BIG RAPIDS, Mich. – The Saginaw Valley State University men's basketball team suffered a 78-72 defeat on the road against Ferris State on Thursday night.
Junior guard Toodles Seal led the way for the Cardinals (13-10, 6-8 GLIAC) with 23 points. It is the seventh straight game that Seal has scored 20+ points. He added five steals and two rebounds to his totals in the losing effort.
Kevonne Taylor got things going for SVSU with a layup off an assist from Tre Garrett to tie the game for the first time.
Maurice Anderson hit a shot from beyond the arc at 11:31 to cut the lead to one point. Taylor followed up with a blocked shot that led to a dunk that put the Cardinals up 18-17 with just over 11 minutes remaining in the first half.
The teams traded buckets until Ferris State held a 25-22 lead with just under nine minutes before the half. Back-to-back three-point jumpers by FSU gave the Bulldogs a six-point advantage with five minutes showing on the clock.
Freddie McIntosh hit a three to cut the deficit in half. A few possessions later, Ethan Hill made two free throws to bring the gap back to three points (35-32) with just over three minutes in the opening session. Seal added two jumpers on the next two possessions and flipped the lead to the Cardinals, 36-35 at the 2:01 mark.
McIntosh added another shot from deep to close out the 6-0 run and extend the SVSU advantage to 39-35 in the closing stages. A three-point jumper by Ferris stopped the run, but Dylan West punctuated the half with a layup through contact and added the and-one to close the scoring for the first 20 minutes as the Cardinals entered the break with the 42-38 lead.
Seal made a jumper and a three to start the second half and extend the margin to nine points in the opening two minutes of play. SVSU grew the lead to its peak at 51-40 before FSU responded with an 11-0 run to tie the game with 14:09 left before the final buzzer.
Seal scored two buckets and Garrett made a three for a 7-0 run to keep the advantage for the Cardinals. A layup by Ferris sparked a 9-0 run and the lead flipped to the home team's side with just under nine minutes to play.
Garrett tied the game at 60 with a layup coming out of a timeout as the game moved into the final stretch of regulation. The teams swapped buckets and the lead until a 5-0 run by FSU put the score at 67-63 with 5:23 on the clock.
The Cardinals continued to battle and keep the score within two possessions, but a pair of three-point jumpers late extended the Bulldog edge to 75-67 with just under four minutes left. Seal and Garrett hit shots to trim the lead to three points but missed free throws down the stretch hurt the SVSU comeback.
Garrett finished with 17 points on 5-12 shooting. He tallied 11 rebounds for his second double-double this season. McIntosh added 10 points and two assists to the stat line. Hill scored 10 points off the bench for the Cardinals while adding two rebounds.
UP NEXT
SVSU men's hoops will remain on the road for a game against Lake Superior State on Saturday in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan. The opening tip is scheduled for 3:00 p.m., EST