Hillsdale, Mich. -- It was a tale of two halves for the Grand Valley State men's basketball team on Saturday (Jan. 31) afternoon. The Lakers led for nearly the entire first half, but it could not keep pace with Hillsdale in the second half, eventually falling 73-65.
 
Aside from a 26-second stretch in the opening two minutes of regulation, GVSU never trailed in the first 20 minutes. An 8-2 run following its only deficit put the Lakers on top by seven at the 13:56 mark. The Chargers responded quickly, evening the score at 14-14 in less than three minutes. Back-to-back baskets by Myles Miller and Ricardo Carbajal immediately got GVSU out in front once again.
 
Hillsdale would pull even two more times before halftime.
 
From then on, it was all Chargers. GVSU trailed the entire second half and fell behind by as many as 12 points with just under four minutes left in the game.
 
But the Lakers would not go quietly. After Luke Ryskamp's layup and a free throw by Hillsdale's Darius Ware, Ryan Sabin and Darren Kapustka trimmed the deficit to five points with triples on consecutive possessions.
 
Roughly a minute later, Ryskamp and Sabin made layups on back-to-back possessions, pulling the Lakers within three. Kapustka's potential game-tying three rattled out with 30 ticks left on the clock, ending the furious comeback attempt.
 
Carbajal led the Lakers with a game-high 19 points on 5-of-7 shooting. Ryskamp poured in 17 points, while Sabin notched a 13-point outing. The two also combined for four assists and nine rebounds. Kapustka added nine points and three assists. No other Laker scored more than two points.
 
GVSU did play a much cleaner game than it has in recent outings. It committed just eight turnovers and shot 42.9 percent (21-of-49) from the field, including a 13-of-28 (46.4 percent) performance in the second half.
 
Unfortunately, the Chargers were unstoppable from three-point rage. They drained 14 trifectas and shot 42.4 percent from distance.
 
The Lakers will look to end their current skid against Ferris State on Monday (Feb. 2). Tip off in Allendale is scheduled for 8 p.m. ET.