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 Jeffrey Ferguson had two three-pointers in the loss. |
Dec. 3, 2005
ERIE, Pa. - Wayne State men's basketball team (2-3, 0-2 GLIAC) leaves Erie, Pa., still looking for its first league win as Mercyhurst College (6-1, 1-1 GLIAC) held on to defeat the Warriors, 65-61, Saturday afternoon.
The Lakers pulled ahead 8-4 early in the match-up on a pair of three-pointers. Mercyhurst was ahead 16-7 when Wayne State called a timeout with 11:31 left before the half. That sparked a five-point run by the Warriors as Herb Goliday (Royal Oak Twp., Mich.) was fouled after an offensive rebound and made both shots. Junior guard Kris Krzyminski (Flint, Mich.) then drained a three-pointer from the left wing with 8:35 to play in the half.
MC's advantage grew to 26-18 with 2:56 remaining in the first when Goliday hit a mid-range jumper and Curt Gilmore's (Detroit, Mich.) steal and fast-break layup cut it to 26-22. The first half scoring ended on an offensive put-back by Will Pierce (Detroit, Mich.) making the halftime score, 29-26, with the Lakers ahead.
Gilmore recorded another steal and easy layup to start the second half. Then Jeffrey Ferguson's (Toronto, Ont.) dump pass to Goliday gave WSU its first lead (30-29) since the score was 4-2 three minutes into the game. But an 11-4 run by the Lakers put them back up by six with 13:29 to play.
Wayne State cut the deficit down to two points at 45-43 as Banks hit a three-pointer with the shot clock buzzer sounding. MC outscored WSU, 6-2, when Ferguson hit a three with less than five minutes to go. A pair of Ferguson free throws followed made it Mercyhurst 51, Wayne State 50.
Six straight Avi Fogel points gave the Lakers some breathing room and a three-possession lead with 2:04 left. WSU got within four at 59-55 on Ferguson's second three of the game with 56.2 seconds left, but MC made crucial free throws down the stretch for the win.
Ferguson's 20 points and six rebounds led the team as Fogel scored a game-high 29, including 12-of-14 at the line.
WSU returns home for a non-conference contest against 22nd-ranked West Virginia State on Dec. 7. The Warriors will honor long-time Detroit coaching legend and WVSU alum Will Robinson at halftime of the game.
