SAULT STE. MARIE, Mich. - The Lake Superior State (LSSU) men's basketball program (14-6, 6-4 GLIAC) picked up an 82-71 victory over the visiting Michigan Tech Huskies (6-13, 3-7 GLIAC) after a career-high 22 points from Devin Womack (Ypsilanti, Mich.) on Thursday. 

Both teams battled early as a pair of threes from Womack had the Lakers leading by one. A three from Xander Okerlund (Empire, Mich.) would then kickstart a 13-2 run that featured a dunk in transition from Kingsley Perkins (Ypsilanti, Mich.) to force a Michigan Tech timeout with the Lakers leading by double-digits. The Huskies tried to push back, but after intercepting a pass, Tyson Edmondson (Ypsilanti, Mich.) went coast-to-coast for the jam to keep the momentum firmly in the hands of LSSU before another Okerlund three had the Lakers leading 38-27 going into halftime.

The Huskies were able to close the gap back down to five to open the second half, but Edmondson would once again turn defense into offense with a steal that ended in a fast-break score on the other end, igniting an 11-3 run to go back up by double-figures. Both teams would then trade baskets for several minutes as the Lakers continued to hold the Huskies at bay with multiple baskets from Womack, including a deep three at the end of the shot clock, but the Huskies kept fighting, crawling back to within two. However, Okerlund was able to draw a foul from beyond the arc and sink all three free throws to keep the Lakers ahead for good as they closed out a strong victory over their Upper Peninsula rival.

Womack led all players in scoring with a career-high 22 points, and Okerlund was close behind with 21. Meanwhile, Edmondson had a strong outing on the defensive end with four steals, and Hunter Soper (Lexington, Mich.) led all players in rebounding with seven. 

The Lakers return to action on Saturday, Feb. 3 when they host the Northern Michigan Wildcats with tipoff scheduled for 3 p.m.