BIG RAPIDS, Mich. - The Lake Superior State men's basketball team fell to the Ferris State Bulldogs by a final score of 95-80 in a Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) game on Thursday, Jan. 20 at the Jim Wink Arena in Big Rapids, Mich. With the loss, the Lakers overall record sits at 9-5 and 4-4 in conference play.
First Half:
After the two teams were tied at four after the first two and a half minutes, the Lakers would take over the game by scoring the game's next eight points. Both Kemon Bassett and Justin Fischer made three pointers for the Lakers as the team led 12-4 at the 16:15 mark of the half.
After Malek Adams capitalized on a turnover to steal the ball, Xander Okerlund made a three-point jumper to put the Lakers up 17-8 with 12:54 left in the opening half. David Wren's jump shot at the 11:36 mark extended the Lakers lead to double digits as the visitors led 21-10.
C.J. Robinson kept the Lakers ahead by 10 points with less than 10 minutes to go in the half when he made a three-point jumper (27-17). After Fischer made two free throws for the Lakers with 8:59 left on the clock, the Bulldogs began a scoring run that would bring them back within two points of the Lakers. Lee Higgins and Mykel Bingham each scored from three in the stretch as Ferris trailed 29-27 with 7:05 left in the first half.
With 4:43 left on the clock, Jimmy Scholler made another three for the Bulldogs as the home team pulled within a point of the Lakers (31-30). A dunk by Dorian Aluyi with under four minutes to play gave the Bulldogs the lead for the first time in the game (32-31).
After Ferris State went up by three points, Wren scored on a shot from beyond the arc to tie the game. Less than a minute later, Wren added another three-pointer to regain the lead (39-38). The Bulldogs scored the final five points of the first half to lead 43-39 after twenty minutes of play.
Second Half:
Fischer added the first two points of the second half as he made a layup to bring the Lakers within two points of the Bulldogs (43-41). Ferris State responded with five straight points to hold a seven point lead within the first two minutes of the half (48-41).
Back-to-back field goals from Bassett brought the Lakers within three points with 16:29 left on the clock, and Adams' three-pointer at 14:46 made it a one point game, in favor of the Bulldogs (49-48). The game remained close through the next stretch of play as three points separated the two teams with Ferris leading 54-51 with 12:23 left in the second half.
The Bulldogs offense began to expand the lead as the game played on as the team went up by nine points (63-54) when Walt Kelser made a three pointer with 9:59 left. Ferris State was holding onto the double-digit lead until freshman Hunter Soper made a three-point jump shot with 6:20 left in regulation to bring the Lakers within seven points (72-65).
However, the Lakers were unable to overtake the lead in the final minutes of play as Ferris' offense closed out the game strong to clinch the win by a final score of 95-80.
Breaking Down the Game:
Adams finished the game with 19 points to lead his teammates against the Bulldogs. The redshirt senior guard went 3-for-6 from three in the game and was tied for the team-lead in assists with five. Wren ranked second on the Lakers with 16 points as he went 7-for-12 in the game and added four rebounds. Fischer rounded out the team's top three scorers as he finished the night with 13 points.
Soper recorded a career-best nine points in the game as he was tied with Adams for the team-lead in three pointers. Soper went 3-for-6 from three against Ferris State.
The Lakers finished the game with a 45.0 shooting percentage, going 27-for-60 in the game. On the other end of the floor, the Bulldogs went 35-for-70 in the game to total a 50.0 shooting percentage. Ferris State outrebounded Lake Superior State, 50-28, in the game.
What's Next
The Lakers will return home for an afternoon game against Northwood University on Saturday, Jan. 15 at 3:00 p.m. in the Bud Cooper Gymnasium.
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