Karter Richards stole the ball and scored a layup with just over three minutes left in Thursday's game at Wayne State. He put Lake Superior State in the lead, 75-73.
That lead held during the tense final minutes. By the end, Lake Superior State had won 82-79 and clinched home court in the opening round of the GLIAC Tournament. A showdown with Purdue Northwest in Sault Ste. Marie, MI awaits on Wednesday.
Richards scored 25 points to lead LSSU (17-11, 11-8 GLIAC), the hottest team in the GLIAC coming into the postseason. The Lakers go into Saturday, the final day of the season, with a league-best six game winning streak.
Lake State shot a blistering 62.5% from the field in the second half, yet only took three three-point shots. Instead, the Lakers scored more than half of their points in the game from the paint, battering the Warriors inside. LSSU outscored Wayne State 40-28 near the basket.
The Lakers also drew 16 free throws in a game that saw 12 ties and 11 lead changes. Jalen Jenkins hit a three for WSU with just under five minutes left in the game. Richards tied the contest at 71-71 moments later, followed by a Marshall Thorn dunk to put the Warriors in the lead.
Richards put the Warriors away for good. His next layup tied the game, and the steal-score put the Lakers in the lead for good. He also snatched seven rebounds in the game.
Omar Suleiman scored 16 points for the Lakers and hit three triples.
Nino Carter-Smith had an excellent game, shooting 7-of-13 for 15 points, while dealing eight assists and stealing the ball five times.
Lake State faces Purdue Northwest on Saturday afternoon. While a Pride win would bring the teams level on record, the Lakers hold the tiebreaker by virtue of their records against the teams above them. Both teams have a win over Northern Michigan but went winless against Michigan Tech. LSSU beat Grand Valley State, though - meaning the Lakers have a better record against teams above them in the conference than the Pride. Put simply, with one game left - against each other - the Lakers will either go two games clear of PNW, or the Pride will end up with the same conference record, and the Lakers hold the tiebreaker.
Saturday's game might not mean much in terms of moving up or down or changing the venue, but it promises to be a day of high intrigue. The Lakers and Pride will play again a few days later, Wednesday at the Bud Cooper Gymnasium. Saturday's game is a tantalizing appetizer before the midweek main course. Purdue Northwest comes in with the league's second-best active winning streak, at four in a row.
Opening tip on Saturday is set for about 4:00 PM EST at Purdue Northwest. Watch all the action on FloCollege, the official streaming home of the GLIAC.
