HAMMOND, IND. – The Saginaw Valley State University men's basketball team outlasted a late push by the Pride to hold onto a 70-64 win on the road on Thursday night. The Cardinals (12-7, 5-5 GLIAC) improved to .500 in Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play to clinch a claim on the fifth spot in the standings.
Three SVSU players scored double-digit points led by Toodles Seal with 26 points. Seal was one rebound short of a double-double while shooting an efficient 11-18 from the floor. Tre Garrett added 13 points to the winning effort. Garrett finished with six rebounds and five assists. Dylan West finished with 10 points and seven rebounds off the bench. Kevonne Taylor totaled six rebounds, two blocks, and steals.
The Cardinals struggled early as Seal made the team's first field goal at the 15:31 mark to tie the game at four points. Seal added a second shot from distance to earn a 7-6 advantage on the next possession. An 11-0 run extended the advantage to 20-10 with 9:49 remaining in the half. Maurice Anderson hit a jumper to spark the run, while Seal scored five of the points during the run including the final bucket. West hit two layups, Garrett made a three-point jumper, and Seal made a jump shot to complete a 9-0 run that ended the half and had the Cardinals ahead 41-27 when they entered the locker room.
PNW scored 11 straight points to start the second period, cutting the SVSU lead to three points in the opening two minutes of the second. Curtis Jackson hit a shot from beyond the arc to ignite a 9-0 run to push the advantage to 12 points (50-38) with just under four minutes off the game clock. Eight consecutive points by the Pride tightened the gap to four points. Later in the half, PNW used a 7-0 run to tie the game at 56 with 5:14 remaining in the game. The teams traded buckets until Seal scored two in a row to hold a 62-58 lead with just over 2:30 left on the clock. Freddie McIntosh made two free throws and Garrett made a layup to rebuild the lead, 66-60, with 1:24 left. The Pride hit a three to cut the deficit in half, but Garrett hit a layup to go back up by five points and PNW ran out of time.
The SVSU men's basketball team will finish up the two-game road trip with a game against Parkside on Saturday. The Cardinals will look to even up the season series with the Rangers with a game start time of 4:00 p.m., EST.