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Dec. 31, 2010
Phoenix, Az. - One day after having its six-game win streak snapped, #8 Grand Valley State rebounded nicely in an easy 77-31 victory over Southwestern on Friday (Dec. 31) at the Trip Sports Grand Canyon Classic in Phoenix, Az. The Lakers used a 38-19 halftime advantage and stretched that out to as much as a 48-point lead in the second half. GVSU owned a huge 42-8 edge in points in the paint and four Lakers scored in double-figures in the team's 10th victory of the season.
Grand Valley State moves to 10-2 on the year, while NAIA institution Southwestern falls to 3-9 overall. The Lakers dominated the Eagles in virtually all aspects, as GVSU shot 50.0 percent from the field and put together a commanding 44-21 advantage on the boards. Leading every single speciality category, Grand Valley State was better than Southwestern in points off turnovers (31-6), bench points (37-4), second chance points (10-2), and fast break points (10-2). The Eagles shot just 23.1 percent from the field and only 2-of-17 (11.8 percent) from long range.
Redshirt freshman Asauhn Tatum put the first four points of the game on the board for the Lakers, slamming home consecutive dunks off of feeds from junior James Thomas and senior Justin Ringler. Southwestern stayed close at 12-10 near the midway point of the half 10 straight GVSU points extended the Laker lead. Sophomore Nick Carreri drained back-to-back three-pointers in a one-minute span, which was followed by consecutive jumpers from Thomas.
Minutes later, four straight free throws from Tatum put the GVSU advantage at 30-13 with 4:52 remaining. Sophomore guard Tony Peters then connected on a triple try, Carreri added a jumper, Thomas scored on a layup, and sophomore Breland Hogan split a pair of free throws, pushing the Lakers out to a 38-16 lead. Grand Valley State would go into halftime with a 38-19 advantage on 48.4 percent shooting and an 18-4 advantage in points in the paint.
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Ringler put together five straight points to start the second half, scoring on a jumper and then converting a fast-break layup on a steal and assist from Hogan. Making an old-fashioned three-point play, Ringler added the free throw for a 5-0 run in the opening 52 seconds. A jumper from junior guard Alvin Storrs made it seven straight points and a 45-19 Laker edge.
With 15:24 left in the game, Grand Valley State was ahead 45-23 and put the game away with 14 straight points over the next five minutes of play. Junior Nick Waddell scored six points in a row on a pair of jumpers sandwiched around two made free throws. Tatum and Hogan then connected on back-to-back jumpers and Thomas buried a pair of free throws. When Carreri's jumper at the 8:35 mark hit the bottom of the net, the Lakers were ahead 59-23 and never looked back, as Southwestern was unable to get within 30 points the rest of the ballgame.
Peters led a quartet of GVSU players in double-figures, as he totaled a team-high and career-high 14 points on 6-of-9 shooting from the field. In 20 minutes off the bench, he was 2-of-4 from downtown and dished out three assists, along with a steal and a block. Ringler did not follow far behind, as he added 13 points on 6-of-12 shooting and a team-best seven rebounds.
Scoring 12 points and tying his career-high was Carreri, who was 5-of-6 from the field and made both three-point tries. He added four boards and an assist in 20 minutes. Tatum recorded 10 points, six boards, and a rejection, while knocking down all four free throw attempts. Thomas provided eight points, four boards, and three assists for the Lakers, who recorded a season-best 14 steals, including Hogan's game-high three thefts.
The 2010 calendar year is over for GVSU and the team will hit the hardwood again on Jan. 6 to begin a three-game conference homestand. Grand Valley State will face Saginaw Valley State on Thursday (Jan. 6) at 6:00 p.m. in GVSU Fieldhouse Arena. The Lakers are 5-0 in the GLIAC so far this season.
