SAULT STE. MARIE - Northwood turned the tables on Lake Superior State in the first half, and the Lakers returned the favor when it counted.

LSSU (9-5 overall, 6-3 Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference) scrapped its way back from a 10-point halftime deficit and beat the Timberwolves 76-74 in a men's basketball thriller Thursday at Bud Cooper Gymnasium.

Senior center Ryan Kuhl won a battle for a rebound and made the put-back to give the Lakers a 75-74 lead with 1:48 remaining. A steal by Garrett Konuszewski led to another attempt by Kuhl, which was batted away by NU's Chris Johnson. Konuszewski came up with another steal, but Tim VanOudheusden missed a three-pointer as the shot clock was about to expire.

Northwood (9-5 overall, 5-4 GLIAC) missed two three-point attempts after calling a timeout with 22 seconds remaining. LSSU's Kyle Hunt rebounded the second shot, was fouled and closed out the scoring by making one of two free throws with three seconds left.

Lake Superior State increased its defensive intensity as the game progressed and saved its best for the final stretch, which brought the entire crowd to its feet during the final 30 seconds. Konuszewski finished with four steals, while Kuhl had three. The Lakers also blocked four shots and held Northwood to 36.4 percent from the field during the second half. NU shot 53.1 percent in the first half.

LSSU senior Tim VanOudheusden scored 29 points to lead the game and tie his career high. Kuhl finished with 22 points and eight rebounds. LSSU shot 48.3 percent from the field, including 4-of-10 from three-point range. The Lakers finished below their 72.9 average at the free-throw line, hitting only 16-of-25 for 64 percent.

Lionel Sullivan and Marcus Moore scored 14 points each to lead Northwood, which made 7-of-20 three-point attempts and 9-of-14 free throws. The Timberwolves out-rebounded LSSU, 41-32.

LSSU led by as many as seven points during the first half, but fell behind 46-36 by halftime. the Lakers took their first lead of the second half, 56-55, when Mike Rader hit a three-pointer with 10:39 to go. The game was tied three times during the final five minutes.

LSSU closes out its five-game homestand at 3 p.m. Saturday against Wayne State.

Box Score