BIG RAPIDS—The Grand Valley State men's basketball team dropped its conference opener on Thursday night, 97-68, to Ferris State inside of Jim Wink Arena.
 
Jalen Charity led GVSU with 12 points on the night. Charity went 5-for-9 from the field and also collected five rebounds. Chinedu Kingsley Okanu also scored in double figures with 10 points. It was Okanu's first game since Nov. 20 against Indianapolis.
 
Marius Grazulis was on double-double watch, but was short, scoring eight points and grabbing nine rebounds. Britain Harris led the assist category with three assists.
 
The Lakers (3-5, 0-1 GLIAC) were behind early, trailing 48-34 at the halftime break. The Bulldogs (5-2, 1-0) came out of the break and did not let up. The Bulldogs' lead got up to as large as 34 with 1:57 to go in the second half.
 
GVSU had more second chance points than Ferris State. The Lakers had 25 second chance points while the Bulldogs only had 11 second chance points. GVSU also held a slight advantage in points in the paint, 40-36.
 
The Lakers' take a trip to Lake Superior State to battle the Lakers. GVSU is set to tip off at 3 p.m. on Saturday.