Bulldog Rally Comes Up Short On Road At Hillsdale

Hillsdale, Mich. - The Ferris State University men's basketball team rallied back from a 20-point second half deficit, but came up short on Monday (Dec. 17) night in a 87-79 Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) road loss at Hillsdale.

The Chargers led by 20 with 16 minutes to play before the Bulldogs rallied and came within two points at 69-67 late in the game.  However, the Chargers made some key plays and hit some key free throws down the stretch to pull out the home win.

The loss was the second-straight on the road for the Bulldogs, who fell to 4-5 overall and 3-3 in GLIAC action despite a career-high 36 points from senior guard Kenny Brown.

Hillsdale received career-bests of 26 points and 18 rebounds from senior center Nick Washburn while Tim Dezelski added 24 points in the win.  HC shot 63% from the floor for the game, which included an impressive 71% in the initial half.

In addition to Brown's 36-point effort, the Bulldogs also received 15 points from sophomore guard Drew Lehman and 13 points by sophomore guard Dietrich Lever.

Ferris State finished shooting 44% for the game and made 10-of-20 (50%) three's in addition to 17-of-20 (85%) free throws.

Meanwhile, Hillsdale converted 11-of-17 (65%) long range tries and made 22-of-27 (82%) free throws in the outing as they improved to 7-2 overall and 4-2 in conference action.

Ferris State had only four turnovers in the game and held a 21-9 margin in points off turnovers, but the Chargers outrebounded FSU 30-22 for the night.

FSU forced 13 Charger miscues and came away with eight steals with four coming from Lever. The Bulldogs had four blocked shots in comparison to Hillsdale's six swats and three thefts.

Freshman guard Jibreel Jackson chipped in with seven points and three assists in 14 minutes of action for the Bulldogs.

Meanwhile, the Chargers received 12 points from Darius Ware along with 11 each by Brandon Pritzl and Anthony Manno behind the one-two combination of Washburn and Dezelski.

Ferris State will be back in action on Wednesday night (Dec. 19) as the Bulldogs travel to Nicoson Hall in Indianapolis to face the unbeaten and nationally 14th-ranked Indianapolis Greyhounds in a non-league regional matchup. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. (ET).

Wednesday night's game can be heard live on Sunny 97.3 FM and the Bulldog Sports Network starting with the Meijer Pregame Show at 6:30 p.m. (ET).