QUINCY, Ill. – The Grand Valley State Lakers overcame a slow start and a tough, physical game to earn a 77-73 win over the Quincy Hawks Sunday (Dec. 16) afternoon at Pepsi Arena. The Lakers go 2-0 on the weekend to take the Subway Holiday Classic championship with Hunter Hale earning MVP honors. GVSU improves to 9-2 overall while the Hawks fall to 5-5 on the season.
 
Hale had a fantastic second half, helping him to a career-high 28 points, going 7-10 from the field and 11-12 from the free throw line, while also swiping three steals and lofting a brilliant assist to Isaiah Brock for a highlight-reel jam. Kindred Williams scored a career-high 16 points and led the team with seven rebounds.

"This was a tough, grind-out game against a really good Quincy team," said head coach Ric Wesley. "We didn't get off to a particularly good start offensively but we kept working, especially with our big guys, and had just enough success in the end. This is a great team win and I'm happy we were able to pull it out on the road."
 
After a back-and-forth start, the Lakers jumped ahead 8-7 five minutes into the game. Then, a tough stretch of one basket in nearly six minutes allowed the Hawks to pull ahead, 20-10. GVSU would grind back after a Jake Van Tubbergen three to cut the deficit to two before Hale stole a pass near midcourt and went streaking in for an and-one layup to put the Lakers back in front. A couple of tough shots by the Hawks would give them the advantage, 30-27, headed into halftime.
 
Hale hit a three off the inbound on the first play of the second half and would score five quick points as the Lakers used a 10-4 run in the early stages of the period to jump in front for good. After just one made three in the first half, GVSU would use 4-6 shooting from deep in the second to pull out a lead as large as 15. Turnovers and fouls allowed Quincy to slowly chip away at the lead, getting back within one possession with a minute to go, but the Lakers hit just enough free throws down the stretch to keep the Hawks at arms length and earn their third straight win.
 
The Lakers look to go 3-0 on their three-game, four-day trek against GLVC regional foes as they face Truman State on Tuesday (Dec. 18) at 4:00 ET / 3:00 CT in Kirksville, Missouri. The game can be heard live on ESPN 96.1 FM in Grand Rapids and everywhere on the iHeart app. GVSULakers.com will provide links to live stats and coverage while @gvsubasketball provides Twitter updates.