Michigan Tech guard Marcus Tomashek drives around a Lake Superior State defender during a game Saturday, Feb. 15, at the SDC Gym in Houghton. (David Archambeau/For the Gazette)

HOUGHTON — A year ago, the Michigan Tech Huskies men’s basketball program was at a crossroads of sorts. They had gone 10-20, and 11-17, and had lost a quality junior guard in Dan Gherezgher to the transfer portal.

The Huskies opened the season with wins over Missouri-St. Louis and Maryville, but then dropped three straight to Winona State, Concordia-St. Paul, and then No. 6 Minnesota-Duluth.

Michigan Tech was set to face Minnesota State-Moorhead, the No. 3 team in the country at that point.

Then-junior guard Marcus Tomashek pulled off an incredible effort, going 15-of-29 from the field, including 4-of-9 from three, scoring 40 points as the Huskies held off the Dragons.

“From a coaching standpoint, the thing you could look at there is I was preaching the years before, when we were struggling at times, that if we take care of the ball, and we defend, then we’re going to have a chance in every game,” said Huskies coach Josh Buettner. “And people just don’t believe that. They believe that you need to score. We were struggling at times, and it’s like, ‘Well, your offense isn’t.’ Offense doesn’t matter until you take care of the effort and the competing.

“You know what, down the stretch of that game, it sounds overly simple. We put our four best defenders out there and guarded our butts off for 10 or 11 minutes. Marcus took care of the offense. When you have a player as special as Marcus, that formula kind of worked out where it kind of laid the formula that the guys that are going to defend, rebound, do the little things, and maybe not the flashy things are going to play. It kind of set the tone. Honestly, it gave you a belief, too, (that) you can beat anybody in the country.”

The Huskies did just that the rest of the season. They defeated St. Cloud State, Wisconsin-Parkside, Grand Valley State, No. 8 Ferris State, Grand Valley State again, No. 20 Ferris State again, No. 15 Lake Superior State, Northern Michigan, Wisconsin-Parkside again, and Northern Michigan again in the NCAA Region Tournament.

“Last year, honestly, was pretty special,” Buettner said. “Got picked a little bit lower. I think two years ago, we were a better team than our record showed. By the end of the year, we were playing as one of the best teams in the league. But, losing a starter late to the portal, and coming back, I don’t know, the teams knew what we were going to be, and, honestly, it just kind of came together. Guys really bought into roles and played for each other. The year ended up pretty special, accomplished some pretty cool things.”

Buettner said that even after defeating Moorhead early in the year, it wasn’t until a home weekend in mid-February, where the Huskies defeated nationally-ranked opponents in Ferris State and Lake Superior State in back-to-back games that it was clear this was a special season for the Huskies.

A lot of the scoring burden fell on the back of Tomashek, who averaged 23.2 points per game, which put him among the leaders in the country. He shot 34.5% from beyond the arc as well.

“Marcus is a special player,” said Buettner. “You don’t achieve the things he’s achieved without that. The biggest thing Marcus brings is a confidence. When he walks on the court, he’s thinking he’s the best player out there, and he brings a level of confidence to the whole group. Some of that is, ‘We have Marcus. We’re going to have a chance here.’

“That’s not making him a one -an show. If we guard our butts off, do all the little things, and play like we know we’re capable of, he’s going to give us a chance to beat anybody.”

A big reason for why Buettner can feel so confident about his team defense is the play of senior guards Josh Terrian and Nate Abel.

“Josh has been, honestly, the heart and soul of all this since he’s been here,” Buettner said. “He started every game, and the game we’ve looked the most lost since I’ve been the head coach was the game that Josh Terrian was sick, and didn’t play down in Ferris a couple years ago.

“The transformation of Nate coming here to what he is now is just spectacular. When he came here, he was kind of a high-volume shooter, scorer-type player. He realized if you want to get on the court, you need to defend and move the ball. The two things he does so, so well for us is he gets us playing with some pace, he gets it out in transition, and finds shooters. (He) gets us some great looks early in the clock before the defense can get set.”

The Huskies also saw incredible growth last season from then-junior forward Dawson Nordgaard. Nordgaard averaged 8.7 points per game, and 3.5 rebounds. While the rebound numbers themselves aren’t that impressive, Buettner loves how well Nordgaard defends around the basket, which creates opportunities for his teammates to get those rebounds.

“I’ll say this to anybody, I was really happy he ended up getting Second Team All-Conference,” said Buettner. “He definitely should have been on the All-Defensive Team. I thought he was the best five man in the league when it came to guarding pick and rolls, which is probably the most important part of basketball.

“We could do any coverage we wanted with him. His rebounding numbers don’t stand out, but he’s one of our best box-out guys that opens it up for everybody else to rebound. He’s just an integral part of everything we do.”

The Huskies will miss the contributions of Adam Hobson, Pete Calcaterra, and Brad Simonsen, who brought senior leadership in key moments last season, but their playing time will likely be filled by players like sophomore guard Ty Fernholz, who averaged 10.8 points per game, and redshirt sophomore guard Gabe Smith, who averaged 6.8 points per game.

“Ty is … he’s just a special shooter,” Buettner said. “We knew that coming in. I’m assuming he probably gets Freshman of the Year, if he doesn’t get mono and miss 10 games. But, he needs to take his steps too. It’s the same thing. He needs to build on it and grow on it.

“Gabe was a redshirt freshman, but just seeing him unlock some of that. His curve is very, very high on what he can achieve. There’s still a ton of room for him to grow. So, excited to see where those guys go.”

The Huskies will also turn this season to a number of other players, like redshirt junior guard Drew Barrie, junior guard Matt Schmainda, redshirt junior forward Peyton LaCombe, and sophomore forward Grant Warren to fill in at specific points throughout the season as well.

“It’s awesome. We feel like 10-11, for sure, (that) can help us, and not just eat up minutes, but have a positive impact, and be really good players to help you win games,” said Buettner. “It’s definitely exciting. It shows really good things for your program.”

The Huskies have brought in four players who could challenge for playing time themselves very quickly. Guard Jesse Napgezek, forward Jacob McPhee, who is a Marquette native, and forward Justin Bliesner are ready to go already, and the fourth, a guard named Conner Cameron, who is the son of former Huskies’ great Matt Cameron, and the nephew of former Huskies player and coach Kim Cameron, is gaining by leaps and bounds as well.

“I like that they’re coming to work every day and getting better,” Buettner said. “I think only three of them will probably end up redshirting. Jesse’s been a really good surprise. He was kind of a late add. Jesse’s a really talented kid that might work to get himself some minutes this year. Jacob’s a U.P. kid, absolutely plays his butt off, which that high motor is becoming a skill that’s a lost art to find it. He’s a strong, athletic kid that plays really, really hard, and is starting to figure some stuff out.

“Justin has played some high level, and is doing some really good things. He has a bright future. Connor, obviously, the Cameron family has done huge things for Michigan Tech. He’s getting there. He’s doing some really good things, just needs to get bigger and stronger.”

Small College Basketball Hall of Fame Classic

The Huskies open the season on Nov. 1 and 2 by taking part in the Small College Basketball Hall of Fame Classic in Lakeland, Florida. The Huskies drew Dallas Baptist and Lenoir-Rhyne for their two games.

The Patriots went 34-5 last season, getting to the Elite Eight, where they defeated Lake Superior State before falling to Cali State-Dominguez Hills in the semifinals, so they will prove a very tough test for the Huskies to start the season.

Michigan Tech guard Nate Abel leaps to attempt a layup during a game against Lake Superior State Saturday, Feb. 15, at the SDC Gym in Houghton. (David Archambeau/For the Gazette)