PITTSBURGH, PA. – Despite holding No. 6 Gannon Golden Knights to its second-lowest scoring performance of the season—20 points below its average—the No. 16 nationally ranked Michigan Tech Huskies couldn't find consistent offense, falling 75–49 in the Elite Eight at UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse on Wednesday to end the program's historic NCAA Tournament run.
Veterans Dawson Nordgaard (12 points) and Nate Abel (11) led the Huskies in scoring, while Gabe Smith pulled down a team-best 12 rebounds, including five on the offensive glass. Ty Fernholz added nine points, and Jesse Napgezek chipped in off the bench as the Black & Gold battled throughout.
"First off, give a lot of credit to Gannon—they're really good," said Michigan Tech head coach Josh Buettner. "You don't have the season, record, or statistics they have without being a great basketball team. This was also a great experience for our guys. They came here to compete, not just to be here, and I was proud of a lot of what we did.
"We did many of the things we needed to do to compete in this game. Holding them to the low 70s is as good as anyone has done this year. The challenge is, if you can't score 70 in an Elite Eight game, it's tough to win. I'm really happy for our seniors—they battled through adversity, kept believing, and this is a special group."
No. 6 seed Michigan Tech (29–7) struggled offensively in the opening half, shooting just 20.7 percent from the field (6-of-29) and 15.8 percent from three-point range (3-of-19), while Gannon's aggressive full-court pressure forced 10 first-half turnovers. Fernholz accounted for all three first-half triples for the Huskies to lead the team with nine points, while Nordgaard added eight.
Meanwhile, the Golden Knights seized control early with a 9–0 run and carried a 38–21 lead into halftime. Mackenzie Morgan led the way with 12 points, while All-American Pace Prosser and Precious Idiaru each added 10.
Michigan Tech improved its shooting in the second half, but Gannon responded by shooting 51.9 percent (14-of-27) to maintain control. The Huskies trimmed the deficit to 10 points following a second-chance three-pointer from Abel off a rebound by Napgezek with 11:37 remaining, but the Golden Knights quickly pushed the lead back to double digits and eventually to 20, cruising to the 75–49 victory to advance to the Final Four.
The loss marks the end of the collegiate careers for seniors Abel, Nordgaard, Josh Terrian, and Marcus Tomashek.
Tomashek closes his career as one of the most decorated players in program history—a two-time NABC All-American, two-time D2CCA All-American, Midwest Region Tournament MVP, Midwest Region Player of the Year, and GLIAC Player of the Year. He finishes second all-time in program history with 2,452 career points while standing as the NCAA Division II active career leader in scoring and several other offensive categories.
After the game, Abel reflected on his time with the program.
"I'm just so thankful for the guys who bought into the program. Looking back on our careers, I'm incredibly grateful, and I want them to continue having success and earning recognition in the years ahead."
The 2025–26 season will be remembered as one of the greatest in Michigan Tech history, as the Huskies tied a program record with 29 wins, captured their first Midwest Region Championship, and secured a second consecutive GLIAC regular season title behind a veteran core led by a two-time All-American.
