Grand Valley State Uses Record-Setting Effort to Oust AU Men’s Basketball From GLIAC Tournament, 90-77
March 3, 2006

By Paul Carmany, AU Sports Information

Complete Box Score

The Grand Valley State men’s basketball team entered Friday evening’s (March 3) Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) Tournament semifinal game against Ashland with a perfect 15-0 home record. The heavily-favored Lakers had to work harder than expected to make it 16-0, though.

GVSU set a school single-game record with 16 three-pointers and point guard Courtney James set a GLIAC Tournament single-game record with 11 assists. It was not until the latter stages of the contest, however, that the Lakers distanced themselves from the game Eagles. A 14-0 second-half run spurred Grand Valley State to a 90-77 win and a spot in Saturday’s (March 4) GLIAC Tournament championship game.

Grand Valley State is now 26-3 and will face Ferris State for the GLIAC championship.

Ashland drops to 19-10 and likely played the final game of its 2005-06 season Friday night. The NCAA Division II Tournament field will be set Sunday night (March 5), and the Eagles have an outside chance at securing an at-large bid.

The Eagles got off to a great start, scorching the GVSU Fieldhouse Arena nets. Rob McRae nailed a trio of three-pointers within a 2:32 stretch. His third long-distance connection gave AU its largest lead of the first half, seven points (24-17).

A 11-3 Grand Valley State burst, including three three-pointers, gave GVSU an eight-point lead (48-40) just 10 seconds before the intermission. Vahn Knight hit his third three-pointer of the half with two seconds left, though, making the halftime score 48-43 in favor of the home team.

Both teams shot the ball extremely well in the first half. Ashland was 58.3 percent from the field and made eight of 13 three-point attempts. McRae was 5-for-5 overall and 4-for-4 on three-pointers for a team-high 14 points. Knight tossed in 11 markers in the opening stanza.

GVSU made 56.7 percent of its field goals and was 10 of 16 from long distance. Jason Jamerson scored his 15 points on five three-pointers.

Knight scored six of Ashland’s first eight points in the second half. He made two free throws at the 17:02 mark, putting the Eagles within one point at 52-51. It was then that GVSU embarked on its decisive run and sent its home crowd of 1,154 into a frenzy.

The Lakers made four three-pointers over the next 2:22 of play, two by Jamerson and two by James. That hot shooting highlighted a 14-0 run. Jamerson’s seventh long-distance connection of the game capped the surge and gave GVSU a 66-51 lead with 14:40 left.

Grand Valley State’s lead sat at 18 points (81-63) with 6:24 showing on the clock when Roger Lyons’ squad made its last push. The Eagles reeled off the next 10 points, seven of which were scored by Brett Bartlett. Suddenly, AU trailed 81-73 with 4:40 left to play.

A couple of key plays then sealed the Eagles’ fate. McRae had two straight shots rejected on AU’s ensuing possession. The second block led to a three-pointer by James. Then, Justin Brown committed a turnover at the offensive end and fouled out at the defensive end, most likely ending his standout career at Ashland. GVSU’s Mike Hall made both charity tosses and the Lakers’ lead was 86-73 with 3:33 left. That proved to be too much for the Eagles to overcome.

All five AU players reached double figures in scoring. Knight finished with 19 points and made all eight of his free throws. He established a new GLIAC Tournament record for free throw accuracy as the junior went 20-for-20 in Ashland’s two contests. Greg Emmons added 15 points.

McRae ended up with 14 points and five boards. Bartlett scored nine of his 11 markers in the final 20 minutes and dished out a team-high four assists. Brown, fittingly, recorded a double-double, his 14th this season. He totaled 10 points, 12 rebounds and three assists.

Jamerson led GVSU with 23 points and six rebounds. James, a first team All-GLIAC North Division honoree, tallied 19 points to complement his record-breaking assist performance.

Ashland cooled down in the second half, shooting just 34.6 percent from the field and connecting on only two three-pointers. The Eagles made 14 of 16 free throws, though, and finished the game at 21 of 25 (84 percent). AU established a GLIAC Tournament record by shooting 83.3 (45 of 54) percent at the line in its two contests this week.

Grand Valley State stayed hot, ending the game at 57.4 percent on field goals and by making 16 of 25 three-pointers (64 percent). It was AU that won the rebounding battle, however, 29-26.