DETROIT -- After a 17-day break, the Wayne State University men's basketball team (2-6, 2-3 GLIAC) hosted Grand Valley State (7-4, 3-2 GLIAC) on Friday night to open 2015. The Lakers topped the Warriors 72-64. WSU trailed by as many as 16 in the second half and a late comeback attempt would fall short as GVSU won its fourth straight. The Lakers led the entire contest and the game was tied just once, 2-2, in the opening minutes.
Marcus Moore (Lansing, Mich. / Waverly) pulled WSU within one at the 14-minute mark. A jumper from
DeMarius Miller (Bolingbrook, Ill. / Romeoville) kept GVSU's lead at one, 13-12, with 11 minutes remaining in the half. However, the Lakers controlled the rest of the opening stanza going on a 10-0 run to extend their lead to 23-11.
Back-to-back jumpers from Moore and
Tristan Wilson (Ann Arbor, Mich. / Skyline) to end the half put the halftime deficit at five, 30-25. Wilson finished with a team-high eight first-half points. The Lakers' post play provided the edge for GVSU as it collected 16 points in the paint compared to WSU's eight.
Michael Lewis (Ann Arbor, Mich. / Huron) cut the visitor's lead to three, 30-27, with a jumper to open the second half. The deficit shrunk to two, 33-31, after a
Gavin Toma layup at the 17:33 mark. The Warriors were left searching for the game-tying or go-ahead basket as the Lakers quickly regained their 10-point lead on a layup from Ryan Sabin, who finished with a game-high 19 points. The lead ballooned to 16 with 12:39 left to play and would stay in double-digits until the 6:17 mark.
With just over two minutes to play and trailing by 12, Lewis knocked down two free throws and
Joel Ndondo (Ajax, Ont. / Christian Faith Center Academy) split a pair of free throws to bring WSU within nine, 71-62. A
Chuck Key (Detroit, Mich. / Cass Tech) bucket cut GVSU's lead to seven, 71-64, with 49 seconds remaining but WSU ran out of time and fell 72-64.
Lewis led the Warriors with 14 points, while Moore chipped in with 13 points. Wilson added a career-high 11 points and three blocks.
WSU hosts Ferris State on Sunday at 3 PM. The Bulldogs are receiving votes in the latest NABC Coaches Poll and are off to a 9-2 overall start including a 5-0 league mark.
