Huskies Men’s Hoops Bow out in GLIAC Quarterfinals at GVSU

ALLENDALE, Mich. – For the second time in five days, the Michigan Tech men's basketball team was unable to outlast Grand Valley State, falling 79-76 in the GLIAC Quarterfinals at the GVSU Fieldhouse on Thursday evening.

"We had a lot of fight and I think they left it all out there effort-wise which is all you can ask for in your last game," Tech basketball coach Josh Buettner said. "We fought til the end and I thought we went toe-to-toe with them. We just couldn't get that stop in crunchtime like we couldn't back in Houghton on Saturday. Rob did a heck of a job on Marius that was huge and I was happy for him as a senior to get in and really contribute." 

Michigan Tech (11-17, 8-10) opened the game with a 6-0 lead, with Dan Gherezgher accounting for a 3-pointer, a steal on defense and one-for-two from the charity stripe with Dawson Nordgaard accounting for a basket inside.

Grand Valley State (15-14, 11-7) strung together an 8-4 run to make it a game in just four minutes, capped by five-straight points by Ethan Alderink. 

The two teams each held multiple possession leads, with Michigan Tech leading by six with 56 seconds in the half coming from a fastbreak layup by Pete Calcaterra, which was made possible by a steal from Gherezgher. GVSU had a five-point edge twice, coming at the 12:30 mark and the 9:43 mark following two free throws by Marius Grazulis.

Tech shot 43.3 percent from the field (13-for-30) in the first 20 minutes while making 4-for-13 from deep. The Lakers shot better from the floor at a clip of 47.8 percent yet were ice-cold from beyond the arc (1-for-6).

The Huskies shot better in the second half, making 13-for-24 for 60.8 percent from the field, but only had half the free-throw attempts of the Lakers, who capitalized on the charity stripe, making 15 of their 20 free-throws.

Tech opened the second half with momentum and saw its largest lead come at the 16:22 mark when Gherezgher slashed through the lane and found Nate Abel on the perimeter for a 3-pointer to make it 46-39.

Mason Docks paced the Lakers offense in the second half, scoring 13 points, while Alderink and Grazulis each added 11 points. 

Alderink gave the Lakers its first lead of the half, hitting a 3-pointer at the 12:17 mark (52-50) before the two teams would battle down the wire, including ten ties and nine lead changes.

With both teams in the double bonus with over three minutes to play, the game slowed down and at times became a free-throw shooting contest as the teams traded one-possession leads.

Gherezgher tied the game at 76-all with 46 seconds to play with the Lakers next possession, taking place at the free-throw line after Docks drew a foul in the lane before going 1-of-2. The Huskies had a chance to take the lead with a 3-pointer from Josh Terrian. Although it hit the front iron and forced Tech to foul Britain Harris, who sealed the game with two free-throws to make it 79-76 and advance to the GLIAC Tournament semifinals Saturday at Northern Michigan.

Marcus Tomashek and Dan Gherezgher combined for 58 points, with Gherezgher adding six assists to help the Huskies sustain a lead for over 21 minutes of action. Tomashek led all scorers and posted his sixth 30-point game of the season with 32 points on 11-for-21 from the field and a perfect seven-for-seven from the foul line.

Gherezgher added 22 points, a team-leading six assists, five rebounds and three steals.

The Lakers had a well-balanced attack, with five players in double-figure scoring led by Mason Docks leading the way with 21 points. Marius Grazulis recorded a double-double with 16 points and a team-high 10 rebounds.