CALEDONIA, Mich. – Down two starters, on the road, riding a four-game losing skid as the final two weeks of the regular season commence, the Grand Valley State men's basketball team dug deep to hang tough, then, eventually outlast the Davenport Panthers, 71-67, Thursday (Feb. 17) night at the DU Student Center. The Lakers improve to 15-9 on the season and 9-8 in the GLIAC as they return home to host Northwood on Saturday (Feb. 19) for senior day.
After trailing the entire first half, twice taking one-point leads – the first at 51-50 with nine minutes to play – the Lakers found themselves down, 67-65, with :16 left in regulation and a baseline inbound.
Christian Negron quickly triggered
Isaac Gassman in the corner and he buried a three to silence a raucous student section as GVSU took a 68-67 lead. They then forced two defensive stops, hit clutch free throws and sent the home crowd home disappointed as the final seconds ticked off with a 6-0 GVSU run.
"I couldn't be more proud of our guys tonight. They battled and stuck together," head coach
Ric Wesley said after the win. "Things haven't been going our way lately and we've had some tough moments with close losses and, sometimes, you can feel like you're on an island. But there's been no fracture in this team. They stick together and believe in each other. And that really showed tonight. I, really, just couldn't be more proud of my team."
The Lakers dominated the glass to a 57-35 edge that featured 24 offensive rebounds. The Lakers trailed by as many as eight in the first half and were down seven at halftime, but continued to battle.
Gassman hit a pair of big first-half threes before his game-winner, part of a 24-point performance that included seven clutch free throws made down the stretch as well. He had seven rebounds in the game, one of six different Lakers with at least seven boards.
Christian Negron posted a double-dounle with 11 points and 12 boards while
Trevon Gunter scored 13 points and had eight boards and
Ethan Alderink battled foul trouble to add seven points and seven boards in his first-career start.
Jordan Harris cashed nine points with four assists, including a massive three down the stretch as the shot clock was expiring that gave the Lakers one of their late leads.
Ja'Kavien Lewis had a pair of steals and
Blake Verbeek had three points, nine rebounds and two blocks in 17 minutes.
Marius Grazulis had seven rebounds, including five on the offensive end, and four points.
The total team win, filled with emotion and a clear demonstration of pride, grit and sheer determination could be the building block this Laker team needs to make a run in the post-season. They look to build off this win Saturday as six seniors are honored before the matchup with Northwood. The game can be seen on ESPN3, heard on Thunder Country 107.3 FM and tickets are available now at gvsutickets.com.
