Grand Valley State held a slim lead over the final 10-plus minutes of the game and the Lakers were able to close out visiting #12 Saginaw Valley State by a 76-73 final in Allendale on Thursday night (Feb. 18). In the Battle of the Valleys, GVSU outscored the GLIAC-leading Cardinals 46-40 in the second half and shot an even 50.0 percent from the field in the victory.

Entering the night in a three-way tie in the GLIAC standings (with likely just two of the Grand Valley State-Hillsdale-Northwood trio advancing to the conference tournament), the Lakers badly needed a win to keep pace. Both Hillsdale and Northwood sealed their wins before GVSU earned its victory, but Grand Valley State stayed even in the league with an 11-9 record. Overall, the Lakers are 17-9 this season.

Saginaw Valley State is in first place in the GLIAC and had won nine consecutive games, all of which came by less than 10 points. The Cardinals, the #3 team in the Midwest Region, drop to 21-5 overall and 17-3 in conference play.

The last ranked team that Grand Valley State defeated was also SVSU, as the Lakers won 71-70 on the road last year (Feb. 19, 2015) over the #24 Cardinals. Saginaw Valley State's #12 ranking this season marks the highest ranked team the Lakers have defeated since Feb. 17, 2011, when GVSU knocked off #3 Findlay in Allendale, 72-66.

Four Lakers were in double figures on Thursday night, led by junior guard Luke Ryskamp's team-high 21 points. He was 9-of-15 from the field and scored a dozen points in the opening half. Senior guard Aaron Hayes added 17 points on 5-of-11 shooting and 7-of-10 at the free throw line. Classmate Chaz Rollins scored all 11 of his points in the second half, while adding a game-high eight rebounds and fellow senior Ricardo Carbajal was 6-of-10 from the field and scored 14 points.

GVSU's lead was 71-70 with less than two minutes to go, when Hayes hit a jumper to up the Laker advantage to 73-70 with 1:40 to play. After a Cardinal bucket from CJ Turnage made it 73-72, Carbajal grabbed an offensive rebound, repositioned, and made a reverse layup with 1:09 remaining to keep the Lakers in front, 75-72.

Turnage split two free throws and after GVSU missed a pair of freebies, the Cardinals' Garrett Hall was tightly defended by Laker freshman Zach West, missing the potential go-ahead three-pointer. Rollins grabbed the rebound, split a pair of free throws, and SVSU's game-tying three-point try from Caleb Davis glanced off the rim, giving the Lakers the upset.

For the game, Grand Valley State shot 50.0 percent from the field and a sparkling 59.3 percent in the second half. It was the eighth time this season GVSU has shot above 50.0 percent. The Lakers led in rebounds, 38-32, and owned a 40-34 edge in the paint.

After a pair of Hayes layups and a Ryskamp three-pointer, Grand Valley State was out to a 7-2 advantage. The Cardinals responded with 11 straight points and a 13-7 advantage. GVSU tied the score at 18-18 with 9:34 remaining on a Darren Kapustka layup, followed by a Carbajal trifecta. Saginaw Valley State answered with a run and took a 33-26 lead before Ryskamp and junior Trevin Alexander each hit buckets in the final 41 seconds to send the Lakers to halftime with only a 33-30 deficit.

For the game, the score was tied seven times and there were 11 lead changes, with a number of those coming in the second half of action. With the game tied for the seventh time at 47-47 with 11:22 to play, the Lakers scored next at the 10:33 mark on a Rollins layup. From that point on, GVSU would hold the advantage.

Hayes added a layup on the next possession, upping the score to 51-47. The lead would stay in the Lakers' favor and grow to six points (69-63) on an old-fashioned three-point play from Rollins off of a terrific feed from Kapustka. SVSU would cut the Grand Valley State cushion to one point at 71-70, setting up the anxious final two minutes.

In addition to Rollins' seven boards, West added seven rebounds, two steals, and a huge blocked shot on Hall's three-point attempt in the final minute of the game. Alexander added six points and five boards, while Kapustka dished out six assists.

The Lakers head to Hillsdale on Saturday (Feb. 20) for their final regular season road game. Tipoff between GVSU and the Chargers is set for 3:00 p.m.