ALLENDALE, Mich. -- The Grand Valley State men's basketball team erased an 11-point second half deficit for a 72-67 comeback win over the Saginaw Valley State Cardinals Sunday (Jan. 10) afternoon at the GVSU Fieldhouse Arena. Christian Negron scored a career-high 25 points with 12 rebounds and four blocks to lead the Lakers to victory. GVSU is one of just two Great Lakes Intercollegiate Conference (GLIAC) teams to start the conference schedule 2-0 while SVSU drops to 0-2 on the year.

In addition to big numbers from Negron, Jake Van Tubbergen battled through foul trouble for a 16-point, six-rebound performance and Jordan Harris scored in double figures for the second time in as many games as a Laker with 11 points and a pair of rebounds. The Lakers went 21-24 from the free throw line as a team, including 10-10 from Negron. 

The Lakers kept battling back all game, trailing for over 25 minutes. They rallied to tie the game at 40-40, but Saginaw responded with an 11-0 run to open up a 51-40 lead with just over 12 minutes remaining. The Lakers would chip away and hang around before finally taking the lead for good when Negron hit two free throws with 90 seconds left in regulation to put them up 66-64, their first lead since seven minutes into the opening period.

The first-place Lakers will travel to Ashland, Ohio to face the Eagles next weekend on Friday and Saturday. Check gvsulakers.com and @GVSUBasketball on social media for live coverage links.