SAULT STE. MARIE, Mich. - The Lake Superior State men's basketball team extended their win streak to four games as the team recorded an 88-73 victory over the Ferris State Bulldogs on Thursday, Feb. 10 in a Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) game at the Bud Cooper Gymnasium in Sault Ste. Marie, Mich. With the victory, the Lakers overall record improves to 14-7 and 9-6 in conference play.
First Half:
At the end of the first half, the Lakers held a three-point lead over the Bulldogs, 36-33.
Malek Adams opened the scoring with a layup at 18:53 of the first half but the Bulldogs would respond with eight straight points to go ahead, 8-2. Dorian Aluyi and Ben Davidson each netted threes for the Bulldogs in the stretch.
Kemon Bassett made a layup for the Lakers with 14:39 on the clock to cut the Bulldogs lead to four points (8-4). The Bulldogs responded with another five consecutive points, including a three-pointer by Reece Hazelton to lead by nine points with 13:24 to go in the first half (13-4).
The Lakers would answer with a seven-point run of their own to pull within two points (13-11) of the Bulldogs with 12:20 to play in the first half. Xander Okerlund made a three for the Lakers in the run.
After 10 minutes were played, the Lakers trailed by two points, 15-13. The final 10 minutes of the first half began with a nine-point run by the Bulldogs. Lee Higgins led Ferris in the run with seven of the team's points.
C.J. Robinson stopped the rally for the Bulldogs with a three-point jumper and brought the Lakers back within single digits of the lead (24-16).
With 6:05 left in the first half, the Bulldogs had built their lead to 14 points, marking their biggest advantage of the game (30-16). But, the Lakers would go on an impressive 22-point run to overtake the lead.
Fischer started the scoring run at 5:49 with a layup and Adams followed with a three-pointer to bring the Lakers back within single digits (30-21). Okerlund made his second three of the game with 4:40 left in the half and Robinson's second three-pointer of the game at 1:59 put the Lakers ahead by one (31-30).
Adams made three free throws in the final 1:23 of the half while freshman Kingsley Perkins made a layup as the Lakers capped off their 22-point rally. Bulldogs guard Jimmy Scholler made a three-pointer at the buzzer to close out the first half.
Second Half:
Ferris State made a layup on the first possession of the second half to pull within one point of the Lakers but the home team would quickly regain a six-point lead. Tyson Edmondson and Perkins both made field goals after each was set up by Robinson.
The Bulldogs would again chip away at the Lakers lead as Higgins made three straight free throws and a jump shot for his team to come back within a point of the Lakers (41-40) with 16:58 left in the half.
As the half played on, the Lakers would begin to build their lead over the Bulldogs. With 15:46 left in the game, Adams made a three pointer to go up by seven points, 47-40. Ferris would try to even up the game but the Lakers would extend their lead to double-digits after back-to-back threes from Robinson (58-48).
With 12:11 left in the game, the Lakers would begin a 10-point scoring run that would extend their lead to 17 points with 10:55 left to play (70-53). With 8:26 left in the game, the Lakers lead reached 21 points following David Wren's jump shot.
Ferris State would score 13 of the game's next 17 points as the visiting team pulled within 12 points of the Lakers with 4:01 left in the game (80-68). The Laker would not allow the Bulldogs to make a late comeback and the game ended with the Lakers securing an 88-73 GLIAC win.
Breaking Down the Win: Bassett led the team with 25 points in the win, as he tied his previous single-game career high. Bassett went 10-for-18 in the game from the field while also leading his teammates in assists with seven. Adams ranked second on the Lakers with 18 points in the victory while also adding six rebounds and four assists. Robinson rounded out the team's top three scorers with 12 points, as he went 4-for-7 in the game from three.
The Lakers finished the game with a 49.2 shooting percentage, going 31-for-63 in the game. On the other end of the floor, the Bulldogs went 24-for-57 in the game to total a 42.1 shooting percentage. Ferris State outrebounded Lake Superior State, 34-33, in the game.
What's Next
The Lakers will wrap up the pair of games on Saturday, Feb. 10 against the Northwood Timberwolves. Tipoff is set for 3:00 p.m. at Riepma Arena in Midland, Mich.
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