The University of Minnesota Duluth tipped off their regular-season home schedule in the 21st American Family Classic Friday night with a convincing 84-62 victory over Northern Michigan University at Romano Gymnasium in Duluth, Minn.

Senior forward Alex Illikainen got the Bulldogs (2-1 overall) rolling on their first possession with a three-pointer from the top of the key to grab an early 3-2 advantage. But it was the Northern Michigan Wildcats (1-2 overall) who would jump ahead on an early 10-3 run . The Bulldogs would answer with a 7-0 run of their own, beginning with senior guard Logan Rohrscheib cashing in on three from the left corner. A couple minutes later, fellow senior guard Trevor Entwisle would knot things back up at 10 with a lay-in. The Bulldogs, who shot 44.4% in the first half, played catch up for most of the opening 20 minutes. With under four minutes left in the first half, UMD would reclaim a 26-24 lead when redshirt freshman guard Drew Blair found an easy path to the basket for a lay-in, taking advantage of the Wildcat defense falling asleep. Northern Michigan answered back with 30 seconds left on a floater from 10 feet, which left the game deadlocked at 31 going into halftime. Illikainen paced the Bulldogs in the first half with 12 of his 24 total points on 4-of-8 shooting with two rebounds and one assist. 

The Bulldogs jumped out of the gates in the second half with a 21-4 run to take command of the game. A three-pointer in transition from Blair highlighted the run and gave the Bulldogs a 48-35 advantage with 14:30 remaining. Turnovers fueled the Bulldog's second-half surge, UMD's defense forced seven turnovers in the second half. Later in the half, Illikainen, left alone at the top of the key, converted on another three and Blair beat the Wildcat defense for a contested layup to put UMD ahead 57-38. Reigning Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference North Division Player of the Week, senior forward Brandon Myer, pushed the Bulldog lead to 20 with just over 10 minutes remaining on a three from the left-wing. Freshman guard Jack Middleton followed Myer up with a three of his own on the very next possession. Sophomore guard Hunter Plamann used a shot fake and drive to the basket for a left-handed layup to add his name to the scoring column and help secure UMD's second win on the season.

Notables:
The Bulldogs turned seven Wildcat turnovers into 13 points in the first half ... on the night, UMD would force 14 Wildcat turnovers ... Nine Bulldogs made it into the scoring column including Illikainen (24 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists), Blair (14 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists), Myer (13 points, 8 rebounds, 2 assists), Rohrscheib (7 points, 0 rebounds, 1 assist), Entwisle (6 points, 1 rebound, 3 assists), senior forward Yalim Olcay (6 points, 1 rebound, 0 assists), Plamann (5 points, 1 rebound, 3 assists), Middleton (5 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist), and sophomore guard Mason Steffen (4 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist) ... on the night, UMD shot 55.4% from the field and 40.9% from the three-point line ... despite the win, the Bulldogs were outrebounded by the Wildcats 34-27.

Up Next: 
The Bulldogs will return to Romano Gymnasium tomorrow evening for the second and final game of the American Family Classic. They will take on Stonehill College with tipoff set for 5 p.m.