Women's Basketball Defeats Bellarmine 69-53

DETROIT, MICH. - The Northwood University women's basketball team earned their third straight win Friday night (December 19), downing Bellarmine 69-53.

The game was the opener of the Wayne State Holiday Classic.

Northwood is now 6-3 overall with the win. Bellarmine's five-game winning streak comes to an end - they fall to 5-2 overall.

After an evenly played start to the game, Northwood took control of the game in the later half of the opening 20 minutes. With the score tied 15-15, the Timberwolves rattled off 12 straight points to go up 27-15. NU led by as many as 14 before settling for a 33-21 lead at the break. Northwood's defense was the key to the halftime lead - Bellarmine shot just 20.0 percent from the floor (6-30). The Timberwolves finished the first half shooting 43.3 percent (13-30).

Northwood maintained control in the second half - the closest Bellarmine got after the break was 12 points. NU's biggest lead was 21 at 65-44.

For the game, Northwood shot 42.4 percent overall (25-59) while Bellarmine finished at 32.7 percent (17-52). The Timberwolves finished with a 44-32 edge in rebounding, which included a 22-11 edge in the second half. NU also had advantages in points in the paint (30-24), points off turnovers (20-13), second chance points (18-11) and fast break points (12-2).

Lauren Robak (Clarkston, Mich./Our Lady of the Lakes) led all scorers with 21 points, going 8-16 from the floor and 3-7 from 3-point range. Gabrielle Rivette (Fenton, Mich.) had 13 points, 10 of which came in the second half. Aleigha Wylie (Hemlock, Mich./Midland) narrowly missed out on a double-double, finishing with 10 points and nine rebounds.

Northwood will finish the tournament with a game against Salem International. Tip off is scheduled for 2 p.m.