Tiffin used a late first-half run and a solid defensive stretch in the second half to pull away from Grand Valley State on Saturday (Dec. 17), as the Lakers dropped an 80-72 final to the Dragons. GVSU received 54 combined points from seniors Juwan Starks, Trevin Alexander, and Luke Ryskamp, but it was not enough to overcome a strong shooting effort from Tiffin in Allendale's Fieldhouse Arena.

Both teams were riding momentum into Saturday's game, with the Lakers defeating Hillsdale and Walsh on the road last weekend by a combined 47 points, while Tiffin upset #1 Saginaw Valley State 82-76 in Ohio exactly one week ago. With the loss, Grand Valley State falls to 7-5 on the year and 3-2 in conference play, while the Dragons improve to 5-6 overall and 2-3 in GLIAC action.

GVSU and Tiffin each had a three-head offensive monster, as the Dragons' Khaleal McCormick (game-high 26 points), Juwan Johnson (17), and Austin Adams (14) outscored the Laker trio of Starks, Alexander, and Ryskamp by a 57-54 margin. Starks scored 14 of his career-high 23 points in the second half; for the game, the senior guard went 7-of-14 from the field, 3-of-8 from three-point range, and 6-of-7 at the charity stripe. He added five rebounds.

Alexander tallied 17 points on 7-of-13 shooting, while posting six boards and three assists. Ryskamp scored 14 points and made 3-of-7 three-point tries. Junior center Drake Baar led the Lakers with eight rebounds and scored seven points on 3-of-4 shooting from the field.

Tiffin shot 47.5 percent from the field, including an impressive 9-of-14 shooting from McCormick, who poured in 13 points in both halves. Each team made eight three-pointers, with the Dragons shooting 42.1 percent from beyond the arc and GVSU connecting on 36.4 percent of its attempts. Tiffin held a slim 16-14 edge in made free throws.

The Dragons forced 14 Grand Valley State turnovers and used that to a 22-8 advantage in points off turnovers, helping spur a comeback late in the first half.

GVSU jumped out to a 9-2 lead early on three-pointers from Ryskamp, Starks, and Ryskamp again in the first three minutes of the game. The Laker lead grew to 10 points at 18-8 after a Baar layup and a third Ryskamp trifecta with 14:21 remaining. Grand Valley State stayed in front at 26-14 with 9:34 to go on a Myles Miller triple and an Alexander layup, eventually pushing out to a 13-point lead (30-17) with 8:33 left after Starks nailed another three-pointer.

Tiffin began to chip away at that deficit, eventually tying the game at 34-34 with a 17-4 run that was spurred by the Dragons' full-court press and relentless attacking half court defense. TU scored twice in the final 10 seconds of the half to take a 38-36 lead into the intermission.

The Lakers responded well in the second half, as Starks scored 11 straight GVSU points in the opening four minutes of the stanza. At that point, Grand Valley State was back out in front with a 53-46 cushion at the 16:16 mark. However, Tiffin got back into the game as the Laker offense hit a lull, allowing the Dragons to not only regain the lead but push out to a 69-58 advantage with 7:57 remaining in the game.

Grand Valley State would pull within 75-68 on a Starks three-pointer and after four points from Alexander, the lead was down to 77-72 with 28 seconds to play. The Dragons, however, made 3-of-4 free throws in the final 25 seconds to close out the road win.

Although rebounds were tied at 36-36, the Lakers owned a 13-6 edge in second chance points, due to a dozen offensive boards. Junior Chris Dorsey supplied six points, three rebounds, and three assists off the bench, while Miller added five points, four boards, and three assists. 

To close out the 2016 calendar year, GVSU is back at home on Monday night (Dec. 19) against Ashland. That game is set for a 7:00 p.m. tip-off in the Fieldhouse Arena.