DULUTH, Minn. — Looking for a chance to finally defeat the Minnesota-Duluth Bulldogs, the No. 13 Michigan Tech Huskies men’s basketball team did just that in a defensive battle Friday night. They followed that up with a similar effort Saturday afternoon in a win over St. Cloud State.

With the wins, the Huskies improved to 5-1 overall and 4-1 in games played at a neutral site.

Fernholz, Tomashek combine for 40 points in win over St. Cloud State

The Huskies guards Ty Fernholz, a sophomore, and Marcus Tomashek, a senior, combined for 40 points in a 63-59 victory over St. Cloud State at the 2025 American Farmers Insurance Classic hosted in Duluth, Minnesota, Saturday.

SCSU dropped to 1-3 behind a 22-point performance by Fernholz, shooting 53.3% from the field, knocking down six of his 13 attempts from long range. Tomashek added 18 points, including nine straight points over the final five minutes of the game, while adding a team-leading eight rebounds and four assists.

“This team just really fights and finds ways to win,” said Huskies coach Josh Buettner. “Today it was Ty that was a huge spark, but it’s been different guys every game. We still have lots of room to improve, but I’m really happy for the guys.”

The two teams traded substantial runs in the first half, as Michigan Tech jumped out to a 7-0 lead with baskets by senior guard Nate Abel and sophomore guard Gabe Smith before a 3-pointer from senior guard Josh Terrian at the 16:48 mark.

Then, St. Cloud State strung together a 16-4 run extending to the 8:48 mark with a 3-pointer by Will Brands, forcing Tech head coach Josh Buettner to take a timeout, trailing 16-11.

Following the timeout, the Huskies gained an offensive boost by Tomashek and Fernholz combining for 22 points in the final 8:25 of the half.

The Huskies drew a play for Fernholz out of the break, knocking down a triple before Tomashek scored five-straight with an and-one on the low block and a layup before dishing a pass to Fernholz for another shot from downtown to put Michigan Tech ahead 25-24 with under five minutes to play in the first stanza.

The duo combined for the Huskies’ next eight points with Terrian hitting a timely banked floater with the shot clock expiring, making it a 35-28 advantage for Michigan Tech heading into halftime.

Tomashek added four rebounds and a team-leading three assists as Fernholz shot 66.7% for the half, shooting 6-for-9 from the field and 4-of-6 from 3-point land.

St. Cloud State struggled from the free-throw line, going just 2-for-8, while going 2-for-9 from 3-point range and succumbing to eight turnovers.

Senior forward Dawson Nordgaard was a focal point out of the gate in the second half, hitting two right hook shots to get the offense going in the opening minutes.

Michigan Tech’s offense continued to roll, jumping out to its largest lead of the game with under 13 minutes to play with two buckets by freshman guard Jesse Napgezk, making it 49-33.

However, St. Cloud State began to find an offensive spark as Michigan Tech struggled to find a basket for over five minutes. Luke Winkel and Lee Marks III contributed 11 points in an offensive barrage, cutting the Huskies’ lead to two points at 50-48, forcing a timeout by coach Buettner with 8:15 to play.

St. Cloud State claimed their first lead of the second-half following five points from Marks III, 53-52, following an and-one, marking their first lead since 24-22 in the first half.

Tomashek looked to find his groove, showcasing the first Tomshakek takeover of the 2025-26 season, scoring nine-straight points down the stretch to keep Michigan Tech ahead. Terrain had a timely steal with 15 seconds left, translating into a free throw by Tomashek. Winkel missed a 3-pointer for St. Cloud State with four seconds and Napgezek hit two free-throws at the end of regulation to decide the game at 63-59.

Wyatt Hawks had a double-double for SCSU with 12 points and 11 rebounds, as Winkel added 13 points and Marks III finished with 12.

No. 13 Huskies prevail in defensive battle against Bulldogs

The Huskies gritted out a physical defensive battle in a 57-48 decision over Minnesota-Duluth at the 2025 American Family Insurance Classic inside the Ramona Gymnasium Friday night.

In a game that showed the more physical team would win, Nordgaard led all scorers with 15 points on six-of-nine shooting to go with five boards and two steals. Napgezek impressed with 14 points on five-of-six from the field while going 4-for-6 from the charity stripe in 21 minutes.

Tomashek had 10 points, including a huge 3-pointer down the stretch to put the game away, as Abel and Terrian recorded a team-high seven rebounds.

The Huskies earned their first win over the Bulldogs on the road since the 2016-17 season, snapping a seven-game losing skid. Michigan Tech elevates to 4-1 overall as Minnesota-Duluth drops to 3-1.

“I’m really happy with our effort tonight, winning in that gym is a big-time accomplishment,’ said Buettner. “Outside of a two-minute stretch, I loved our focus. We have another huge challenge tomorrow.”

Both teams struggled to find offensive success in the first half as both teams shot under 20 percent from 3-point range and under 30 percent from the field. Halfway through the opening period, it was a 12-9 affair following a made 3-pointer by the Bulldogs’ Matt Thompson.

Nordgaard got up to six points with a basket with one minute to go and Matt Schmainda and Abel combined for three free throws to close the half ahead 23-21 after five ties and five lead changes in the opening 20 minutes of play.

Although Michigan Tech still struggled from long range in the second half, the Huskies shot 46.2 percent from the field and went 8-for-10 from the free-throw line in both halves. Gabe Smith gave Michigan Tech a boost in the opening minutes, scoring five points with a 3-pointer and a layup to give Michigan Tech its largest lead of the game at 32-24 with 15:59 to go.

By the 11:49 mark, the lead had grown to 10 points with layups by Nordgaard and Napgezek.

The Bulldogs would not go away quietly, finding a 13-point run to erase the sizable lead by the Huskies before a triple by Napgezek made it 40-37 to halt the scoring drought at the 8:12 mark.

Minnesota-Duluth made it a one-possession game multiple times down the stretch before the Huskies went on a 7-2 run with two free throws by Tomashek, a layup by Nordgaard and a triple by Tomashek with 49 seconds left, making it 53-46.

The home team would find a layup by Caleb Siweck before being forced to foul the Huskies, translating into two free throws made by Abel and then Tomashek to decide the game at 57-48.

Caleb Siwek led the Bulldogs with 12 points as Jackson Fowlkes added 10 points and Peyton Rogers corralled a team-high six rebounds.

Up next

Michigan Tech will play in front of its home crowd for the first time this season on Saturday, facing Lakeland at 2 p.m.