PREVIEW: Ferris State Hosts Ashland In Postseason Play Wednesday Night At Wink Arena

This Week's Action: The Ferris State University men's basketball team hosts Ashland in a 2015 Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) Tournament Quarterfinal game on Wednesday, March 4, inside FSU's Jim Wink Arena.  Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. (ET).  FSU is the #3 seed with AU seeded sixth.

Media Coverage: Wednesday's game will be broadcast locally by Sunny 97.3 FM and the Bulldog Sports Network. Rob Bentley and Sandy Gholston will call the action with the Meijer Pregame Show starting a half-hour prior to tipoff. In addition, the live audio broadcast will be accessible online. FSU will also offer a live pay-per-view video webcast online. For a full listing of links, including live internet stats, please visit FerrisStateBulldogs.com.

Follow On Twitter/Facebook: In addition to internet coverage, Bulldog fans can also follow updates on social media via Twitter and Facebook. Please visit www.facebook.com/FerrisMBasketball or www.twitter.com/FerrisMBBALL to follow the periodic posts and tweet-by-tweet coverage with scoring updates.

Ticket Info: Ticket prices for the league quarterfinal are $8 for adults or $2 for all students older than age five, including college students with identification. All seats are general admission and no regular-season passes of any type will be accepted per league tournament regulations. For additional information, please contact the FSU Athletics Ticket Office at (231) 591-2888.

The first 150 FSU students with ID will receive FREE admission starting at 6 p.m.

The Tourney Field: The other quarterfinal round games include Findlay (#5 seed) at Saginaw Valley State (#4 seed), Northwood (#8 seed) at Lake Superior State (#1 seed) along with Walsh (#7 seed) at Michigan Tech (#2 seed). The Findlay-SVSU game will begin at 6 p.m. (ET), the NU-LSSU tips off at 7 p.m. (ET) and the Walsh-MTU game starts at 7:30 p.m. The top remaining seed after the quarterfinals will host the semifinals/finals on Saturday and Sunday, March 7-8, at the site of the highest remaining seed. LSSU is the top overall seed and would host the final four with a win over Northwood.

Tourney Notebook: The Bulldog men are 10-16 all-time in 14 previous tournament appearances and reached the GLIAC Tournament Championship game as the host institution in 2011 before falling on the road at Michigan Tech and Findlay in the quarterfinals in 2012 and 2013, respectively ..... Ferris captured the 1997-98 league tourney title and advanced to the league tournament final in 2011 before dropping a 73-71 buzzer beater to Wayne State at Jim Wink Arena in Big Rapids (3/6/11) .... FSU also advanced to the GLIAC Tournament title game in 2005-06 before dropping an 80-58 decision at Grand Valley State ..... FSU will be making its ninth appearance in the last 11 years and returns to the field after missing out last year.

Home Quarterfinal: This year's quarterfinal-round home tilt marks only the second time in which the Bulldogs have claimed an opening-round home contest in the last nine years. FSU's most recent opening round game came in 2011 when FSU topped Saginaw Valley State in the first round before eventually hosting the semifinals and finals.

Second-Year Coach: Second-year FSU head coach Andy Bronkema was elevated to the head coaching position prior to the 2013-14 campaign after six years as an assistant coach under former Bulldog head coach Bill Sall, who is now the head coach at fellow GLIAC member Northern Michigan after 11 years at the Bulldog helm.

The Records: Ferris State (20-8, 16-6 GLIAC) has won each of its last two outings to date this year after an impressive 77-55 home win over archrival Grand Valley State in the regular-season finale last Thursday (Feb. 26) night. FSU is 11-3 at home and 9-4 on the road to date this season along with 0-1 on neutral floors.
   
Ashland (19-9, 13-9 GLIAC) has won three of its last four contests to date under head coach John Ellenwood, but is coming off a 63-62 overtime loss at Lake Erie in the regular-season finale on Feb. 26. The Eagles shared the GLIAC South Division title with Findlay and dropped a tiebreaker for the higher seed in the tourney to the fifth-seeded Oilers. AU was 12-3 at home this year, but only 6-6 in road games to date.

The Head Coach: Ferris State – Andy Bronkema (Cornerstone), 2nd season, 30-24 (.556) - (2-0 vs. AU).  Bronkema took over the Bulldog program last season following six years as an assistant coach, including the previous three as the program's top assistant. A collegiate standout at NAIA Division II Cornerstone University in Grand Rapids, Mich., Bronkema was voted All-Wolverine Hoosier Athletic Conference (WHAC) three times and twice garnered NAIA Honorable Mention All-America laurels. He was a multi-sport prep standout at McBain (Mich.) High School.

All-GLIAC Best: Four Bulldogs combined for five All-GLIAC mentions for the 2014-15 campaign after leading the Bulldogs to 20 victories in the regular-season. The all-conference awards were announced by the league office on Monday and the five total selections earned by the Bulldogs were the most of any school in the conference. Senior guard Drew Lehman was chosen to the All-GLIAC First Team while the combination of junior center Jared Stolicker and junior forward Josh Fleming were both second team recipients. Finally, both Stolicker and junior forward James Chappell were named to the GLIAC All-Defensive Team, giving FSU a total of five places on the all-conference balloting. FSU's three first and second team picks matched both Saginaw Valley State and Northwood for the league's best while the two defensive team honorees also tied Lake Superior State for most in the GLIAC.

Great Attendance: This year, Ferris State set a record inside the current Jim Wink Arena for most fans on average per game in the facility during the regular-season and the Bulldogs also led the GLIAC in average attendance per contest in 2014-15. FSU drew more than 1,000 fans for eight home games, including the final seven in the regular-season. This year marked the program's 16th season of action in the building.

Tournament Notes: The tournament remains on campus sites this season for the 13th year in a row. Prior to the 2002-03 season, the four previous tournaments were held at a neutral site location, with the final three taking place at the DeltaPlex in Grand Rapids, Mich ....... The winner of this season's GLIAC Tournament will receive the league's automatic berth into the NCAA-II Midwest Regional Tournament slated for March 14-17 at a campus site to be determined.

Key Tourney Notes: The Bulldogs had won two consecutive GLIAC Tourney Quarterfinal games with both coming over Saginaw Valley State in 2010 and 2011 prior to road losses at Michigan Tech in 2012 and Findlay in 2013 ...... Ferris beat Northern Michigan in the quarterfinals at home in back-to-back seasons in 2005 and 2006 before falling two-straight years on the road at Grand Valley State in 2007 and 2008 ...... Overall, the Bulldogs are 5-4 in GLIAC Tourney quarterfinal-round play since the league implemented the current eight-team format.

Series History: Ferris State owns a 17-7 all-time advantage versus Ashland in school history, including wins in 11 of the last 13 series' matchups. Earlier this year, the Bulldogs topped Ashland 66-57 on the opening weekend of league play (Dec. 6) in Ashland, Ohio. FSU previously beat Ashland at home in a high-scoring 92-87 decision in the 2013-14 season under head coach Andy Bronkema.

Second Meeting This Year: In this season's first meeting against the Eagles on Dec. 6 at Ashland, the Bulldogs jumped out to a 38-32 halftime lead en route to a 66-57 triumph. FSU never trailed in the game, but never led by more than 10 points in the contest. Senior guard Drew Lehman paced FSU with a game-high 26 points and hit four three's while also adding seven rebounds. He was joined in double-figures by junior forward James Chappell with 13 points and junior forward Josh Fleming with 11 points. Wendall Davis led AU with 11 points in the outing.

The Last Time Out: Ferris State captured its regular-season finale with an impressive 77-55 triumph over archrival Grand Valley State last Thursday (Feb. 26) inside Jim Wink Arena. A crowd of 1,450 fans saw the Bulldogs bolt out to an early lead as senior guard Drew Lehman scored FSU's first 10 points of the contest in the opening two minutes of action. FSU led 49-29 at halftime and cruised to the victory as Lehman scored a game-high 20 points for the Bulldogs, who completed a season sweep of the Lakers.

Doubling The Output: By topping Grand Valley State last week, the Bulldogs won their 20th game of the season, which doubled last year's victory total. The win was also FSU's 16th in the GLIAC this season, tying a school single-season record for league wins.

NCAA Tourney Announcement: The Bulldogs are a strong candidate to recieve an at-large bid to the NCAA Division II Tournament regardless of the outcome of the GLIAC Tournament. FSU was ranked eighth in the official NCAA Midwest Regional Rankings prior to the win over Grand Valley State and could potentially move up in this week's rankings, which will be announced on Wednesday prior to the quarterfinal game. The top eight teams at the end of the year will advance to the NCAA-II Midwest Regional Tourney. The official announcement will be made Sunday (March 8) at 10:30 p.m. (ET) during the live NCAA Selection Show at NCAA.com.

Memorable Campaign To Date: During the regular season, the Bulldogs achieved several memorable accomplishments, including setting an all-time GLIAC record for largest victory margin in a 69-point home win over Ohio Dominican. The Bulldogs also posted their first-ever road win at Findlay, beat Wayne State in Detroit for only the second time in the last 20 years and topped NCAA Division I Bowling Green in convincing fashion. FSU was also ranked in the top 20 nationally and posted the school's second-best start ever in GLIAC play (11-0) while totaling a 15-game regular season win streak at one point, which was the second-best mark ever at FSU.

Nationally-Ranked: Ferris State was listed as high as 17th overall in the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) Division II Top 25 Poll at one point earlier this year before falling out of the rankings. Additionally, the Bulldogs were as high as sixth in the country in the Massey Online Computer Rankings this year and listed 12th at one time in the Division II Media Poll sponsored by the Division II Sports Information Directors of America (D2SIDA). FSU currently remains seventh in the D2 Midwest Region Media Poll this week.

Rankings Notebook: A five-week stretch this year marked the first time the Bulldogs had been ranked in the NABC poll since the 2010-11 campaign when the Bulldogs claimed the GLIAC Championship and advanced to the NCAA-II Sweet Sixteen. FSU was listed as high as 23rd in the country that season in the March 1 poll before going on its postseason run .... Overall, FSU's most recent poll appearance last month represented the 29th time in school history in which FSU had been found in the NABC National Poll. The Bulldogs were twice ranked as high as first in the nation in 1988-89 and have been found in the top 10 a total of 13 different times in school annals ..... This year also marked only the fourth season in the last 25 years in which the Bulldogs have been ranked nationally in the poll. After earning the number one ranking in the final regular-season poll of the 1988-89 campaign, FSU was not ranked again until making an appearance in the final three polls in 2004-05 when Ferris State also advanced to the Sweet Sixteen. FSU was ranked once in 2005-06 and appeared in three polls in 2010-11 prior to this season.

Big Stretch Of Wins: At one point this season, Ferris State had won 18 of 19 games overall. The Bulldogs' only league loss in the stretch had come at the hands of Lake Superior State on Jan. 24. Prior to the contest, the Bulldogs had won 15-straight regular-season games. FSU's win streak overall was 16 games in a row counting an impressive 82-68 road triumph over NCAA Division I Bowling Green State on Dec. 21, which counted as an exhibition tilt for the Bulldogs. The Bulldogs' 15-game win streak included eight home wins and seven road triumphs and was the school's best since a school-record 18-straight games in 1988-89.

Historic Wins: Ferris State has recorded several historic wins since the New Year began. FSU posted its first-ever road win at Findlay on Jan. 2 when FSU beat the Oilers 79-73 at Croy Gymnasium. The Bulldogs then topped Wayne State in Detroit for only its second win in the Motor City in 20 years on Jan. 4 by an 85-69 score before pulling off another historic performance with a Upper Peninsula sweep over Michigan Tech and Northern Michigan on Jan. 15 & 17, which marked only the third time in the last 25 years in which FSU had swept both teams on the road in the same trip.

Record-Setting Win: Ferris State set a new GLIAC all-time record for largest victory margin in a conference game with a decisive 115-46 win over Ohio Dominican on Dec. 14 at FSU's Jim Wink Arena. The 69-point triumph was the most decisive win ever in a conference game and topped a 51-point win for Ashland over Hillsdale in 2002, which was the previous record. FSU led by as many as 71 points in the game.

Bulldog History: The Ferris State men's basketball program has a long track record of success that includes more than 1,000 all-time victories, 13 GLIAC Championships and nine NCAA Tournament appearances. FSU has also reached the GLIAC Postseason Tournament now nine of the last 11 years, which ranks as one of the conference's top showings over the past decade. The Bulldogs have won four league championships and twice reached the NCAA Division II Sweet Sixteen since 2004.

Midwest Media Rankings: The Bulldogs are one of three teams from the GLIAC found in the Division II Midwest Region Media Rankings this week. Lake Superior State sits fourth with Michigan Tech fifth and FSU seventh. Bellarmine (Ky.) leads the regional poll with Wisconsin-Parkside second and Indianapolis third. The poll is utilized for media purposes only. The official NCAA Regional Rankings came out for the second time last week with FSU eighth. The top eight teams at the end of the year in the NCAA regional listing will receive NCAA Tourney berths.

Tremendous Start: The Bulldogs' 15-game win streak this year was the school's best since winning 12 in a row in the second half of the 2010-11 campaign. This year also marked only the sixth time in the program's 80-plus year history in which FSU had won 10 of its initial 12 games in a season and first since '04-05. Finally, this season represented only the third time FSU captured 10 wins through the initial 12 games in the last 40 years as the first three times all came prior to the mid-1970's. In addition, Ferris State's 11-0 GLIAC start was its best since posting a perfect 16-0 GLIAC record in 1988-89.

Bulldog Success: In head coach Andy Bronkema's first year as the program's top assistant in 2010-11, the Bulldogs won the GLIAC North Division Championship and reached the NCAA Division II Sweet Sixteen. FSU followed up the memorable campaign by winning a share of a second-straight GLIAC North Division crown in 2011-12. The Bulldogs made five-straight league tournament berths in Bronkema's tenure as an assistant.

Successful Run: Ferris State's last divisional title came in 2011-12 and was FSU's second-straight and fourth in the past decade. FSU also won back-to-back GLIAC North crowns in 2003-04 and 2004-05.  The Bulldogs' 24 victories in 2010-11 were the program's most since reaching the NCAA Division II Sweet Sixteen with a 24-7 mark in 2004-05 and the Bulldogs' 16 league regular-season wins tied for the most in school history along with the perfect 16-0 GLIAC record recorded in 1988-89. FSU matched the school mark of 16 conference wins this year by beating GVSU on Thursday.

Change Of Fortune: Ferris suffered five-straight losing seasons from 1998-99 to 2002-03, but has since captured four GLIAC North Division titles, made 10 GLIAC Tournament appearances, advanced to three NCAA-II Tournaments and claimed two conference tournament runner-up finishes over the last 12 seasons.

The Bulldog Roster: Ferris' 2014-15 roster includes four seniors, seven juniors, no sophomores and six freshmen. Fourteen of the 17 players on the Bulldogs' roster hail from Michigan with two from Illinois and one from Ohio.  The bulk of the Bulldogs' lineup consists of wing-type players.

Home Court Edge & Support: The Bulldogs are now 11-3 this season to date inside Wink Arena where FSU has been one of the league's best home teams in recent years. This year, Ferris State set a building record for most fans on average per game in the facility during the regular-season and the Bulldogs also led the GLIAC in average attendance per contest in 2014-15. Ferris State, which owned a 10-1 league mark two years ago at home in 2012-13, currently has won 53 of its last 69 games at Wink Arena dating back to the 2009-10 campaign.

FSU History: Ferris State's impressive basketball tradition includes 13 GLIAC titles, nine NCAA Division II Tournament appearances and a berth in the 1988 NCAA-II Elite Eight. Ferris, which last won the GLIAC Tournament championship during the 1997-98 campaign, captured a then league record four consecutive conference titles from 1986-90.

Senior Night: Last Thursday's contest versus GVSU served as FSU's annual "Senior Night" game with this year's senior class honored prior to the game. The class includes four-year letterwinners Drew Lehman and Dietrich Lever along with fellow seniors Matt Stoll and Matt Poches. In addition, junior Dan Chilcote, who is not expected to return next year due to graduation, was also honored.

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