Feb. 3, 2011

Box Score

University Center, Mich. - #17 Grand Valley State struggled in a defensive battle at Saginaw Valley State on Thursday night (Feb. 3), as the Cardinals upended GVSU by a 61-59 final in University Center, Mich. The Lakers shot just 32.8 percent from the field en route to a season-low 59 points, but Grand Valley State crawled back to within four points after SVSU owned a 13-point advantage in the second half. Saginaw Valley State shot just under 40.0 percent for the game, holding off GVSU and moving above the .500 mark with the win.

After dropping a tough 79-72 overtime battle to Ferris State on Saturday night, the Lakers were unable to get back on track on Thursday night, as GVSU fell for the second straight game. It is the first time this season that Grand Valley State has last consecutive games. GVSU is now 15-5 overall with a 10-3 conference mark, while Saginaw Valley State improves to 10-9 on the year and 6-7 in league play.

The Lakers took care of SVSU pretty easily on Jan. 6 in Allendale, winning 82-60, but both teams are vastly different just a month later. Saginaw Valley State had a few players return to the team in early January and the team has played well as of late, but GVSU is battling the injury bug and played without three of its key players. That hurt the Lakers on Thursday night, as Saginaw Valley State owned a 31-13 edge in bench points.

Neither team shot the ball well, as both squads were under 40 percent from the field and less than 30 percent from three-point range. GVSU shot 32.8 percent from the floor and 27.3 percent (6-of-22) from long distance, while the Cardinals shot 39.6 from the field and 28.0 percent (7-of-25) from beyond the arc. Both teams had 40 rebounds and Grand Valley State had one less turnover (10) than it forced out of the Cardinals (11).

Buckets from senior Justin Ringler and junior James Thomas brought GVSU within a point at 14-13 approaching the midway point of the first half. Saginaw Valley State then drained back-to-back trifectas and five points from Michael Fugate, extending SVSU's lead to 25-14 with 5:17 left in the opening half. The Lakers started chipping away at the score, getting a jumper from junior Wes Trammell and a layup from sophomore Tony Peters to get within six points at 30-24.

After a Cardinal layup, Trammell buried two free throws and Thomas knocked down a three-pointer, cutting the deficit to just three points at 32-29 with 1:30 left. Saginaw Valley State would take a four-point cushion to halftime after Ringler ended the first-half scoring with a layup with just eight seconds remaining. SVSU made 46.4 percent of its attempts in the opening 20 minutes and made 6-of-14 three-pointers.

Saginaw Valley State scored three straight buckets to start the second half, re-opening a double-digit advantage (41-31) just two minutes into the half. But Thomas responded with back-to-back three-pointers in a 35-second span, bringing GVSU back to within four points. Minutes later, SVSU notched nine straight points and pushed out to a 52-39 advantage approaching the eight-minute mark.

The margin was 10 points at 56-46 with 2:41 left when Grand Valley State began to lengthen the game and turn the contest into a mild free throw contest. GVSU hoped the Cardinals would miss their free throws or split the pair and the strategy worked quite well. Two free throws from Peters with 2:09 left cut the score to 57-52, but the Lakers could not score again until Ringler's three-pointer with 18 seconds left, making the SVSU lead a 59-55 score. Grand Valley State scored four points in the final few seconds, but it was too little, too late, as the Lakers failed to reach the 60-point plateau for the first time all year.

Thomas certainly showed up for GVSU, however, as the junior played arguably his best game in a Laker uniform. He totaled career-highs in points (25) and rebounds (eight), while his point total was the game-high figure. Thomas was 10-of-22 from the field and made four trifectas. He has made nine three-pointers in the past two games.

Ringler neared a double-double with 14 points and nine rebounds, as five of those boards came on the offensive end. He now has 1,383 points in his career and surpassed Todd Jenks (1,381 points) for 13th place all-time in Laker history. Trammell added nine points off the bench for GVSU. No other Laker had more than four points.

Grand Valley State continues its four-game road stretch by heading up north, as the Lakers will face Lake Superior State on Saturday (Feb. 5) in Sault Ste. Marie, Mich. That game will start at 1:00 p.m.