Sat., Dec. 31st vs. Wisconsin-Parkside (2:00 PM EST):  Live Stats  l  Watch  l  Game Notes

KENOSHA, Wis.— Nearly two weeks removed from a matchup against the top-ranked and undefeated Ashland Eagles the Grand Valley State women's basketball team will close out the 2016 calendar year with a much more favorable matchup against GLVC opponent Wisconsin-Parkside on New Years Eve day. The Lakers (8-3) split their two most recent games, routing Tiffin 85-39 on December 17^th before dropping a hard fought battle with high-scoring Ashland on December 19^th, and will travel to Kenosha, Wisconsin for the New Years Eve matchup. 
 
Fans can follow the matchup via the live stats and video watch links listed above. A radio broadcast is not provided for this game, however the video broadcast will feature audio commentary from Wisconsin-Parkside Athletics.Tip-off for the game is set for 2:00 PM EST.
 
Wisconsin-Parkside comes into the matchup sporting a 2-8 record, having won two of their last three games after starting the season 0-7. Those wins have both come at home for the Rangers, and both have come against NAIA opponents in Trinity Christian College and Indiana University Northwest. Wisconsin-Parkside has played four schools from the GLIAC (Saginaw Valley State, Northwood, Hillsdale and Northern Michigan) thus far, and has lost each matchup by double digits.
 
Grand Valley State has continued to display an impressive commitment to team defense this season, holding eight of their eleven opponents this season below 55 points. The Lakers hold a GLIAC-best mark in scoring defense (54.2), are fifth in opponent field goal percentage (37.6 %), and are seventh in opponent 3-Pt percentage (32.6%). After suffocating the Tiffin offense to a season-low 39 points on December 17^th, the Lakers faced the toughest of tests in Ashland, which came into the December 19^th matchup sporting a 97.5 point-per-game average. GVSU held the Eagles to a season-low 31 points at the halftime break, and a season-low 75 points overall in the loss.
 
Set to compete against the Lakers' tough defense is an underwhelming Rangers offense that has averaged just 61.4 points per game this season. That number has been buoyed by the season-high marks of 83 and 74 points scored against the brace of NAIA opponents resulting in the Ranger's lone victories. Aside from those games, Wisconsin-Parkside has failed to score above 50 points in three of their games this season, and feature the 11^th ranked scoring offense in the Great Lakes Valley Conference. The Rangers own a .370/.301/.631 (FG/3-Pt/FT) shooting line this season, and are led in scoring by Brittney Fair and her 11.8 points per game.
 
On the other side of the ball, Wisconsin-Parkside has allowed a conference-worst 67.1 points per contest, as opponents shoot .422/.338/.726 against them. They have limited three-point attempts by opponents, allowing just 154 attempts this season even as opponents have connected on nearly 34 percent of them. The Lakers may be able to exploit the Rangers on the perimeter, as they are due for a breakout game from deep after struggling mightily beyond the arc to start the campaign. The victory against Tiffin marked GVSU's third game this season with double-digit three-point field goals, and eight different Lakers netted a triple in the victory.
 
Leading the Lakers in scoring this season has been the one-two punch of Bailey Cairnduff and Kayla Dawson, averaging 11.5 and 10.5 points per game. The senior duo have each netted 115 points in the 2016-17 campaign, and are both strong two-way players, with team highs of 18 and 23 steals, respectively. Just outside of the double-digit plateau are fellow seniors Piper Tucker, Janae Langs and Taylor Lutz at  9.3, 8.8 and 8.3 points per game, respectively. As a team, the Lakers average 67.3 points per game on a .412/.326/.685 shooting line, and are the eighth highest scoring offense in the GLIAC this season.
 
The non-conference  matchup is the first of a four-game road slate the Lakers will play, continuing with GLIAC road matchups against Lake Erie, Northwood and Lake Superior State in the first two full weekends of 2017. The Lakers next return to GVSU Fieldhouse Arena on January 19^th, with a home matchup against Wayne State University.