UNIVERSITY CENTER, Mich. – The Saginaw Valley State University men's basketball team fell behind Lake Superior State in the second half in an 83-72 loss on Thursday night in Sault Ste Marie, Michigan. Despite the loss, the Cardinals (11-12, 6-7 GLIAC) remain in the sixth spot in the league standings as the postseason approaches.

Freddie McIntosh set a new career-high in points with 29 as the sophomore guard from Saginaw, Michigan shot 11-21 from the floor to lead SVSU in the losing effort. Chansey Willis Jr. tallied 13 points and added four rebounds and assists. Tre Garrett scored 10 points and had two rebounds and assists. Jiovanni Miles contributed eight points off the bench for the Cardinals.

The Lakers hopped out to a 9-3 lead in the opening five minutes of the first half. Garrett and Maurice Barnett hit layups and Tyrik Singh completed both of his free throw attempts to pull the margin to 11-9 at the 14:00 mark. The Cardinals kept things close until a 5-0 run by Lake Superior State gave the game its first 10-point gap. LSSU remained ahead until a free throw by Willis Jr. knotted things at 34 with 39 seconds remaining on the clock, but the Lakers were able to hold onto a 36-34 lead as the teams entered the locker room at the break.

Four-straight points from the Cardinals gave the team their first lead in the opening three minutes of the second half. A 6-0 run flipped the advantage back to the Lakers where it would stay for the remainder despite Saginaw Valley State coming within one point of catching the home team several times during the final period.

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The SVSU men's basketball squad will continue to battle for postseason position with a road trip to Big Rapids to face Ferris State on Saturday afternoon at 3:00 p.m.