Ferris State Bolts To Big Lead Before Saginaw Valley State Rallies For Win

University Center, Mich. - The Ferris State University men's basketball squad gave nationally 12th-ranked Saginaw Valley State all it could handle on Saturday (Feb. 20) night in a Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) showdown at SVSU's O'Neill Arena, but in the end too many free throws proved to be a deciding factor in a 88-79 setback.

The Bulldogs built an early 16-point first half lead and led by as many as 17 points with 18:20 remaining before the Cardinals rallied. They ended up knocking down 27-of-41 (65.9%) free throws compared only nine-of-14 (64.3%) attempts for the Bulldogs in the comeback win. FSU was called for 22 fouls with Saginaw Valley State whistled only 12 times on the night.

SVSU's C.J. Turnage came up with a big second half for the Cardinals as he tallied a game-high 28 points. Garrett Hall added 18 points, Damon Bozeman netted 13 points and Mike Wells scored 11 points off the bench.

On the Ferris State side, the Bulldogs were paced by senior center Jared Stolicker with 16 points, 17 rebounds and seven blocked shots. Sophomore guard Noah King chipped in with 14 points, senior forward Josh Fleming totaled 13 points, senior forward James Chappell contributed 11 points and sophomore guard Drew Cushingberry also reached double-digits with 10 in the loss.

Ferris State shot 49% overall compared to only 43% for the Cardinals and the Bulldogs hit six-of-16 (37.5%) three's to SVSU's seven-of-14 (50%) showing.

Overall, Saginaw Valley State did outrebound the Bulldogs 41-37 and pulled down 14 offensive caroms to only nine for the Bulldogs. That led to a 16-7 edge in second chance scoring for the hosts.

Ferris State also turned the ball over 15 times to 10 for the Cardinals, but outscored SVSU 50-40 in the paint.

The Bulldogs led for more than 31 minutes of the game as the contest was tied only once and the lead changed hands only one time after FSU bolted out to the early advantage on the road.

Ferris State finished with 14 assists, 11 blocked shots and nine steals with SVSU netting 14 assists, eight steals and single block in the victory.

With the win, Saginaw Valley State improved to 22-5 overall and 18-3 in the GLIAC. Ferris State fell to 19-8 overall and 13-8 in conference action.

Ferris State wraps up the 2015-16 regular-season next Thursday (Feb. 25) as FSU visits archrival Grand Valley State for a 8 p.m. (ET) league tilt inside the GVSU Fieldhouse Arena in Allendale.

Heading into the final regular-season game, FSU is tied with Lake Superior State for the number four spot in the conference tournament and the right to host a first-round postseason home game.