Jan. 28, 2010

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Allendale, Mich. - Grand Valley State and #4 Michigan Tech played an instant classic on Thursday night (Jan. 28) in Fieldhouse Arena, with the Huskies coming away with the thrilling 75-71 double overtime victory. The game was a battle of the top two teams in the GLIAC, as MTU snapped the Lakers' seven-game winning streak. It was the first double overtime game for Grand Valley State since Feb. 8, 1996.

The loss was GVSU's first since Dec. 30, as the Lakers were 7-0 in 2010. Grand Valley State falls to 14-4 overall with a 11-2 GLIAC record, while the Huskies improve to 17-1 on the year with a 12-1 conference mark. The teams entered the game tied for first place in the GLIAC North Division and owned a tie of the top record in the entire league.

It was the second game this season that Grand Valley State has went into overtime. On Nov. 16, the Lakers lost their home opener 92-85 to Drury in one extra session. GVSU is 7-2 at home this season, with both losses coming in overtime. The last time Grand Valley State played a double overtime game was on Feb. 8, 1996 at Ferris State, with the Bulldogs winning 85-82. FSU was also the Lakers' opponent when GVSU played its last home double overtime game on Feb. 2, 1989. Grand Valley State knocked off the Bulldogs in that contest, 90-86. The longest game in school history was a 106-101 home loss to Ashland on Jan. 23, 1997 in a contest that went into triple overtime. GVSU has played just four games in program history that have went longer than one overtime and the Lakers are 1-3 in those games.

Michigan Tech controlled the early part of the game and looked like it might leave town with a blowout victory. MTU was on top 6-0 and 15-4 before Grand Valley State started to chip away at the lead. Trailing 19-9 at the 11:08 mark, freshman center Alex Stelfox made a jumper in the paint, followed by sophmore Emma Veach scoring on a layup. Freshman forward Paige Smith then scored on a short jumper and less than a minute later, junior Elizabeth Van Tiflin drained a three-pointer to make the score 19-18, capping GVSU's 9-0 run.

Veach's layup with 2:26 left in the half tied the score at 26-26 before Michigan Tech scored five points in 40 seconds, capped off by a Sarah Stream three-pointer. GVSU's sophomore point guard Jasmine Padin then made a pair of jumpers in the final minute to put the score at 29-28 at halftime. Both teams shot well in the first half, with the Lakers shooting 44.4 percent from the field and MTU connecting at a 40.7 clip from the floor.

Just 20 seconds into the second half, junior Kara Crawford scored on a jumper to give Grand Valley State its first lead of the game at 30-29. The game was so close throughout the final 20 minutes and the two overtimes that neither team lead by more than five points. GVSU owned the biggest advantage in the second half at three points.

With 3:29 to play in the second half, freshman Briauna Taylor scored on a jumper to give the Lakers a 50-49 lead. Michigan Tech answered back just 11 seconds later with a three-pointer from Katie Zimmerman to re-gain the lead, 52-50. The final points of the half would come at the 1:23 mark when Crawford's layup tied the score at 52-52. Both teams had chances to win the game, as MTU missed a pair of jumpers and GVSU misfired on one shot in the final minute.

In the first overtime, Grand Valley State went ahead quickly by five points, as the Lakers made their first three shots. After Michigan Tech took a one-point lead, Padin scored on a layup, followed by a layup from Stelfox, and a jumper from Veach. At the 3:05 mark, the Lakers led 58-53, which again was the biggest advantage after halftime.

MTU responded with two huge shots from beyond the arc. Guard Sarah Stream swished a triple with 2:41 remaining and less than 30 seconds later, Zimmerman gave the Huskies a 59-58 lead with a three-pointer of her own. With 30 seconds left, Veach drained a trifecta from the top of the key to put the Lakers back on top, 61-59. After a GVSU missed free throw, GLIAC Preseason Player of the Year Katie Wysocky, who was quiet for most of the night up to that point, scored on a layup at the buzzer, just getting the shot off before the clock expired.

The second overtime saw the score tied four more times, making that 14 ties in the 50-minute contest. After trailing 65-63, Taylor scored on a layup for GVSU to tie the score at 65-65. Wysocky answered with a bucket in the paint, which was quickly equaled from Stelfox's layup. Wysocky then nailed a pair of free throws, which the Lakers answered with two free throws from Veach. At this point, the score is tied 69-69 with 52 seconds remaining.

Wysocky, who scored eight points in the second overtime, then made a layup with 25 seconds left and after a Laker turnover and foul, Zimmerman drained two free throws to put the Huskies ahead, 73-69. Veach's layup with seven ticks remaining cut the lead to 73-71, but Zimmerman finished the game at the line with a pair of freebies to give Michigan Tech the 75-71 victory.

It was a remarkably well-played and clean game, considering the circumstances. The teams combined for just 25 turnovers (14 for MTU, 11 for the Lakers) and 23 fouls (14 on GVSU, nine on the Huskies). Michigan Tech shot 43.9 percent from the field, while the Lakers connected on 41.9 percent of its attempts. Grand Valley State won the rebounding battle, 42-41, while both teams had six blocks. GVSU had seven steals to Michigan Tech's four thefts.

Grand Valley State owned a 42-28 advantage in points in the paint, an 18-7 edge in second chance points, and a 20-6 total in bench points. The score was tied 14 times and the lead changed hands on 10 different occasions.

Veach led the Lakers with 19 points, nine rebounds, and five assists. She shot 8-of-12 from the field and turned the ball over just one time in 47 minutes of play. Stelfox scored 12 points on 6-of-11 shooting to go with three boards and three blocked shots. Taylor neared her first career double-double with 10 points and eight rebounds. Crawford played her best all-around game with seven points, nine rebounds, a block and a steal.

Michigan Tech was led by Wysocky's 21 points and 14 rebounds, while Zimmerman connected on all seven free throws for 19 points. Stream had 12 points, seven assists, and five rebounds, as all five MTU starters played at least 41 minutes.

The Lakers return to the home floor on Saturday afternoon at 1:00 p.m. against Northern Michigan.