Feb. 10, 2011

Box Score

Ashland, Ohio - Coming off of a gutsy and draining overtime victory at Lake Superior State last weekend, #22 Grand Valley State was unable to pull off a second straight comeback win, falling at Ashland on Thursday night (Feb. 10) by an 82-75 score. The Eagles shot 52.2 percent from the field and made 29 free throws, but had to hold off a late push by GVSU and a game-high 27 points from Justin Ringler before finishing off the win.

Grand Valley State falls to 16-6 overall with the loss and the Lakers own an 11-4 GLIAC record. GVSU, riddled with injuries, has dropped three of its last four contests. Ashland picks up its second top-25 upset at home this season, as the Eagles move to 12-9 on the season and 6-8 in league play.

While Grand Valley State shot 41.2 percent from the field (well below its 47.4 percentage entering the game), the Lakers stayed close thanks to 12 three-point field goals. GVSU did pull down 16 offensive rebounds (doubling Ashland's total of eight), but the Eagles owned a 37-33 overall edge on the boards. AU also shot 29-of-40 from the free throw line and made 52.2 percent of its field goal attempts in the win.

Ashland came out of the gates quickly, pushing to a 10-0 lead at the 16:45 mark, while the Eagles held GVSU scoreless for nearly the first four minutes of the game. Grand Valley State then shook off the early struggles by scoring 13 of the next 18 points to get within 15-13 with just over 10 minutes to play. The Lakers used three-point shooting to pull back into the game, as junior Wes Trammell buried a trifecta from the top of the key to make the score 10-7. Sophomore point guard Breland Hogan followed by knocking down back-to-back triples to draw the Lakers within a pair at 15-13.

The Eagles answered back with six straight points to move ahead 21-13, but GVSU continued to play catch-up and used sophomore Tony Peters and Ringler to do so. Peters scored on a drive to the hoop off a pass from Ringler, which was immediately followed by a Ringler pull-up jumper on the Lakers' next possession. Ringler and Peters then each drained a three-pointer to again pull within two points at 25-23 with just under four minutes to play in the half.

GVSU could pull no closer the rest of the half, as Ashland closed the opening 20 minutes on a 12-6 run, taking a 37-29 lead into halftime. The Eagles shot a blistering 53.8 percent from the field in the first half, while Grand Valley State made 40.0 percent of its attempts. GVSU was 5-of-15 from three-point range in the opening period, while Ashland did its damage inside with a 16-8 advantage in points in the paint.

Ringler opened the second half with a smooth jumper, but the Eagles responded with three straight buckets to take a 43-31 lead. Junior guard Alvin Storrs then supplied an old-fashioned three-point play with a layup and a free throw, which was followed by a putback from Nick Carreri. At that point, GVSU trailed 43-36. After the Lakers pushed the score to just 44-38 on a jumper from James Thomas, but Ashland notched a 9-2 run to push back out to a 53-40 advantage nearing the 12-minute mark.

Trammell knocked down a trifecta and Ringler scored three straight points, but it was a strong dunk from freshman Asauhn Tatum that brought the deficit to just six at 58-52 with 7:30 left. From that point though, Ashland would put together an 11-3 run that pushed the Eagle lead out to 69-55 lead with roughly four minutes to play. GVSU continued chipping away and a three-pointer from Ringler with 30 seconds remaining brought the Lakers back to within six at 78-72.

AU split a pair of free throws, but Ringler came down the court and fired away from the top of the arc, swishing another three-pointer and making the score 79-75 with 23 seconds left. But Ashland would finish off the game at the free throw line, notching the 82-75 win.

Ringler led all players with a season-high 27 points, the most points scored by a Laker this season and only three points off his career-high. He made 10-of-17 field goal tries, drained three trifectas, and was 4-of-6 at the line. Ringler tied his season-high of five assists, while pulling down five boards.

Trammell supplied 14 points in 22 minutes off the bench, making 4-of-6 three-pointers and 5-of-8 shots overall. The other Laker in double digits was Thomas, who tallied 10 points, a team-high seven rebounds, and a game-best three steals.

Ashland was led by Kale Richardson, who totaled a double-double with 22 points and 10 rebounds, while center Evan Yates also recorded that feat with 20 points and 10 boards. Guard Jordan Berlin dished a game-high seven assists.

The Lakers return to action on Saturday afternoon (Feb. 12) at Lake Erie College. GVSU and the Storm tip off at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday in Painesville.