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For the fifth consecutive year, Grand Valley State and Ferris State will close the regular season with a rivalry contest. On Thursday night (Feb. 26) in Big Rapids, the Lakers will match up with Ferris State in an 8:00 p.m. start, with Grand Valley State looking for its fourth win over FSU in the last five season finales.

Thursday's game can be heard on a pair of radio stations; WTKG-AM 1230 is the flagship for Laker basketball and carries both the men's and women's games. WMUS-FM 107.9 also airs the men's contest. All games can be heard online; click the link above to access iHeart radio.
 
GVSU is putting together its best stretch of the season, as the Lakers have rattled off victories in their last three contests. More impressive is that the fact that Grand Valley State has done so against three teams - #24 Saginaw Valley State, Northwood, and Hillsdale - who have either already clinched a spot in the GLIAC Tournament or are hoping to do so on the final night of the season.
 
With a 13-14 overall record, GVSU is 9-12 in conference play. Currently, the Lakers are tied with Malone and just one game behind Northwood and Hillsdale in the league standings. All four teams are fighting for the eighth and final berth into next week's conference tournament. Grand Valley State needs to defeat Ferris State on Thursday and hope Northwood and Hillsdale both lose, in order to enter a complex tiebreaker scenario.
 
Regardless, the Lakers' three-game win streak trails only league champion Lake Superior State, which has won five straight games. Included in GVSU's recent stretch are a pair of 18-point wins (Northwood, Hillsdale) and a stunning one-point victory over the nationally-ranked Cardinals of SVSU.
 
During those three wins, the Lakers have outscored (76.0 to 63.7 for a +12.3 margin) and outrebounded (37.0 to 30.7 for a +6.3 margin) their three opponents. Grand Valley State has also made 69 free throws in its past three games, while their foes have only attempted 70 freebies over that timeframe.
 
In the team's most recent win - a convincing 77-59 victory over Hillsdale on Senior Night last Saturday - GVSU shot 45 percent from the field, made 26-of-31 free throws, and outscored the Chargers 42-26 in the second half. The Lakers committed a season-low six turnovers, led 33-26 in rebounds, and owned a 33-16 advantage in bench points.
 
Four players combined for 59 points for Grand Valley State. Leading the way was sophomore Luke Ryskamp, with a team-high 19 points, while junior Aaron Hayes added 17 points off the bench. Senior Ryan Sabin supplied 12 points, while sophomore Trevin Alexander posted 11 points and 10 boards.
 
Since Hayes returned to the lineup after missing a chunk of the season due to injury, the Lakers are 3-0. In only 18.3 minutes per game, Hayes is averaging 15.3 points per game. His game-high and career-high 19 points highlighted the team's 71-70 win at SVSU.
 
With Hayes back, four Lakers are combining to score 59.6 points per game. That quartet is Ryskamp (17.3 points per game), Hayes (15.3), junior Ricardo Carbajal (14.7), and Sabin (12.3). Combined, those four are 53-for-65 at the free throw line in the last three games.
 
Ferris State enters Thursday with a 19-8 record and a 15-6 mark in conference play. The Bulldogs - who were 18-3 after defeating GVSU in Allendale on Feb. 2 - have lost five of their last six contests, recently snapping a five-game skid with a 78-72 win over Saginaw Valley State last Saturday.
 
Currently sitting in a tie with Michigan Tech for third place in the league standings, FSU has secured a home quarterfinal game in next week's conference tournament. The Bulldogs will either be the third or fourth seed in the tournament, but a Grand Valley State win would likely drop Ferris State to fourth place.
 
When the teams met for the first time this season, then-#22 FSU escaped with a 96-85 overtime victory. The game went to overtime with a 71-71 score and the Bulldogs scored the first 12 points in the extra session. Ferris State eventually outscored the Lakers 25-14 in overtime on the strength of 13-of-18 free throw shooting.
 
Ryskamp (career-high tying 29 points) and Sabin (20) nearly helped the Lakers pull off the upset, although Ferris State's Drew Lehman (25 points) carried the Bulldogs.
 
GVSU and Ferris State have met in the previous four regular season finales, with the Lakers winning in 2010-11, 2012-13, and 2013-14. Two of those victories - 2010-11 and 2013-14 - came in Big Rapids and both of those games went to overtime. Grand Valley State came away victorious in 2010-11 by an 82-80 score on a Breland Hogan game-winning jumper at the buzzer. Last season, the Lakers held off Ferris State and won 74-73 in overtime.