Lakers push past Huskies 79-74

ALLENDALE, Mich. – Dan Gherezgher posted 20 points and Brad Simonsen scored 10 off the bench but Michigan Tech fell 79-74 at Grand Valley State Thursday night in Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference basketball.

The Huskies led by as many as 11 in the second half, but Marius Grazulis (17 points, nine rebounds) rallied the Lakers late to snap Tech's three-game win streak. 

"Our guys fought hard and we did some really good things, especially early," said head coach Josh Buettner. "We just have to continue getting better in critical situations. It was great to see Dan finishing at the rim and we got a number of contributions off the bench."

Michigan Tech (7-16,4-10 GLIAC) travels to Davenport Saturday to conclude the road trip.

The Huskies led 33-29 at halftime and pushed the lead to 11 with 10:20 remaining on Gherezgher's free throw. The Lakers made frequent trips to the line and garnered layups to close back to a one possession margin.

Isaiah Carver-Bagley rattled in a three with 3:37 to play and Grand Valley State pulled ahead 68-66. Tomashek completed a 3-point play in the lane but Carver-Bagley's dunk at 1:10 helped GVSU regain the two-point edge with 1:10 to play.

A turnover and subsequent jumper by Trevor Smith made it a two-possession game and the Huskies ran short on time. The Lakers earned 38 free throw attempts and converted 26 (68.4-percent).

The Huskies shot 45.6 percent from the floor (26-57) and 35.7 percent (10-28) from beyond the arc. GVSU pulled down 37 rebounds compared to Tech's 31 and MTU's assist-to-turnover ratio evened out 11-11.

Michigan Tech dropped to ninth place in the GLIAC Standings with four games remaining in the regular season.