BIG RAPIDS -- The Cardinal Men's Basketball hit the road and faced the No. 17 Ferris State University Bulldogs on Thursday (Feb. 6) afternoon. Ferris State was about to come out on top in the end, defeating Saginaw Valley by a final count of 84-65 in the GLIAC matchup.
FSU improves to 21-4 overall and 10-3 in the GLIAC while the Cards fall to 14-7 overall and 8-5 in league action.
The first half began with SVSU taking a quick 4-0 lead but Ferris State eventually worked its way out to double-digits and led by as many as 14 points with the score at 35-21 as 1:35 remaining in the half. Delano Smith made a layup with just over a minute left for the last bucket of the half and send the game to the break with the score 35-23.
The Bulldogs shot 37.5% (12-32) from the floor in the first half while the Cards hit on just 24.1% (7-29) of their shots.
Myles Belyeu had a team-best five points and three rebounds through the opening 20 minutes while Smith and Sebastiano Lamonato added four points-apiece. Innocent Nwoko had a game-high five rebounds while Malik Ellison led the game with five assists in the first.
Ferris State's lead grew to as many as 21 points (57-36) with 12:01 showing on the clock but would shorten to 11 points after a Cardinal run, mainly paced by four triples from Darnell Hoskins Jr. That had the score at 71-60 in the Bulldogs' favor with 3:29 to play.
The Bulldogs distanced themselves from there again, however, and would eventually close-out for a 19 point victory with the final score 84-65.
Inside the Boxscore
- Hoskins had a big second half, scoring 17 points in the final 20 minutes. He finished with a game-high and matched his season-high with 19 points. He hit on 5-of-10 shots from beyond the arc, adding four rebounds, an assist and a steal to earn Meijer "Player of the Game" honors.
- Smith finished with 14 points, 10 of which came in the second half. He added a game-high eight rebounds with an assist and steal.
- Belyeu netted 13 points and six boards, also adding an assist and steal.
- Ellison added nine points with eight assists and five boards.
- Fred John Jr. had seven rebounds and four points.
Up Next...
The Cardinals continue on the road to play at Lake Superior State on Saturday (Feb. 8) afternoon. SVSU has the second game of that day versus the Lakers and tip-off is slated for 3:00 p.m. in Sault Ste. Marie. You can follow that game live at svsucardinals.com.
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