Allendale, Mich. -- For the second time in as many games, and third time this season, Grand Valley State women's basketball junior guard Brionna Barnett notched a 20-point performance. This time her scoring flurry, which featured 14 points in the second half, helped the Lakers dispatch of archrival Saginaw Valley State, 69-59, at the Fieldhouse Arena.
 
It is the sixth time this season a GVSU player recorded at least 20 points in a game. Barnett also joined senior forward Kat LaPrairie as the only other Laker with back-to-back 20-point outings during the 2014-15 campaign.
 
Barnett's ability to rebound from a rocky start was even more impressive than her final stat line. After scoring just six points on 2-of-7 shooting in the first half, she took over the game early in the second stanza. SVSU had pulled within one point by the 17:14 mark, prompting a Laker timeout. Shortly thereafter, Barnett made three consecutive jumpers to push GVSU's edge back to seven. She then followed up a Kayla Dawson layup with a free throw and layup of her own, making it 49-36.
 
The Elkhart, Indiana native eventually finished the half 6-of-12 from the field.
 
Dawson also reached double figures, scoring 16 points for a second straight time. The former GLIAC Player of the Week knocked down five of her 10 attempts and went 6-of-7 from the charity stripe. She pulled down five rebounds and nabbed three steals as well.
 
Despite playing just 18 minutes, LaPrairie chipped in 10 points. The sharpshooter's 2-of-3 line from three-point range enabled her to reach double digits for just the second time since Jan. 2.
 
Sophomore guard Taylor Lutz joined the trio in double figures. The Penn (Ind.) High School product had just one 10-point day in GVSU's first 15 games, but she has hit that mark in each of its last two contests.
 
The Lakers appear to have found some stability at the free throw line, too. They went 18-of-21 (85.7 percent) at the charity stripe, something they had done only two other times this season; one instance was this past Sunday (Jan. 24) at Northwood.
 
Much like Barnett, GVSU struggled to get going early. The club shot just 36.7 percent and was unable to pull away from the Cardinals, settling for a 35-30 lead at halftime.
 
Then Barnett provided the missing spark. Although the final score only showed a 10-point margin of victory, the Lakers led by 15 points on five different occasions during the second half.
 
The win lifts GVSU's overall record to 13-4 and brings its league record to 10-3, keeping it in sole possession of second place in the GLIAC North Division. The Lakers also improved to 9-0 at the Fieldhouse Arena, tying the sixth-longest home winning streak in school history.

Next up for GVSU is a trip to Hillsdale on Saturday (Jan. 31). Tip off is scheduled for 1 p.m. ET.

Notes:
-Since 1997, the Lakers are 16-3 against Saginaw Valley State at the Fieldhouse Arena
-GVSU improved to 8-4 on the season when it shoots lower than 45 percent from the field
-The Lakers are now 8-0 this season when holding an opponent to less than 60 points
-GVSU is 5-0 in Thursday games during the 2014-15 campaign
-GVSU is now 6-1 in games decided by 10 points or less