ALLENDALE, Mich. – The No. 11 Grand Valley State Lakers pulled out an overtime thriller, 95-93, over the Michigan Tech Huskies at the GVSU Fieldhouse Arena Thursday (Jan. 23) night in front of 1,179 fans. The Lakers erased a 13-point second half deficit to improve to 16-2 overall and 9-1 in the GLIAC to remain alone atop the conference. Michigan Tech drops to 13-5 overall and 7-3 in the conference.
 
Three different Lakers reached the 20-point mark as Jeremiah Ferguson set a career-high in scoring for the second consecutive game, dropping 26. Jake Van Tubbergen recorded his tenth double-double of the season with 25 points and 12 rebounds while Isaac Gassman drilled three crucial threes to finish with 20 points.

"What a game. I'm really proud of the way our guys scratched and clawed tonight," said head coach Ric Wesley. "We needed everything they had and I give our players a ton of credit for this one. This was sheer will to win."
 
For a game billed as one of the most anticipated in the GLIAC this season, it got off to a lackluster start. Neither team was overly sharp in the first half as GVSU jumped out to a 6-0 lead, saw the Huskies jump in front and the teams would see-saw advantages for much of the half. The Lakers would go on a 7-0 run over the final two minutes of the first half to open an eight-point lead at the break.
 
Then, everything changed.
 
The Huskies erupted out of the gate, led by Kyle Monroe – who would set a school record with 53 points in the losing effort – with his 10 made threes to lead Michigan Tech to a 13-point lead with six minutes to go.

"We did a pretty good job on Monroe in the first half, particularly with our big guys," said Wesley (Monroe had just nine points at intermission). "But they made the adjustment and started using him outside more and we had to react. We tried a few different solutions and eventualy Ike (Isaac Gassman) seemed to have the best chance at slowing him down. 'Cause there was no stopping him."
 
The Lakers kept hanging around as Christian Negron and Steven Lloyd had back-to-back buckets to get back within nine. Monroe hit yet another three, but Van Tubbergen answered with a jumper from the free throw line. It continued like that for a few minutes, and the Lakers had their backs against the wall down by 10 with under four minutes left.
 
The Lakers would hit three threes in one minute, surrounding a Monroe layup and Tech missed free throw, to get within three; Gassman was fouled on the last one – drilling it from right in front of his bench – but would miss the free throw. On the ensuing defensive possession, Ferguson would come up with a steal near mid-court and was fouled, splitting the free throws to get the Lakers within two.
 
Van Tubbergen sank free throws with :17 on the clock to tie the game, then the Lakers got a steal with under :10 left, attempted to run the floor for a buzzer beater, but couldn't finish and forced overtime. GVSU jumped out on an 8-1 run to start overtime and would never trail again. A blocked shot as the horn sounded sealed the two-point win and sole possession of first place in the conference.
 
Grand Valley State is back in action on Saturday (Jan. 25) when they become the Sawyers for the second annual Sawyers Day celebration at the Fieldhouse. For just $10 fans can participate in the beer tent – complete with three drink tickets – and access to both basketball games. The men tip off at 3 PM and the game can also be heard on ESPN 96.1 FM or streamed on the Grand Valley Sports Network.