2017 GLIAC Men's Basketball Tournament Central
BAY CITY, Mich. -- Major seeding implications for the 2017 GLIAC Men's Basketball Tournament came down to the final seconds of the conference schedule. The dust has now settled and the seeds have been locked in. Conference tournament quarterfinal action commences Tuesday, February 28th hosted by higher seeds in each contest.
The GLIAC champion Ferris State Bulldogs (24-4, 18-3 GLIAC) enter postseason play as the No. 1 seed and will look to make it a three peat in 2017 having captured the last two league tournament titles. FSU is paced by sophomore center Zach Hankins who leads the league in blocks and rebounds, while also ranking second in field goal percentage. The Bulldogs will face No. 8 Hillsdale (15-11, 11-9 GLIAC) who is led by junior sharp-shooting guard Stedman Lowry who has the Chargers rolling with five straight wins entering the tournament.
Taren Sullivan and Martyce Kimbrough guided their Findlay Oilers (22-5, 16-4 GLIAC) to the No. 2 overall seed in the GLIAC as king of the South Division. Winners of seven consecutive contests, UF shoots over 40 percent from beyond the arc as a team with four players averaging double figures in points. Grand Valley State (16-12, 12-9 GLIAC) landed in the No. 7 position after dropping its final two contests but will head to Croy Gymnasium on Tuesday at 7:00 PM with senior leaders guiding the way in forward Trevin Alexander and guard Luke Ryskamp.
Lake Superior State (16-9, 13-8 GLIAC) surged back from a late road deficit in the regular season finale on Thursday night at Northwood to prevail and capture the No. 3 seed and home-court advantage. LSSU is the lone GLIAC North squad to pick up a win over Ferris State this season and feature one of the most explosive players in the league in junior guard Akaemji Williams who averaged 21.4 points and 7.8 assists per game this season. Ashland occupies the No. 6 seed and will head to Sault Ste. Marie on Tuesday for a 7:00 PM matchup as a very well-rounded club with many contributors.
Michigan Tech is the No. 4 seed in both the men's and women's tournaments and will play host to a doubleheader in Houghton on Tuesday evening. Kevin Luke's Huskies can shoot the lights out while also featuring some presence in the paint. Freshman guard Tommy Lucca and sophomore forward Kyle Monroe give MTU an energetic offense for the next couple seasons. Wayne State fills the No. 5 slot and will make the trek up to Houghton and will rely on their stout defensive unit to stifle the Tech attack. A three-headed monster of junior standouts in Chuck Key, Ronald Booth and Marcus Moore anchor the Warrior lineup when the two programs meet on Tuesday at 7:30 PM.
For all information on the 2017 GLIAC Men's Basketball Tournament, head to GLIAC.org/MBB. And as always, check us out on Twitter @GLIACsports further coverage.
