Bulldogs Fall In Another Close Road Outing At #11 Indianapolis

Indianapolis, Ind. - The Ferris State University men's basketball team battled nationally 11th-ranked and unbeaten Indianapolis to the wire before coming out on the short end of a 70-62 decision on Wednesday (Dec. 19) evening at Nicoson Hall in Indianapolis.

The Bulldogs were within two points late in the contest, but the Greyhounds pulled out the plays down the stretch to improve to 8-0 overall with the victory in the non-conference regional tilt.

The game, which was FSU's third consecutive setback in a close game on the road in the past week, marked the final contest of the 2012 calendar year for Ferris State.

The Greyhounds took an eight-point advantage only four minutes into the game before FSU battled back and took a three-point lead of its own late in the half.  Indianapolis held a slim 39-37 lead at the break.

The second half was back and forth much of the way as the contest featured 10 lead changes and was tied six times.  

Ferris State shot 41.1% for the game, including 47% in the first half, but had 16 turnovers on the night.  Meanwhile, UIndy shot 46.3% for the game and had only nine miscues in the contest.

The Bulldogs hit four-of-15 (26.7%) three's and made 12-of-18 (66.7%) free throws in comparison to Indianapolis' eight-of-20 (40%) effort from downtown and 12-of-22 (54.5%) performance from the charity stripe.

Sophomore guard Drew Lehman netted 15 points in leading the Bulldogs while redshirt freshman center Jared Stolicker added 10 points off the bench.  Sophomore guard Dietrich Lever totaled nine points with the senior combination of Kenny Brown and Daniel Sutherlin finishing with eight points apiece in the setback.

On the Indianapolis side, the Greyhounds placed four in double-figure scoring.  Reece Cheatham totaled a game-high 19 points with Leland Brown adding 14 points, Daniel Daudu posting 12 points and James Hollowell totaling 11 points.

Ferris State owned a 41-31 rebounding advantage and came up with 14 offensive boards to only eight for the Greyhounds, which led to a 10-5 Bulldog cushion in second chance production.  Sutherlin grabbed nine boards with both Brown and Stolicker pulling down seven each for FSU.

Brown also led the Bulldogs with three assists in the game as FSU finished with nine helpers to 15 for Indianapolis.  FSU registered six blocked shots and five steals in comparison to UIndy's seven steals and three swats.

FSU narrowly outscored the Greyhounds in the paint by a 30-28 count, but Indianapolis recorded 13 fast break points to only seven for the Bulldogs.

With the loss, Ferris State fell to 4-6 overall this campaign heading into the New Year.

The win was Indianapolis' third in a row over FSU and fifth in eight all-time series' matchups.

The Bulldogs will return to action on Thursday, Jan. 3, versus Malone in GLIAC play at Wink Arena in Big Rapids.  Tipoff is set for 6 p.m. (ET) as the Bulldogs begin a four-game league homestand.

Tickets for all Bulldog basketball home contests can be purchased in advance.  Call the FSU Athletics Ticket Office at (231) 591-2888 for more information or visit FerrisStateBulldogs.com.  They can also be purchased online at StarTickets.com.