vs. Northern Michigan (Thursday, 8:00 p.m.): Watch | Listen | Live Stats | Game Notes
 
vs. Michigan Tech (Saturday, 3:00 p.m.): Watch | Listen | Live Stats | Game Notes
 
The Grand Valley State men's basketball team is back inside the Fieldhouse Arena this weekend after a 2-0 road trip last weekend in Ohio. This Thursday (Jan. 14) and Saturday (Jan. 16), GVSU opens up GLIAC North Division play against Northern Michigan and Michigan Tech.
 
On Thursday night at 8:00 p.m., the Lakers welcome Northern Michigan into town before GVSU faces Michigan Tech on Saturday afternoon at 3:00 p.m. At the midway point of the 28-game regular season, Grand Valley State begins the second half of the season this weekend. The home contests are the first of 14 consecutive games against North Division opponents.
 
There are links above to follow along to the live video feed and radio broadcast of both games, as well as links to follow the live stats. The games will be aired on WTKG-AM 1230 and WMUS 107.9 FM, with fifth year play-by-play announcer DJ Foster calling the action.
 
Since dropping a pair of home games to Ashland and Lake Erie in early-December, GVSU has won six of its last seven games - including all five road matchups during that stretch. Last weekend, the Lakers improved to 5-0 in road games with convincing wins at Walsh (64-50 last Thursday) and Malone (89-79 last Saturday).
 
The games had differing styles, but similar results for Grand Valley State. In the win over Walsh, the Laker defense stymied the Cavaliers to just 34.1 percent shooting and held the home team to 29 points below its season average. GVSU owned a 40-14 edge in points in the paint, in large part to the terrific effort of senior Chaz Rollins, who posted season-bests of 19 points and 14 rebounds.
 
After a tremendous defensive effort, the Lakers showed they could also win a high-scoring contest. Against Malone, four of the five starters reached double-digits and Grand Valley State notched season-highs in both field goal percentage (57.4) and three-point percentage (56.3). Senior Aaron Hayes posted 16 of his career-high 21 points in the second half of the win, while freshman Zach West added 12 points and six boards. In addition to the strong performances from the starters, the Lakers received 31 points from their bench.
 
At the midway point of the regular season, Grand Valley State is 11-3 overall and 5-3 in conference play. The Lakers continue to lead the GLIAC in rebounding margin (+7.8), free throws attempted (24.9), and - more importantly for this weekend in Allendale - home attendance. GVSU is second in the league in made free throws (16.8), points per game allowed (65.9), and opponents field goal percentage (39.7).
 
Grand Valley State has four players averaging double-figures in the scoring column, led by junior guard Luke Ryskamp at 14.4 points per game and a team-high 24 three-pointers. Hayes is next at 10.6 points per game, followed by Ricardo Carbajal (10.4) and Rollins (10.1). Senior guard Darren Kapustka is tied for fifth in the league in assist/turnover ratio (3.1 to 1), as he has totaled 25 assists and just four turnovers since the calendar turned to 2016.
 
The Lakers are 6-3 at home, despite losing three of their last four contests in Allendale. That includes losses to Ashland (76-72, overtime), Lake Erie (84-78), and Findlay (82-66), as well as a 74-58 win over Wayne State.
 
At 4-8 overall and 2-6 in conference play, Northern Michigan has lost three of four games in the new year. Of NMU's last five losses, however, four of those defeats are by six points or less. Last weekend, the Wildcats fell at Ashland (81-75, overtime) and Lake Erie (63-54). Northern Michigan is 0-5 in true road games this season, while also losing GLIAC road games at Wayne State (58-52) and Findlay (73-71), as both games were - again - tight contests down the stretch.
 
The Wildcats have been strong defensively, ranking fourth in the GLIAC in both points per game allowed (67.7) and opponents three-point percentage (32.6), while placing fifth in opponents field goal percentage (41.4). NMU has struggled in several other areas, as its offense ranks 15th out of 16 teams in scoring (66.6) is last in the league in assists (8.8) per game. Northern Michigan ranks 14th, 13th, and 14th, respectively, in field goal percentage, three-point percentage, and free throw percentage.
 
Sophomore guard Jordan Perez leads the team in scoring (13.6) and rebounding (5.6), while draining a team-high 28 three-pointers. Freshman backcourt mate Naba Echols is putting up 12.1 points per game and ranks second with 21 assists, but is shooting only 38.6 percent from the field and 28.6 percent from beyond the arc. Senior Terry Nash, also a guard, is scoring 9.7 points per game and is NMU's top playmaker with 34 assists and 15 steals.
 
Michigan Tech has had an up-and-down season thus far, winning three of its four most recent games after dropping four consecutive contests to close out 2015. The Huskies, traditionally one of the strongest teams in the conference, are 5-7 overall and 4-4 in GLIAC action. MTU had defeated Ohio Dominican, Tiffin, and Lake Erie before falling in a 73-67 final at Ashland last Saturday. The recent win over Lake Erie was the Huskies' first road victory, as Michigan Tech is 1-4 on the season in away games.
 
The Huskies commit the fewest fouls (15.9) of any team in the GLIAC and rank third in free throw percentage (74.8) and fourth in fewest turnovers (11.1). MTU shoots the sixth-most three-pointers per game (22.1) and makes the seventh-most triples per contest (8.0). However, the Huskies rank last out of 16 conference schools in field goals made and attempted, offensive rebounds per game, and total rebounds per game.
 
A pair of freshmen - forward Kyle Monroe and guard Bryan Heath - lead Michigan Tech in scoring. Monroe is posting team-highs in scoring (18.5) and rebounding (7.4), while shooting 52.3 percent from the field and 47.5 percent from three-point range. Heath is notching 14.2 points per game and leads the Huskies with 29 three-pointers, but is just a 32.4 percent shooter overall. Senior forward Luke Heller leads the team with a 61.6 field goal percentage and is posting 10.8 points and 4.9 rebounds per game.
 
After the home weekend, Grand Valley State has the first of four "split weeks", with one home and one road game in a three-day span. The Lakers go to Sault Ste. Marie to face Lake Superior State next Thursday (Jan. 21) before returning home to take on Northwood on Saturday (Jan. 23).