when they pressed us for just a little stretch at the end of the first half against St. Cloud, and that kind of kept it a game, and credit to them. They played hard the entire game for kind of being down with a pretty young team on the road. They kept coming at us.”

One of the bright spots offensively was the effort of senior guard Pete Calcaterra, who put up 11 points in the game.

“When Pete’s engaged, and at his best, he’s a very, very good player, and a very impactful player,” Buettner said. “He just can’t disappear at times, and a lot of that starts in practice, too. There’s days in practice when he’s really good, and there’s days when you’re just trying to get him going. The more consistent he gets, the better he’s going to be, because he’s a very good basketball player.”

Looking ahead to this Thursday and Saturday, Buettner wants the Huskies to play like they have the last two games.

“It’d be a shame to not put your best foot forward against these two teams, both of them are well-coached and Parkside’s getting their best players back off of injury here,” he said. “They’re both probably better than their records say they are. They’re two games (where we) just want to make sure that we’re doing what we can do, come out very focused defensively, and keep sharing the ball and trying to do the things we’re emphasizing offensively, as well.

“It would cause a lot of regret. You have these two games, and there’s a pretty long break before you get into conference games, that’s (why we are saying) don’t waste an opportunity to put your best foot forward.”

SCOUTING THE RANGERS

The Wisconsin-Parkside Rangers come to Houghton Thursday 2-4 overall after a win over Concordia-Chicago last Tuesday, 93-67.

The Rangers are led offensively by fifth-year forward Nick Brown, who is averaging 15.3 points per game. Junior guard Jack Rose is also off to a fast start, averaging 12.5.

Where the Rangers have struggled is on the boards, where they average three less than their opponents night in and night out.

SCOUTING THE PRIDE

The Purdue Northwest Pride come into this weekend 2-4 on the season having defeated Great Lakes Christian College last Tuesday, 120-74. They do have a quality win in a 96-86 victory over then-No. 12 California State-Dominguez Hills on Saturday, Nov. 16.

The Pride are led by junior guard Collin Albert, who is averaging 16.8 points per game. Senior guards Detalian Brown (15.3) and Jailen Nelson (15.3) are also off to hot starts.

Senior guard Dalton Gayman leads the team in rebounds with 8.8 per game. Add to that an average of 9.6 points per game, and he is close to averaging a double-double every night.

GAME TIMES

The Huskies and Rangers will do battle Thursday night at 7:30 p.m. at the SDC Gym in Houghton. On Saturday, the Huskies and Pride are set to tip-off at 2 p.m.