SAULT STE. MARIE, Mich. – Lake Superior State men's basketball returns home to Bud Cooper Gymnasium for a pair of Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference games this week.
Lake Superior State (11-8, 7-6 GLIAC) faces Wayne State 5-13 (4-9 GLIAC) at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, before meeting No. 15 Ashland (18-3, 10-3 GLIAC) at 3 p.m. on Saturday.
Last Time on the Court
Lake Superior State split a pair of road games last week — falling to Northwood in double overtime 90-85 on Thursday in Midland, Michigan, before bouncing back to defeat Saginaw Valley State 87-72 on Saturday in University Center, Michigan.
In the win over Saginaw Valley State, senior forward Blake Marquardt led the Lakers in scoring with 20 points on 7-of-10 shooting. Senior guard Carson Manger added 15 points and eight rebounds in the win.
Team Leaders
Junior guard Malek Adams leads the Lakers in scoring average with 17.7 points per game on 49.5 percent shooting. Adams has scored in double figures in 13 of his 17 games played this season, including nine games with at least 20 points. Adams scored a career-high 30 points at Ferris State on Jan. 26 in Big Rapids, Michigan.
Sophomore forward Rog Stein leads the team in rebounds per game (8.0), assists per game (3.4) and steals per game (1.7), while averaging the second-most points per game (14.6). Stein also leads the team with five double-doubles on the season. His most recent double-double was a 22 point and 10 rebound effort in the Lakers' 101-69 win over Purdue Northwest on Jan. 19 inside Bud Cooper Gymnasium.
Senior guard Tim Cairnduff is third on the team in scoring average with 10.4 points per game, while dishing out the second-most assists per game (3.2) on the team.
By the Numbers
Lake Superior State is averaging 82.6 points per game of offense, while holding its opponents to 77.9 points per game. LSSU is shooting 49.0 percent from the field, including 40.8 percent from three-point range. Lake State is limiting its opponents to 45.3 percent shooting and 35.4 percent from behind the three-point arc. The Lakers are averaging 17.2 assists per game compared to 12.8 turnovers.
Scouting Wayne State
Wayne State (5-13, 4-9 GLIAC) split a pair of home games last week — defeating Grand Valley State 86-78 on Friday, before falling to Davenport 85-74 on Saturday.
Darian Owens-White is the Warriors' leading scorer — averaging 18.4 points per game on 42.0 percent shooting, including 48.6 percent on three-pointers.
Earlier this season, the Lakers defeated the Warriors 89-65 at the Matthaei Center in Detroit. Junior guard Malek Adams scored a then-season-high 24 points in the win.
Scouting Ashland
No. 15 Ashland (18-3, 10-3 GLIAC) went 0-2 last week — dropping home games to Davenport (92-72) and Grand Valley State (60-53) on Friday and Saturday, respectively.
Ashland's lineup features four players who are averaging double figures in points. Drew Noble leads the Eagles in scoring average with 16.5 points per game.
In their first meeting of the season, the Lakers suffered an 82-68 setback on Nov. 29 at Kates Gymnasium in Ashland, Ohio. Sophomore forward Rog Stein led the Lakers with a team-high 16 points in the game.
Tickets
Tickets for Laker basketball home games can be purchased online or in person at the LSSU ticket office. For additional ticket information, please call (906) 635-2602. Children ages 13 and under are admitted to all Laker basketball home games free of charge.
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