Ferris State Hands Wayne State First League Loss In Double OT

Ferris State Hands Wayne State First League Loss In Double OT

Live Call Of Kenny Brown's OT Jumper
(Bulldog Sports Network Audio By Rob Bentley)

Big Rapids, Mich. - It took two overtime sessions, but the Ferris State University men's basketball team finally pulled off the upset as the Bulldogs handed Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) leader Wayne State its first loss of the conference season with a 72-68 triumph on Thursday (Jan. 24) night at Jim Wink Arena.

The Bulldogs led by eight points early in the second half and held a four-point edge with 33 seconds remaining in regulation before the nation's leading free throw shooter in senior guard Kenny Brown missed a pair of tries from the charity stripe with 19 seconds to go.  WSU then forced the first overtime on a basket by Cole Prophet with 11 seconds to play.

However, in the first overtime session, Brown certainly made up for the free throw misses as he hit a baseline jumper off an inbounds play with 2.8 seconds remaining to force the second extra frame.

In double overtime, the Bulldogs hit nine free throws to secure the win, which was its seventh consecutive victory inside Wink Arena in league play this season.

The loss dropped Wayne State to 12-3 overall and 11-1 in the GLIAC this season while the Bulldogs improved to 9-8 overall and 8-5 in conference action.

Brown, who was honored before the game for becoming the program's 26th player to reach 1,000 career points, tallied a game-high 26 points and sank four three-pointers in the victory.  He was joined in double-figures by sophomore guard Drew Lehman with 13 points and senior forward Daniel Sutherlin, who tallied 10 points.

Ferris State shot only 33.3% from the floor, but owned a 48-40 edge on the glass and had 15 offensive boards while forcing 17 turnovers.  FSU was five-of-18 (27.8%) from downtown and converted 27-of-37 (73%) free throws on the night.

Meanwhile, the Warriors connected on 36.4% (24-66) of their field goals with a three-of-15 (20%) showing from three-point range in addition to a 17-of-24 (70.8%) effort at the line.

Wayne State grabbed the early advantage in the game before the Bulldogs came back to take a 30-24 halftime advantage.  However, WSU outscored FSU 31-25 in the second half.  Both teams netted eight points each in the first overtime with the Bulldogs outscoring the Warriors 9-5 in the second extra session and all nine points coming from the charity stripe.

In addition to the three players who reached double-figures, the Bulldogs also received a personal career-high 13 rebounds from sophomore forward Trent Messer.  Freshman guard Jibreel Jackson tallied eight points off the bench while redshirt freshman center Jared Stolicker came up with five points, seven rebounds and all three of FSU's blocked shots.  Brown added eight a team-best eight rebounds for the Bulldogs.

Wayne State was led by senior Ian Larkin with 18 points and 11 rebounds in a double-double effort.  Meanwhile, Prophet chipped in with 17 points and Chene Phillips totaled 12 points. The Warriors' leading scorer, junior guard Mike Hollingsworth, totaled nine points in the first half before being injured on a play just before halftime and did not return.

WSU posted a decisive 36-16 edge in points scored inside the paint and held a 14-10 margin in points off turnovers as the Warriors forced 16 Bulldog miscues.  FSU came into the contest ranked third nationally at 10 turnovers per game.  Prophet totaled four steals as part of WSU's 11 total thefts in the game compared to nine for the Bulldogs.  He also dished out a game-high six assists with Phillips netting five helpers.

The Bulldogs limited WSU to only a three-of-13 (23.1%) showing from the floor in overtime in a game that featured seven lead changes.

With the win, the Bulldogs improved to 40-37 all-time against Wayne State and won for the second time in the last three contests.  Each of the last four matchups between the two teams dating back to the 2010-11 campaign have been determined by four points or less with three going to overtime.

The win was the Bulldogs' eighth home win of the year and FSU has now won 33 of its last 41 games inside Wink Arena.

The Bulldogs will hit the road on Saturday, Jan. 26, as they visit Saginaw Valley State for a 5 p.m. (ET) league road contest in University Center, Mich.  Saturday's game can be heard live on Sunny 97.3 FM and FerrisStateBulldogs.com starting with the Meijer Pregame Show one-half hour prior to tipoff.

FSU will then return home next Saturday, Feb. 2, to host archrival Grand Valley State at 1 p.m. (ET) back in Wink Arena.