DETROIT -- Postseason play is here for the Wayne State University men's basketball team (15-13 overall, 11-9 GLIAC) and it starts on Wednesday night at Ferris State (24-7 overall, 14-6 GLIAC) in Big Rapids, Mich.  The sixth-seeded Warriors will take on the third-seeded Bulldogs inside Jim Wink Arena with the opening tip scheduled for 7:30 p.m.

STORYLINES
Wayne State (15-13, 11-9) is back in the GLIAC Tournament for the second straight season, something it hasn't done since the 2016-17 and 2017-18 campaigns.  The Warriors will be the sixth seed and travel to third-seeded Ferris State (24-7, 14-6).  WSU was 6-8 on the road during the regular season, while FSU lost just once (15-1) on its home floor.

THE SERIES
Before Wayne State defeated Ferris State 83-75 in the second-to-last game of the regular season, the Bulldogs had bested the Warriors eight times in a row.  FSU is on top of the all-time series 58-42 with wins in 10 of the last 12 meetings.  Wayne State hasn't won in Big Rapids since the GLIAC Tournament Championship game on March 6, 2011, 73-71 (0-11 since).  WSU's current head coach Bryan Smothers was named the 2011 tournament's Most Valuable Player thanks to 51 points in three games.

SCOUTING THE BULLDOGS
Ferris State is among the top 10 in the country in multiple categories including blocks per game (fourth - 5.5), bench points per game (seventh - 37.5), defensive rebounds per game (seventh - 29.3), and field goal percentage defense (seventh - 39.4).  Individually, the Bulldogs defensive prowess is paced by Nathan Claerbaut, who ranks fourth nationally in total blocks (76) and seventh in blocks per game (2.5).  Also on defense, Jimmy Scholler is FSU's ringleader in steals with 41 (tied-for-second in GLIAC).  On the offensive side of the ball, Ferris State boasts a pair of scorers averaging double figures in Ethan Erickson (16.3, sixth in GLIAC), and Tyler Hamilton (11.1).  Claerbaut brings down 6.6 rebounds per contest (eighth in GLIAC), while Scholler's 3.8 assists per outing are tied-for-second in the conference.

POSTSEASON PLAY
Last year (2024) marked WSU's first postseason contest since 2021, when the Warriors lost in the GLIAC Quarterfinals (76-74) to Saginaw Valley State in Hammond, Ind., then fell 76-61 to Ashland in the first round of the NCAA Tournament in Evansville, Ind.

The last time Wayne State won an opening round GLIAC Tournament game prior to last year either on the road (or neutral site) was Feb. 25, 1999, when the Tartars defeated SVSU 79-61 in Battle Creek.

Since winning the GLIAC Tournament in 2011 in Big Rapids, then posting an 84-77 triumph over Northwood at the Matthaei on Feb. 29, 2012, WSU had lost four consecutive GLIAC Quarterfinal contests until last year's victory at Lake Superior State.

This will be the Warriors fifth GLIAC Tournament appearance in the last nine seasons (2017, 2018, 2021, 2024 and 2025).

LAST TIME OUT - VS. LAKE SUPERIOR STATE - MARCH 1
Wayne State couldn't have asked for a better start opening the game on a 12-2 run through the first three minutes and change.  In that stretch, the Warriors were a perfect 5-of-5 from the field, 1-of-1 from behind the arc and 1-of-1 at the free throw line.  Individual scorers included Jordan Briggs and Rob Lee, Jr. with three apiece while Ray Williams, Jr., Kelvin Tamakloe and Carmelo Harris each had a pair.

Lake Superior State responded by tallying nine of the ensuing 11 points and cut the margin to three, 14-11, at the 14:35 mark.  The home team didn't let that affect it though and pushed through with a 15-2 outburst over the course of the next six minutes.  WSU's advantage grew to 16 (29-13) with under nine to play as four Warriors provided the fuel.  They were Lee, Jr. (5), Jon Brantley with four, Harris (3) and Briggs (3).

Not long after, Wayne State took its largest lead of the contest at 17 (32-15) with 7:03 remaining in the stanza.  From there until the final first-half buzzer, the visitors outscored their hosts by 12 (23-11) and the Warriors halftime advantage had shrunk to five, 43-38.  In that final span, WSU was 4-of-10 from the floor to LSSU's 8-of-12.

The second half began with the game's first three ties in its initial five minutes and change.  Once the scoreboard read 49-49, a Kingsley Perkins jumper put his team ahead for the first time all day, 51-49.  Leading by as many as 10, 61-51, the Lakers carried the lead until the 6:19 mark.

At that point came deadlock number four (61-61) before the Warriors capped off an 11-0 rally to take the advantage back at 62-61 with 5:36 left.  Following two more lead changes and another tie (64-64), Briggs cashed the second of his two triples to put the good guys up 67-64.

Back-to-back Lake Superior State two-pointers swung the advantage to the opposition (68-67), but Tamakloe notched the final two points of his career-high 13 and Wayne State had the lead back (69-67) with just 51 ticks left.

Back on the other end, Perkins converted a second-chance three-pointer, which forced the Warriors head coach Bryan Smothers to use his fourth and final timeout.  Out of the breather, Lee, Jr. knotted the score at 71-71 with a lay-up, before LSSU's Devin Womack's lay-up at the other end was blocked by Briggs, sending the game into overtime.

Aside from three ties, Wayne State had the advantage for nearly the entirety of the extra period.  Each of the three instances in which the Warriors took a two-point lead though, the Lakers were able to knot it up.

Once it was 77-77 with 54 seconds left, Carlos Paul III missed a triple try and Lake Superior State nabbed the defensive rebound.

On the other end, LSSU came up empty on a pair of lay-ups before Perkins sealed it with a jumper in the paint.   WSU used its lone overtime timeout before Harris caught the inbound pass and heaved a three-quarter court attempt that missed the mark.

TRENDING UPWARD
Wayne State's 15 regular-season wins are the most since the 2017-18 team had 15.  The Warriors 11 GLIAC victories are the most since the 2020-21 squad went 12-5 and won the league's regular-season championship.  Thanks to Thursday's 83-75 triumph against tied-for-22nd-ranked Ferris State, WSU improved to 10-1 this season when playing on that day of the week, including an 9-1 mark in conference contests.

FREE THROW PHENOMS
Wayne State junior Carmelo Harris continues to make free throws with a historic efficiency.  This season, Harris ranks second in the GLIAC and 31st nationally in free throw percentage at 88.1 percent (74-of-84).  Career wise, the Flint native is shooting 88.2 percent (186-of-211), which is first in program history (minimum 70 made) and 12th among all active Division II players.  When factoring in all current NCAA basketball players from Divisions I, II and III, Harris' career clip is good for 36th.  Not to be forgotten though is his high school teammate Rob Lee, Jr., who is fifth in the league for free throw percentage at 80 percent (92-of-115).  The 2024 GLIAC Freshman of the Year is also 30th among active D2 players in career three-point percentage (.421 / 82-of-195).

"THE MAESTRO"
After starting at Davenport on Feb. 22, redshirt senior Ray Williams, Jr. became the program's all-time leader in games played and started, totals that now sit at 123 and 114, respectively.  Thanks to 38 minutes on the court against Michigan Tech on Feb. 5, Williams became the school's all-time leader in that category as well, a total that now stands at 3,703 minutes played.  Entering this week, Williams is sixth in total rebounds (741, 19th among active players in D2), 24th in three-pointers made (81), 27th in steals (88), 28th in field goals made (367), 32nd in points scored (936), tied for-40th in blocked shots (28), and 47th in rebounds per game (6.0).  The Detroit native is one of four players in program history to start at least 100 games along with Raheem Muhammad (111, 1982-86), Tony Goins (102, 1995-99) and Marcus Moore (100, 2014-18).