PREVIEW: Basketball away from Houghton this week

HOUGHTON, Mich. - Michigan Tech men's basketball is looking for a season sweep when they visit Ferris State Thursday at 7:30 p.m. The team then heads north to Sault Ste. Marie to face Lake Superior State Saturday at 3 p.m. The Huskies hope to break out of a road slump this weekend and both games can be heard on Mix 93.5 WKMJ and online at pasty.net.

LAST TIME OUT

• Grand Valley State used a strong start to the second half to pull away from Michigan Tech 74-61 in men's basketball Saturday afternoon at SDC Gymnasium.
• Tied 33-33 at halftime, the Lakers went on a 13-0 run after the break and scored 48 points in the paint as the Huskies (4-14, 1-8 GLIAC) dropped their third straight. Marius Grazulis led the Lakers with 17 points and nine rebounds after shooting 7-for-10 from the floor.
• The Huskies fought back to an eight-point deficit three times in the second half but could not close the gap.
• Adam Hobson led the Black and Gold with 16 points (5-11), including three triples and four rebounds.
• Josh Terrian (12 points) and Dan Gherezgher (11) also made it to double figures.

LAST TIME AGAINST THE BULLDOGS

• Marcus Tomashek made one of two free throws with 2.4 seconds remaining and Michigan Tech held on to defeat Ferris State 69-68 inside SDC Gymnasium on December 11.
• The Huskies received 35 points off the bench and outscored the Bulldogs 33-29 in the second half after trailing at the midway point by three.
• Ferris State pulled down 40 rebounds, compared to 29 for Tech, but the Huskies made up ground by limiting their turnovers to 10.
• Freshmen Nate Abel provided a spark to open the second half after Josh Terrian took a charge.
• Soon after, fellow freshman Dan Gherezher showed off his athleticism in transition and finished with 12 points, tying Adam Hobson for a team-high.
• Pete Calcaterra (11 points) and Tyler Robarge (10 points) also made it to double figures.

LAST TIME AGAINST THE LAKERS

• Michigan Tech was unable to overcome a slow start and fell 76-63 to the Lakers on December 9, despite scoring 47 points in the second half.
• Both Simonsen and Pete Calcaterra were efficient as each made 4 of 5 attempts and made it to double figures with 12 and 11 respectively.
• The Huskies received 34 points from their bench.
• Simonsen and Calcaterra spearheaded the production but Dan Gherezgher also added 11 on 4 of 10 shooting.
• Kemon Bassett led the Lakers with a game-high 17 points and 10 rebounds. Caden Ebeling also chipped in 13 and David Wren finished with 12.
• LSSU out-rebounded the Huskies 33-21 and the Lakers connected on 26 of 50 total shots (52-percent).

GLIAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK

• Marius Grazulis led the Lakers to the Upper Peninsula for a 2-0 weekend in front of his hometown crowd.
• The Marquette native averaged a double-double of 15.5 points and 10 rebounds in the two matchups for the Lakers.
• He was crucial in the post to take down conference leader Northern Michigan on Thursday and to defeat Michigan Tech on Saturday. 
• Grazulis notched the second GVSU double-double of the season on Thursday against NMU, scoring 14 points and collecting 11 rebounds.
• Against Michigan Tech on Saturday, Grazulis led the Lakers in scoring with 17 points.

SCOUTING THE BULLDOGS (15-5, 6-3)

• Ferris State has won four straight, including a pair of road victories last weekend over Saginaw Valley State and Wayne State.
• The Bulldogs dominated the Warriors 74-55 Saturday. 
• Solomon Araegbu scored 18 points with seven rebounds.
• Junior Ben Davidson added 12 points and Mykel Bingham produced 11 points.
• FSU owned a decisive 50-31 rebounding margin and shot 47.5 percent overall.
• The Huskies and Bulldogs shared the GLIAC Regular Season north division title last season with identical 16-4 records.
• The Huskies and Bulldogs played a memorable yet painful overtime thriller last year at Jim Wink Arena. 
• Walt Kelser (a senior last year) scored 32 points and made a game-tying 3-pointer in the closing seconds of regulation to force overtime. Owen White had 24 points for Tech.
• Ferris State won both games of the 2021-22 season series.
• Head Coach Andy Bronkema took over prior to the 2013-14 season and led the Bulldogs to four straight GLIAC Tournament Championships and NCAA Appearances from 2015-18.
• The Bulldogs won their first National Championship in 2017-18 with a 38-1 record, tying the all-time mark for most wins in DII history. Bronkema was named National Coach of the Year.
• FSU lost to eventual champion (and No. 8 seed) Davenport in the GLIAC quarterfinals last spring. 
• After defeating Findlay in the quarterfinals, the Bulldogs bowed out of the NCAA Region tournament in the semifinals to Hillsdale 90-74.

SCOUTING THE LAKERS (7-10, 6-3)

• LSSU split last weekend's GLIAC road trip. After beating Wayne State 69-60 Thursday, the Lakers fell 79-73 to Saginaw Valley State on Saturday. LSSU had four players in double-figures, including Kemon Bassett (22 points, nine rebounds). 
• The Lakers shot 50-percent (25-50) overall.
• Head coach Steve Hettinga is in his 16th season at the helm and was promoted to assistant director of athletics in 2014.
• Michigan Tech swept the season series last year. The two teams ended the regular season in Sault Ste. Marie with MTU prevailing 65-56.
• LSSU qualified for the GLIAC Tournament, but fell 99-94 to Northern Michigan in the quarterfinals in overtime at Bid Cooper Gymnasium.

BIG PICTURE

• Tech has been selected for entry in the NCAA Region Tournament two of the last three years and has not finished below .500 overall since 2018-19. 
• In 101 seasons, the squad has made 11 NCAA appearances and won three GLIAC Tournament titles.
• The Huskies were selected fifth in the D2SIDA preseason midwest region rankings poll.