Eagle Basketball Home at Last
January 8, 2003

Men's Preview
At the beginning of every season, Ashland University basketball players run through a battery of tests. Reaction time is one of many things the coaching staff wants to learn about.

It’s the middle of the season now, but head coach Roger Lyons and his staff will get another read this week about the Eagles’ reaction time. How with the Eagles react to a pair of Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference games after their longest trip of the season? Will AU have any life left after visiting three schools on Michigan’s Upper Peninsula and getting back in town Tuesday at 6 a.m?

“I’m very, very concerned,” admitted Lyons. “I have no idea why we’re playing on Thursday. But that’s the schedule the league gave us, that’s what we have to do. I’m very concerned about our legs and about how we’ll regroup after a long trip.”

Thursday (Jan. 9), the Eagles host Grand Valley State at 7:30 p.m. Saturday (Jan. 11), Ferris State will be in town for a 3 p.m. game. Women’s games will tip off prior to both of those contests. Thursday, the Ashland-Grand Valley State women’s game starts at 5:30 p.m. Saturday’s AU-Ferris State women’s game is at 1 p.m.

The Eagles enter Thursday’s game with a 12-2 record, 4-1 in GLIAC play. Going 2-1 in the upper peninsula was a major step forward for the Eagles. Gannon, for example, went 1-2 in the north and Mercyhurst was 0-3. The Grand Valley State and Ferris State games are Ashland’s final regular-season contests against GLIAC North Division teams. After this week all of the Eagles’ remaining games are against GLIAC South Division foes.

“I look for a major struggle in these two games,” said Lyons. “This is a major part of our season.”

Most of AU’s scoring has come from senior guards Isaac Kincaid and Angelo Edwards, plus senior forward Justin Larrick. Kincaid is good for 18.9 ppg., and Edwards is at 13.1 ppg. Both have scored over 1,000 points in their careers, Edwards joining that group last week. Larrick is averaging 11.1 ppg., and 5.6 rpg. He’s played the best basketball of his career over the last two weeks.

Grand Valley State will come to AU with a three-game winning streak. The Lakers are 6-7, 2-4 in conference play. Grand Valley is young, but talented. From the looks of things, the Lakers may be finding themselves after a slow start. Last weekend, they stopped Wayne State, 84-66 and upset Hilldale, 74-65.

Jason Bauer, a 6-8 senior center, led GVSU by averaging 14.8 ppg., 9.8 rpg., and 4.3 apg., in four games over the holiday break. He can be a handful inside – he had 16 points and 17 rebounds in the Wayne State game. Bauer is averaging 12.9 ppg., and 9.2 rpg., this year. It will be interesting to see how he matches up inside against AU’s sophomore center Mike Campbell, who is averaging 9.5 ppg., and 9.6 rpg. Campbell also has 25 blocked shots. The last four rejections came in Monday’s 84-59 win at Lake Superior State.

Junior Melvin White, a 6-6 forward, has played well recently for GVSU. He had 19 points against Wayne State. White was five for six from three-point range in that game and on the year is 14 of 22 (.636).

Ferris State is 6-7 and 2-3 in the league. The Bulldogs are much improved over the team that went 4-22 a year ago. Last week, FSU upended Hillsdale, 65-64 and lost in overtime to Wayne State, 74-71.

The Bulldogs are under the direction of first-year head coach Bill Sall. Senior center Adam Anderson is one of the top players in the region. The 6-10 Anderson is averaging 16.5 ppg., 5.2 rpg. and has rejected 15 shots. He has scored 10 or more points in 49 of his last 50 games, including the last 43. Anderson didn’t play against the Eagles last season – he was redshirted.

Willie Thomas, a 6-4 junior guard, contributes 15.3 ppg., and has 21 steals.

Women’s Preview
The AU women’s basketball team opens this homestand against the biggest surprise in the GLIAC – Grand Valley State. The Lakers are 14-1, 5-1 in league play. A year ago they finished 13-13. GVSU is ranked 10th in the country. AU will need to find a way to control Laurie Rehmann, who recently became the 15th player in school history to score 1,000 points in her career.

Ferris State is 7-5 and 2-3 in the GLIAC. The Bulldogs have gotten strong play from 6-2 forward/center Bridget Horwitz. The junior averaged 21.0 ppg., and 9.2 rpg., in FSU’s five games over the holiday break. Last Saturday against Wayne State she had 18 rebounds.

The Eagles went 0-3 on the upper peninsula trip and bring a 7-7 mark (2-3 GLIAC) into Thursday’s game. AU has lost five of its last six games. Junior Alanna Buurma leads the team in scoring (14.9 ppg.) and rebounding (6.9 rpg.). Sophomore guard-forward Beth Everman is averaging 12.0 ppg., and 6.3 rpg.