The Michigan Tech men’s basketball team (13-12, 10-8 GLIAC) fell short in overtime against both of the GLIAC’s top two teams this past weekend. The Huskies fell on Thursday to the third-ranked Ferris State Bulldogs (27-1, 17-1 GLIAC) 89-84 in overtime, and lost Saturday to the Lake Superior State Lakers (20-6, 14-4 GLIAC) 80-76 in overtime. The Huskies are now 0-4 on the season in games that resulted in overtime, losing to Minnesota State-Moorhead 89-82 and Saginaw Valley State 105-94 in two overtimes.
Thursday, Feb. 15 saw the Bulldogs come out of the gate red hot, as they slammed a dunk and knocked down a three in the first minute for an early 5-0 lead. Freshman Isaac Appleby put the first points on the board for the Huskies as he knocked down a jumper. Both teams then answered each other basket for basket for the next few minutes. The Huskies pulled within one 12-11 on a layup by junior Bryan Heath and a free throw by junior Kyle Monroe. The Huskies tied it up after freshman Trent Bell converted a layup at 15 apiece.
The Huskies got their first lead of the game from a layup and free throw by Monroe to make it 18-16 Tech. However, three threes by the Bulldogs, all within a minute of each other, put Ferris State up 25-18 with 10:38 left in the first half. The Bulldogs lead got to double digits after a layup and another three-pointer to make it 30-20 Ferris State with 9:33 left in the first.
Sophomore Ryan Schuller took over for the Huskies, as he brought Tech back into the game by knocking down four free throws and converting a couple layups to make it 32-29 Ferris State with 5:40 left in the first half. Schuller converted two more free throws and a layup to tie the game up at 40 apiece afterwords Heath knocked down two free throws to give the Huskies the 42-40 lead with a minute left in the first half. Appleby knocked down a jumper to go into halftime with the Huskies up 44-40.
Both teams came out of halftime trading basket for basket for the first few minutes. The Bulldogs tied up the game at 54 apiece with 14:14 left in the game, then proceeded to take the lead 30 seconds later on a layup. Senior Tanner Uren made it a one-point game after knocking down a three, 60-59 with ten and a half minutes left.
Monroe knocked down another three to give the Huskies the lead again 62-60 with 8:38 left in the game. However, the Bulldogs came roaring back, knocking down two layups and a free throw for the 65-62 lead. However, two quick layups by Monroe gave the lead back to the Huskies, 66-65 with seven minutes remaining. With two and a half minutes remaining the Bulldogs gathered a 72-69 lead following a layup, but the Huskies didn’t quit.
Monroe knocked down a free throw and A.J. Grazulis put in a layup for a 73-72 lead, forcing the Bulldogs to take a timeout. Monroe knocked down two clutch free throws to make it 75-72 Tech with seven seconds remaining. Appleby fouled a Ferris player, putting them to the free throw line. However, the Bulldogs missed the free throw, but got the offensive rebound and knocked down a three just as time expired to force overtime.
Both teams traded basket for basket to start overtime. A three by the Bulldogs with two and a half minutes left in overtime put FSU up 82-77. Monroe knocked in two free throws and a three to make it a two-point game at 84-82 FSU with 50 seconds remaining. The Bulldogs put in one free throw, but Monroe again converted a layup to make it 85-84 FSU with 15 seconds left. The Huskies had to play the foul game from there on, and unfortunately, a turnover saw the Bulldogs shoot two more free throws to secure the victory 89-84.
Monroe led everyone in scoring with 35, followed by Appleby who finished with 14. Heath contributed 11, while Schuller put in ten off the bench. Grazulis contributed six, while Uren and senior Dillon Gordon each knocked in three, and Bell contributed two. Monroe completed the double-double by leading the Huskies with ten rebounds. Bell and Appleby each had a block on the night.
On Saturday, Feb. 17, the first basket was scored over two minutes into the game.
Unfortunately, it was a three by the Lakers. However, Monroe immediately knocked down a three to tie the game. The Lakers knocked down two more threes to make it 9-5 with 15 minutes left in the first half. The Lakers made it a nine-point game after knocking down another three and a jumper to make it 14-5 with 11 and a half minutes left in the first.
A layup and a free throw by the Lakers made it 17-5 with 10:45 left. The Lakers knocked down another three and a jumper to make it 22-10 with 8:40 left in the first. The Lakers made it a 17-point game after knocking down another three and another jumper to make it 27-10 with seven minutes left, forcing the Huskies to call a timeout.
Monroe started the comeback for the Huskies by knocking down a triple, while freshman Dawson Bilski contributed a jumper to make it 27-15 LSSU with 5:45 remaining in the first. Two layups and a free throw by Grazulis made it 29-20 LSSU with 4:32 remaining. The Lakers finished the first half by knocking down a three and a couple free throws to go into halftime up 36-22.
The second half started with quick layups by Monroe to make it a ten-point lead for the Lakers, 36-26. A free throw by Monroe and layups by Bilski and Grazulis made it a six-point game 42-36 LSSU with 12 minutes left. A three by Monroe made it a five-point game at 45-40 LSSU with 10:04 remaining in the game. The Lakers regained an 11-point lead, making it 53-42 with 7:19 remaining. A free throw by Schuller, a jumper and a three by Monroe, and a three by Appleby made it 53-51 LSSU with 4:55 remaining.
Four free throws by Monroe tied the game up at 55 apiece with 4:01 left to go. LSSU knocked down a three, a layup, and a free throw to go up by four, 61-57 with 41 seconds to go. A three by Appleby and a free throw by the Lakers made it 62-60 LSSU with 16 seconds to go. Monroe banked in two free throws to tie the game at 62 apiece to head into overtime.
Monroe converted a layup and Grazulis banked in two free throws to make it 66-64 MTU. A jumper, two free throws, and a three by the Lakers put LSSU up 71-66 with 2:21 left in overtime. However, a three by Heath made it 71-69 with two minutes left. The Lakers took over, knocking down a three and a layup to make it 76-71 with 52 seconds left. A layup by Grazulis, and a three by Appleby made it a two-point game with nine seconds left, 78-76 LSSU. Two free throws by LSSU sunk the Huskies as the Lakers went on to win 80-76.
The Huskies were once again led by Monroe in scoring with 34, followed by Grazulis with 13, and Appleby with 11. Heath finished with eight, while Bilski contributed seven. Uren finished with two, while Schuller finished with one point. Appleby and Monroe each had double-doubles by knabbing 12 and ten rebounds, respectively. Appleby, Grazulis, Heath, and Schuller each had a block on the night.
The Huskies will be back in action this Thursday and Saturday, as they face the Wayne State Warriors (14-9, 12-6 GLIAC) with tip-off projected for 7:30 p.m., and the Davenport Panthers (12-14, 6-12 GLIAC) with projected tip-off for 3 p.m.
Saturday’s game against Davenport will be senior night, as the Huskies will commemorate the seniors on both the men’s and women’s teams in recognition of their final home regular season game. The Huskies swept both the Warriors and Panthers earlier on the road, 76-66 and 71-64. The Huskies will also be vying for one of the final home opening round spots in the GLIAC tournament, as the Warriors are two games in front of Tech and the Northern Michigan Wildcats are one game in front of Tech for the final home opening spot.
