UNIVERSITY CENTER, Mich. - The Saginaw Valley State University men's basketball team defeated Michigan Tech University today (Jan. 14), 77-71. The win improves the Cardinals to 7-7 overall and 4-4 in the conference, while the Huskies drop to 8-7 on the season and 6-2 in the GLIAC.
After trailing early on in the contest, Michael Fugate (White Lake, Mich./Lakeland HS) stepped up to the free throw line and knocked down two shots to give SVSU the 19-18 edge at the 7:18 mark of the first half.
Saginaw Valley's Rob Clark (Saginaw, Mich.) scored the last bucket of the half with 2:12 remaining to cut the Michigan Tech lead to 31-25 at halftime.
Fugate brought the Cardinal deficit to 39-38 with a shot from beyond the arc with 14:57 remaining in the contest.
Mike Schaaf (Saginaw, Mich./Arthur Hill HS) continued his stellar shooting from beyond the arc this season, connecting on a triple to put SVSU in front, 41-39 with 13:21 to play.
Greg Foster (Indianapolis, Ind./T.C. Howe HS) pushed the lead to 45-39 as he scored on back-to-back plays. Foster made a layup after drawing a foul, grabbed the rebound on the missed free throw and made a jump shot. Foster finished the night with a team-high 17 points, eight rebounds and six assists.
Schaaf would increase the SVSU advantage to 48-39 on the next possession with a three-point basket at the 12:00 mark. He would finish the contest with 10 points and five rebounds on 3-of-5 shooting from behind the three point arc.
The Huskies chipped away at the Cardinal lead before Chris Webb (Saginaw, Mich./Arthur Hill HS) connected on a triple, giving SVSU a 58-52 advantage with 3:40 to go in regulation. Webb recorded 15 points on the evening going 5-of-11 from the field and 4-of-6 from the foul line.
Meijer "Player of the Game" Eli Redman (Bath, Mich.) gave Saginaw Valley their largest lead of the contest at 64-54 when he converted on an and-one opportunity with 2:34 left. Redman finished the evening with 14 points and nine rebounds on 4-of-8 shooting from the floor and 5-for-5 from the charity stripe.
The Cardinals would make their free throws down the stretch and come away with the 77-71 victory.
Saginaw Valley fired 51.7 percent from the floor in the second half and went 18-of-23 from the free throw line in the contest. The Cardinals outrebounded the Huskies 32-25, including 14 on the offensive glass.
SVSU also recorded 13 second-chance points while not surrendering any to Michigan Tech.
The Cardinals will return to action on Tuesday when they welcome Central State (Ohio) to James E. O'Neill, Jr. Arena for a 7:00 PM start.