Wayne State Weekly Game Notes

2009-10 RECORDS:
Wayne State 14-12, 12-10 GLIAC
Grand Valley 20-7, 16-6 GLIAC

SERIES: Grand Valley leads 43-26

LAST MEETING:  WSU won 70-56 at GVSU on Feb. 25

RADIO: WDTK (1400 AM)

ONLINE AUDIO: wdtkam.com

LIVE STATS: livestats.prestosports.com/waynestate/

* GAME 27 STORYLINES

For the second consecutive year, Wayne State ended the regular-season on a four-game winning streak.
The Warriors will be playing in the GLIAC tournament for the seventh time in head coach David Greer's nine seasons at the helm. Greer has a 5-8 postseason mark including a 2-6 GLIAC record (3-2 in the NCAA tournament).

WSU has not won a first round road (or neutral site) postseason GLIAC contest since a 79-61 victory over Saginaw Valley on Feb. 25, 1999.

Of WSU's 10 league setbacks, six were by five points or less, five by three points or less and that does not include the double-overtime loss (by nine points) at Northwood.

In the only postseason meeting between WSU and GVSU, the Lakers came away with a 93-84 win in the 1992 GLIAC Championship game at the Matthaei.

* GRAND VALLEY RECAP

The host Lakers started the contest on an 11-2 run during the first eight minutes which was in stark contrast to the 21-4 lead that WSU started with in the Jan. 23 game in Detroit.

Other than a fastbreak layup by Bryan Smothers, the Warriors were 0-for-8 from the floor with five turnovers as GVSU built up its nine-point lead.

Ian Larkin started a 5-0 WSU run with a jumper while Smothers contributed a conventional three-point play. Following an Alvin Storrs jumper, the Warriors answered with a 13-0 run.

After a Breland Hogan jumper pulled the hosts within four (23-19) at the 5:49 mark, Wayne State outscored Grand Valley 10-4 over the final 5:30 of the opening half limiting the Lakers to just one field goal.

GVSU scored the first three points following halftime, but Smothers responded with back-to-back layups. Following a Toreau Brown layup at the 15:40 mark, Wayne State tallied five consecutive points pushing the lead to 14 at 42-28.

The Warriors led by 20, 52-32, just past the mid-point of the second half after a triple by Smothers, who finished with a game-high 17 points.

Four straight GVSU points were answered with a 7-0 Wayne State run which gave the visitors a 22-point lead, 61-39, with just over six minutes remaining.

Bryan Wright contributed 13 points, while both Ike Udanoh and Jerry Oden had 10 points. Larry Edwards added five points, four assists, three steals and no turnovers.

The Warriors scored 27 points off 20 Grand Valley turnovers, while limiting the Lakers to 11 points off 14 WSU miscues.

* ON THE BENCH

David Greer, just the ninth head coach in school history, is in his ninth season at WSU with a record of 127-120.  He is the fifth-longest tenured coach in 92 seasons of WSU basketball.

Grand Valley's Ric Wesley has compiled a 151-37 mark in his sixth year with the Lakers.

Wayne State has lost its last six first round GLIAC tournament games that were not played at the Matthaei.  WSU's last road victory was a 79-61 triumph over Saginaw Valley on Feb. 25, 1999, in Battle Creek.

* FERRIS STATE RECAP

Wayne State extended its winning streak to four games with an 85-78 triumph at Ferris State Saturday afternoon.

The Bulldogs scored five points in the first 40 seconds of the game.  WSU bounced back with a fastbreak layup by Wright and a tip-in 20 seconds later by Oden.

FSU would lead by six, 15-9, at the 15:34 mark.  A three-pointer by Smothers and a layup by Oden cut the Warrior deficit to one.

Wayne State took its first lead at 19-17 on a triple by Wright at the 12:20 mark.  The game was tied three times in a span of 70 seconds with Mike Hollingsworth's three-pointer tying the game at 24.  Ferris scored the next four points but a bucket by Oden and a triple by Wright put the Warriors ahead 29-28 at the 7:32 mark.

A Hollingsworth layup gave WSU a three-point lead, 33-30.  The score was tied three more times in the first half, with Jon Yeazel's triple with 22 seconds left snapping a 42-42 draw.

Ferris scored four of the first five points of the second half for a six point lead at 49-43.  A basket by Oden and a triple by Larry Edwards cut the margin to one, 49-48.  After a FSU bucket, Smothers scored five consecutive points on a layup and three-pointer, with Wright adding a pair of foul shots during the 7-0 Warrior run.

Following a Bulldog hoop, Smothers missed a triple, tracked down his own rebound and then drained a three-pointer.  Each team only scored one point over the next 2:45 until a 7-0 Bulldog spurt.

Trailing by one at the mid-point of the second half, Wright gathered in an offensive rebound and sank a three-pointer.  Larkin scored on a dunk at the 8:54 mark for a three-point lead at 64-61.

After WSU's lead was cut to one, Udanoh had an offensive rebound and put back which keyed a 7-0 Warrior run that included another triple from Edwards and two free throws by Oden.

Wayne State's lead remained between six and 10 the rest of the way as the Warriors made six-of-eight from the foul line in the final 1:45.

Oden led three Warriors in double figures with 22 points, his fourth 20+-point game of the season.  Wright added 19 points, a career-high nine rebounds and five assists, while Smothers contributed 17 points, five rebounds and three steals.  WSU made 10-of-21 from beyond the arc and finished with 16 assists to 12 turnovers.