SAULT STE. MARIE, Mich. - The Lake Superior State men's basketball team will open the second half of the season this week with a pair of Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) games. The Lakers will take on the Saginaw Valley State Cardinals on Thursday, Jan. 6 at 6:00 p.m. and match up against the Wayne State Warriors on Saturday, Jan. 8 at 3:00 p.m. Both conference games will take place in the Bud Cooper Gymnasium in Sault Ste. Marie, Mich.
Last Time Out
The Lakers return to competition for the first time in weeks as the team last competed at Florida Tech's Holiday Classic in December, taking on Lynn University and Florida Tech in Melbourne, Fla. Following a split at the nonconference tournament, the Lakers have totaled a 7-3 overall record and a 2-2 mark in GLIAC competition. The Lakers fell to the Lynn Fighting Knights by a final score of 76-71 on Dec. 19 as the team's late comeback fell short. Redshirt senior Malek Adams led the Lakers in the game with 22 points as the senior guard went 9-for-18 from the field, including a team-best four three pointers. Adams added a team-leading eight rebounds in the game as well as two assists and three steals.
The Lakers responded with a 81-68 over tournament host, Florida Tech, on Monday, Dec. 20. For the second game in a row, Adams led the Lakers with 22 points. The senior guard went 8-for-10 from the field, including a team-leading four three pointers. Adams also added five assists, and four steals against the Panthers. Okerlund ranked second among his teammates with 17 points in the win as he went 7-for-11 in the game while also adding four rebounds and four assists.
The Lakers
The Lakers are led by Steve Hettinga, the all-time winningest coach in Laker Basketball history, who enters his 15th season in the role. Assistant coach Ted Stowe returns for his fifth season in the role on Hettinga's staff while assistant coach Hugh Clarke joins the staff for his first season. Through the first 10 games of the season, the Lakers have averaged 81.0 points per game, which ranks third in the GLIAC, on a 38.2 shooting percentage and 32.4 rebounds per game.
Lake Superior State will be led by a strong senior class which includes returners Kemon Bassett, Malek Adams, C.J. Robinson, David Wren, Justin Fischer and transfer Caden Ebeling, who joins the Lakers after a solid career at Albion College. Hettinga will look to this group's leadership on-and-off the court this season. Bassett, who was recently named to the All-GLIAC North Preseason Team.
For their play during the 2020-21 season, junior forward Kemon Bassett was named First Team All-GLIAC, redshirt senior guard Malek Adams was named Second Team All-GLIAC and junior guard C.J. Robinson was named to the All-GLIAC Defensive Team.
Lake Superior State will also be returning a junior class of Dan Few and Xander Okerlund as well as sophomores Blake Cassidy and Andy Soma.
Hettinga's squad will welcome a large freshman class this season with seven student-athletes joining the Lakers. The freshman class includes three players from Ann Arbor Huron High School (Tyson Edmondson, Kingsley Perkins and Devin Womack) who will look to build on their chemistry and success from their high school careers at the collegiate level. The remaining first-year players include Drew Hess, a 6-2 guard from Oscoda, Mich., Ben Patrick, a 6-2 guard from Oklahoma City, Okla., Kendall Smith, a 6-8 forward from Muskegon, Mich., and Hunter Soper, a 6-6 forward/guard from Lexington, Mich.
Leading the Lakers
Through the first 10 games of the 2021-22 season, four Lakers have averaged double-digit point per game totals. Adams leads the team with 18.4 points per game which ranks fourth in the conference. In addition, Adams' 49.2 shooting percentage ranks in the top twenty among all GLIAC players who have played in at least 60% of their team's games this season. Ebeling follows with 14.8 points per game while Xander Okerlund (12.2) and Kemon Bassett (10.0) round out the team's double-digit scorers. Justin Fischer closely follows with 9.8 points per game for the Lakers this season.
Freshman Tyson Edmondson's 68.2 shooting percentage from three this season leads all GLIAC players.
In addition to their offensive play, Ebeling (5.3) and Fischer (5.2) rank first and second on the team in rebounds. Fischer, who is averaging 29.5 minutes on the floor per game, ranks first on the Lakers and in the conference in assists per game with 6.0. Adams ranks sixth among all GLIAC players in assists per game (4.1) and leads the conference in steals per game (2.6).
The Saginaw Valley State Cardinals
The Saginaw Valley State Cardinals have totaled a 9-3 overall record through 12 games this season and hold a 3-1 mark in conference play. Most recently, the Cardinals hosted Indiana-Northwest for a nonconference game, and recorded a 92-68 win. SVSU enters the match up against the Lakers as winners of four straight contests. The Cardinals have averaged 81.1 points per game this season on a 47.8 shooting percentage while also averaging 37.7 rebounds per game. The Cardinals have four players who are averaging 10 or more points per game this season, including leading-scorer Delano Smith. Smith, a senior guard, averages 17.6 points per game and is tied for fifth in the GLIAC in the category. Tyler Witz (11.7 ppg), Maurice Bennett (11.3 ppg), and Darnell Hoskins Jr. (11.2 ppg) round out the team's double digit scorers. Witz' 6.8 rebounds per game leads the Cardinals. SVSU is led by Randy Baruth, who is in his 10th season as head coach of the Cardinals.
The Wayne State Warriors
The Wayne State Warriors have combined for a 2-5 overall record this season through seven games played, which includes a 1-3 record in GLIAC competition. The Warriors last game was on Saturday, Dec. 18 as the team fell to Saginaw Valley in a home game by a final score of 67-55. Through seven games this season, Wayne State averages 60.3 points per game on a 38.0 shooting percentage while adding a GLIAC-high 40.3 rebounds per game. The Warriors are led by the trio of junior forward Avery Lewis, senior guard Brailen Neely and senior guard Darian Owens-White who are each averaging 11.0 or more points per game. Lewis leads the team in both points per game (15.7) and rebounds per game (7.7). The Warriors are led by interim head coach E.J. Haralson, who took over the head coaching role earlier this season.
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