SUPERIOR, Wis. – The Yellowjacket men's basketball team hasn't played a game inside Mertz Mortorelli Gymnasium since Dec. 13. After taking part in St. Norbert's holiday tournament and going 1-1 prior to the new year, the Yellowjackets finally returned home in over three weeks, resuming conference action against Northland College.
 
The home court advantage swayed in the 'Jackets' direction, leading to a 74-51 decision over the LumberJacks.
 
UWS commenced its offensive attack with a jumper from Josef Fahrenholtz (Chatfield, Minn./Chatfield), which was followed by a swift steal from Andrew Kunelius (Caledonia, Minn./Caledonia), leading to the steal-and-score. Shortly after T.J. Moberg (Champlin, Minn./Champlin Park) nailed a jumper of his own, and just like that the 'Jackets had a swift 6-0 lead. Northland began to counter, but Fahrenholtz hit a layup and nailed a shot from downtown, nulling the LumberJack momentum.
 
Northland came back and tied the game from Stephen Kesti and Jordan Brennan hitting jumpers, which led to Brennan draining a shot beyond the arc for a three-point edge. J'Vaun Walker (Rosharon, Texas/Manvel) responded with a layup, who was followed by Kunelius with a three pointer and layup.
 
Play would continue as Evan Bennett (Superior, Wis./Superior Senior) checked in the game and nailed a quick three pointer after a LumberJack timeout, who took a nice feed from Walker to gain a five-point lead at 26-21. The Yellowjackets would power it on in the remaining six minutes of play, receiving points courtesy of Andrew Beers (Slinger, Wis./Slinger), Reid Johnson (Chatfield, Minn./Chatfield), Moberg and Walker to end with an 11-point lead at 37-26.
 
The 'Jackets continued to pour it on in the second half, limiting the LumberJacks to just four points in the first ten minutes. Beers, Walker and Johnson began the offensive output, who was followed by Ty Melchert (Green Bay, Wis./Green Bay Southwest) nailing a jumper for an 18-point lead at 46-28. From there head coach Greg Polkowski turned to his bench, and just 30 seconds into the game freshman Max Briggs (Woodbury, Minn./New Life Academy) drilled a trey after receiving a feed from Melchert.
 
Northland began to chip away at their deficit, but the Yellowjackets continued to pour it on, as Walker nailed back-to-back layups and Kunelius hit another three. Melchert finished a layup, then on the 'Jackets' next possession gave a perfect feed to Beers for the slam dunk, giving UWS a 32-point lead at 70-38.
 
In the closing minutes of the game, Micah Young (Minneapolis, Minn./Edison) would check in and nail both a jumper and layup to cap the Yellowjacket scoring. 18 different Yellowjackets would see time on the hardwood as they finished the game with a 74-51 victory. Fahrenholtz led with 15 points and eight rebounds, while Kunelius and Walker ended with 12 points. Beers grabbed six boards on the afternoon, while Johnson and Melchert had four.
 
The Yellowjackets (8-5, 1-2 UMAC) will face their final non-conference opponent Tuesday, traveling to Sadoff Gymnasium on the campus of Marian University. Opening tipoff is slated for 6 p.m.