Ferris State Men's Basketball Wins NCAA Tournament Tilt To Advance To Regional Semifinals

Postgame Interview 
Postgame Highlights 
Postgame Press Conference 

Big Rapids, Mich. - The Ferris State University men's basketball squad advanced to the NCAA Division II Midwest Regional Semifinals as the Bulldogs topped Findlay 87-81 in the opening round of the big dance on Friday (March 11) afternoon in North Canton, Ohio.

With the win, the Bulldogs will now square off against Hillsdale in the regional semifinals on Saturday (March 12) with tipoff set for 5 p.m. (ET) inside Walsh University's Alumni Arena.

The Bulldogs took a seven-point halftime lead and held on down the stretch to move to 22-8 on the year.

Senior guards Walt Kelser and Lee Higgins both led the Bulldogs with a game-high 22 points apiece. Higgins went 10-of-11 from the free throw stripe and nailed several big free throws down the stretch to ice the victory.

The Bulldogs also got 11 points each from senior big man Logan Ryan along with freshman guard Jimmy Scholler, who went three-of-four from the floor and connected on all three of his three-point tries.

Ferris State shot 51.8% overall and made nine-of-20 (45%) three's while sinking 20-of-28 (71.4%) free throws.

Findlay had five players reach double-figure scoring in the setback with Anthony Masterlasco totaling a squad-high 18 points. Nathan Bruns added 15 points, Joey Edmonds scored 13 points and both Tre'Maine Gray and Deven Stover totaled 11 points each.

The Oilers finished the game shooting 49.2% from the floor and made 12-of-26 (46.2%) three's to go with seven-of-14 (50%) free throws.

Overall, the Bulldogs held a slim 36-34 rebounding margin and forced 12 Findlay turnovers while finishing with 11 of their own.

This year marked the third consecutive trip to the big dance in which FSU squared off against Findlay following regional semifinal and regional championship game matchups in 2017 and 2018, respectively.

FSU is making its 15th all-time NCAA Division II Tournament appearance, including its sixth in eight years. The Bulldogs are the number two seed in the region and will now face third-seeded Hillsdale on Saturday with a berth in the regional championship game on Monday (March 14) night on the line.