Tiffin University (3-4) battled Saginaw Valley State throughout the first half, but a disastrous third quarter put TU in a hole they could not climb out of in a 78-57 loss.

With 1:56 left in the first half, the Cardinals held a slim 30-27 lead as both teams stayed within a shot of each other through the first two quarters. SVSU outscored TU 7-4 over the final two minutes to maintain the lead and head to the third quarter up 37-31 at halftime.

The game continued to be close in the third quarter, with Tiffin trailing just 39-34 at the 6:31 mark. The Cardinals used strong inside scoring to explode for a 25-7 run to finish out the quarter and put the game out of reach, ultimately outscoring TU 27-10 in the period.

SVSU outshot TU in the third quarter 52 percent to 17 percent, and overall the Cardinals enjoyed a 45 to 29 percent field goal edge. They controlled the paint, outrebounding the Dragons 50-34 and outscoring them inside 36-18.

Jessica Chase led the Dragons with 11 points and was the lone player in double figures. Jasmine Watts had 9 points with 4 rebounds.

Aarion Nichols and Maria Dobson followed with 7 points each, while Jada Tate had 4 points and a team-best 8 rebounds.