Opening Tip

SAULT STE. MARIE- Lake Superior State men's basketball returns home this week to face Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference rivals Ferris State and Grand Valley. Both teams enter the week tied with LSSU for second in the GLIAC North Division with 5-2 records in league play.

The week opens at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday with the Lakers (8-3, 5-2 GLIAC) hosting the Bulldogs (11-3, 5-2 GLIAC) and concludes with Saturday's 3 p.m. meeting against the GVSU Lakers (9-5, 5-2 GLIAC).

The Lakers split with both teams last season, defeating GVSU 82-74 in overtime during their meeting at Cooper Gymnasium (Jan. 21, 2016) and falling to FSU 86-82 at home (Jan. 23). On the road, however, LSSU fell to the Lakers 84-70 and defeated the Bulldogs 87-80 in the rematch.

Laker Notes

• LSSU enters the week leading the GLIAC and ranking 10^th nationally in scoring, averaging 91.5 points per game.
• The Lakers also enter the week tied with Findlay for the conference's best field goal percentage (49.9).
• From behind the arc this season, the Lakers rank second among GLIAC teams in three-point field goal percentage (39.8).
• Defensively, the Lakers rank 13^th among GLIAC teams in points allowed per game (78.3), but limit their opponents to tie for the second-lowest field goal percentage (40.7) and the lowest three-point field percentage against (30.7) in the GLIAC.
• At 22.5 points per game, junior guard Akaemji Williams now ranks second among GLIAC players and 15^th nationally. Williams also has dropped to second nationally in assists per game (8.9) and steals per game (3.18).
• Williams, a native of Pontiac, Mich., has been named the GLIAC North Division Player of the Week twice this season and the junior guard also notched his 1,000^th career point earlier this season in a 90-85 victory over Findlay (Dec. 10).
• Through 11 games this season Williams has scored at least 30 points on five occasions, and has at least eight assists in all but one game.
• Leading the Lakers from deep is the sophomore starting duo of Blake Marquardt and Carson Manger. Marquardt ranks sixth among GLIAC shooters with a 48.8 percent clip from behind the arc, while Manger is hitting on 46.2 percent of his three-point attempts, ranking eighth in the GLIAC.
• Marquardt ranks 15^th among GLIAC scorers with a 14.5 points per game average, while Manger ranks 19^th at 13.2 points per game.
• Also checking in at the top-30 conference scorers this season is junior center Michael Nicholson at 12.3 points per game. The Clarkston, Mich., native also ranks tied for second among GLIAC players in rebounding with 8.1 boards per contest and ranks tied for third with 1.5 blocks per game.
• Nicholson ranks third among GLIAC players with a 61.9 field goal percentage on the season.
• Also contributing to the Lakers' high-profile offense is a team assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.54 with 200 assists and 130 turnovers. The Lakers are tied with Findlay for seventh nationally and atop the GLIAC.
• At 18.2 assists per game, the Lakers also rank 20^th nationally and rank second behind Findlay among GLIAC teams.

This Week's Matchups

Ferris State

The Bulldogs enter Thursday's matchup riding a six-game winning streak and boasting the third-highest scoring offense in the GLIAC at 85.4 points per game. FSU also leads all GLIAC teams in rebounding with 42.2 rebounds per game.

With a GLIAC leading 6.1 blocks and the conference's third-best mark of 7.9 steals per game, the Bulldogs have also been able to turn in terrific defense while limiting opponents to just 70.0 points per game.

Sophomore center Zach Hankins has been a major contributor to the Bulldogs' success this season, leading the team and ranking tied for eighth in GLIAC scoring at 16.0 points per game, leading the conference in rebounding (10.3 rpg), blocks per game (3.6) and field goal percentage (68.1 %).

Grand Valley State

The Lakers enter the week with the nation's top defensive field goal percentage (37.2) and lead the GLIAC in scoring defense (61.6 ppg).  In their last five games, they have produced a 4-1 record.

Offensively the Lakers hold the third-best overall field goal percentage (48.9 %) and the top mark of 49.1 percent in GLIAC contests.

GVSU relies heavily on depth scoring as senior guard Luke Ryskamp leads the way with 12.6 points per game, followed by junior center Drake Baar scoring 10.2 points per game. Seniors Juwan Starks and Trevin Alexander also chip in with the scoring, each averaging 9.9 points per game.

Last Week (Ohio Dominican 78-77, L | Hillsdale 78-65, W)

The Lakers opened last weekend's road trip with a 78-77 loss at Ohio Dominican, snapping a five-game winning streak for LSSU. A nine-point lead with 3:30 remaining vanished as the Panthers held the Lakers scoreless down the stretch and capping a 10-0 run on a three-point field goal from Ryan Hoyng with 5.2 seconds remaining.

Williams led all scorers with 26 points on 9-18 from the floor. Sophomore Blake Marquardt chipped in his first career double-double for the Lakers with 15 points and a career-high 10 rebounds in 36 minutes of work. Manger rounded out the LSSU lineup to reach double digits with 11 points and added four rebounds.

Against Hillsdale, LSSU fended off a second-half push by the Chargers to come away with a 78-65 victory on the road in the teams' final regular season matchup as Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference rivals.

Hillsdale stormed back from a 44-17 deficit after the first half and chipped away at the LSSU lead, eventually drawing to within 11 points with 6:15 remaining, but the Lakers weathered the storm in the late moments of the game to hold on for the victory.

Nicholson totaled game-highs in points, tying a season-high with 18, and rebounds with 12 to lead the Lakers. Manger and Marquardt each totaled 14 points, while Williams finished with nine points, nine assists, and six rebounds. Senior guard Jordan Dasuqi came off the bench and scored eight points on 3-5 shooting from the field and 2-2 from behind the arc in 19 minutes of work.

A Look Ahead

Following the home slate this week, the Lakers return to the road for two-straight weeks of away games, beginning next week with Upper Peninsula rivals Northern Michigan (Jan. 19) and Michigan Tech (Jan. 21).