ACCIDENT — Northern hit seven 3-pointers in the first half and led for most of the night, leading to a 63-50 win over Clear Spring on Friday in the Igloo.
The Huskies (8-10) shot 7 of 18 (38%) from beyond the arc in the first half and had five players hit a triple in the first quarter.
“A little bit sloppy, we just played the other night, played a great game against Turkeyfoot,” Northern assistant coach Shaun Peck said. “A few bad passes, didn’t rebound well. Jayden (McNally) didn’t have his best game, he still had a great game, but not his best.”
Head coach Jeremy Johnson was suspended for Friday’s game after receiving two technical fouls in a game earlier this week.
Northern opened the game on a 12-4 run and led 21-11 after one.
A 3-pointer from Ansen Miller with 5:23 left in the frame put the Huskies ahead for good.
“They do rely on it quite a bit,” Peck said of the 3-point shooting. “We shoot a lot, we make a pretty decent percent of it, like 33, 34 percent, so I’ll take that.”
Miller finished with 12 points, a steal and a block.
Trailing 32-20 midway through the second quarter, the Blazers (5-15) went on an 8-4 run to end the half and cut the halftime deficit to 36-28.
Jayden McNally scored nine of the Huskies’ 15 second-quarter points, finishing with a game-high 22 points along with four assists, two steals and a block.
Northern forced 10 turnovers in the third quarter and scored 11 points, leading by as many as 12 points in the opening minute.
“We switched into that 1-3-1 (defense) for a little bit, and then they went back into man,” Peck said. “Just kind of came together, plus they were short-handed. They had seven, so I’m sure them getting tired had a role.”
Leading 49-38 after three, the Huskies outscored Clear Spring 14-12 in the final quarter.
Aiden Pickerel scored 10 points with two steals and two assists for Northern.
“I don’t know, they just come around,” Peck said of the offense gaining momentum in the fourth. “I don’t know what makes them hot, they just kinda find something. Aiden hit a couple shots from the corner and they all kinda followed suit.”
Wyatt Albowicz paced the Blazers with 19 points, adding four steals and three assists. Teammate Colin Griffin finished with 10 points, two assists, a steal and a block.
Northern plays at No. 1 Southern (11-6) on Saturday, then hosts Bishop Walsh (4-16) on Monday at 5:30 p.m.
Clear Spring’s junior varsity won 53-36 led by B. Fogle’s 17 points and B. Wills with 10.
First names were not available for the Blazers.
Hunter Long led the Huskies with 11 points.