Northern Michigan (Thursday, 7:30 p.m.): Listen | Live Stats | Game Notes
 
Michigan Tech (Saturday, 2:00 p.m.): Listen | Live Stats | Game Notes
 
The Grand Valley State men's basketball team has its longest - and usually toughest - GLIAC road trip of the season this weekend (Jan. 15-17), as the Lakers travel north to face Northern Michigan and Michigan Tech in the Upper Peninsula. It is a key road swing for GVSU, which has won five of its last seven games.
 
Having posted a 5-2 record since falling at Ashland and Lake Erie in early December, Grand Valley State is 8-6 on the season and 4-4 in conference play. The Lakers will take on Northern Michigan (6-8 overall, 4-4 GLIAC) on Thursday night at 7:30 p.m. GVSU will face Michigan Tech (9-3 overall, 6-2 GLIAC) at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday afternoon.
 
The Lakers have split their last two GLIAC weekends, winning the previous two opening games (over Wayne State and Walsh) before falling in the second game of the weekend (to Findlay and Malone). Grand Valley State is looking to improve upon its 1-3 conference road record, as its lone road victory came at Wayne State (72-64) on Jan. 2.
 
Facing Northern Michigan and Michigan Tech on their home courts always makes for a difficult endeavor. In GVSU men's basketball history, the teams have made 28 trips to play both schools on a single trip. The Lakers have been victorious in Marquette and Houghton on the same bus ride just four times - in 1991-92, 2007-08, 2008-09, and 2010-11. The final three of those seasons came under current head coach Ric Wesley.
 
Last weekend at home against Walsh and Malone, GVSU trailed at halftime in both contests, but rallied to defeat Walsh on Thursday. The Lakers turned a 24-17 halftime deficit into a 63-56 victory behind a game-high 23 points from senior Ryan Sabin. The senior guard made all 12 of his free throw attempts in the win.
 
Grand Valley State could not overcome a 34-17 score at the intermission against Malone on Saturday, as the hot-shooting Pioneers connected on 10 three-pointers in the game, with six triples coming in the opening period. Sophomore guard Luke Ryskamp led the Lakers with 19 points and made 9-of-13 freebies.
 
After a Dec. 13 home victory over Findlay, Northern Michigan was 5-4 overall and a perfect 3-0 in conference play, as the Wildcats had already defeated Walsh and Malone. Since then, however, NMU lost four straight games before stopping the streak with a 62-50 win over Lake Erie last Saturday (Jan. 10).
 
Northern Michigan has played well at home this season, winning four of six contests, with solid victories over Minnesota Duluth (56-53 on Nov. 25) and Findlay (81-74). Thursday's game against GVSU is the third of a current four-game homestand for the Wildcats.
 
Freshman guard Jordan Perez leads NMU at 10.5 points per game and is shooting 22-of-49 from three-point range for a stellar 44.9 percentage. Marcus Hall isn't far behind from downtown, as the sophomore guard is 20-for-62 beyond the arc and is putting up 10.1 points per game. That figure rises to a team-best 11.6 points per game in GLIAC contests. The Wildcats rank second in the league with 4.2 blocks per game, but rank in the bottom half of the conference in most statistical categories.
 
Michigan Tech is currently on a four-game win streak, three of those coming by double-digits. In 2015, the Huskies are a perfect 4-0, with victories over Ohio Dominican, Tiffin, Lake Erie, and Ashland. All three of MTU's losses came on the road - at Malone (65-59 on Dec. 4), Walsh (69-63 on Dec. 6), and Wisconsin-Parkside (69-62 on Dec. 20).
 
Always one of the best home court teams in the conference, Michigan Tech is 4-0 inside the SDC Gymnasium. Only one of those victories (82-78 victory over Lake Erie) was a single-digit win. MTU, which hosts Ferris State on Thursday night at 7:30 p.m., leads the GLIAC in average home attendance per game (942).
 
Preseason GLIAC Player of the Year Ben Stelzer is living up to that billing, as the senior guard leads the league with 23.1 points per game. He is a tremendous 57-of-123 from three-point range; no other player in the GLIAC has made more than 33 three-pointers. Stelzer also shoots 82.8 percent from the free throw line. Junior guard Jordan Chartier averages 9.9 points per game, has buried 27 trifectas of his own, and leads the team with 44 assists.
 
The Lakers will be back at home next Thursday (Jan. 22) against another Upper Peninsula school, taking on Lake Superior State at 8:00 p.m. in the Fieldhouse Arena.