Pride Fall to Ferris State in Big Rapids
BIG RAPIDS, Mich. — The Purdue Northwest men’s basketball team (6-11, 2-7 GLIAC) was defeated 99-77 Thursday night by the Ferris State Bulldogs (13-7, 5-4 GLIAC). DeShaun Thrower finished with a game-high 18 points to lead the Bulldogs, while Dean Tate paced the Pride with 15 points on 5-8 shooting from behind the arc.
FSU jumped out to an early lead, as Boomer Roberts was forced to use his first timeout after a Michael Peterson tip-in pushed the Ferris State lead out to 18-6. The Pride battled but ultimately continued that 12-point deficit into the half, as FSU was up 49-37 after the first 20 minutes.
Purdue Northwest was once again haunted by poor shooting, as they managed just a 37.2% (29-78) from the field Thursday, not to mention an 8-30 (26.7%) from three-point range. 24 Pride turnovers, the fourth time this season the Pride have exceeded 20, didn’t help matters. Ferris also controlled the game offensively, as they led 30-17 in assist margin.
The Black and Gold did get a significant contribution from the bench, as PNW got 48 combined points from the reserves, led by Tate’s 15. The other Pride athlete to reach double figures was Durante Lee, who amassed 10 points. Anthony Barnard did once again find himself with doube-digit rebounds, as the freshman forward pulled down 10 boards to go along with six points.
Head Coach Boomer Roberts
“We knew the pressure was coming, and we didn’t handle it very well. We just had too many turnovers, especially for a guard heavy team. We have to take that more seriously, obviously. The first few minutes of the second half have been a problem for us recently as well, especially on the defensive end. Our scrap on the glass was pretty good, and we took four charges, which I loved. We have to do a better job being more efficient on offense, and focused for longer stretches on D. If we do that, we can play with anyone. It’s just a matter of doing that night after night, which we haven’t done consistently.”
Next up, the Pride continue the trek north where they will take on the Lake Superior State Lakers (9-6, 5-4 GLIAC) Saturday from Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan. The men will tip-off at 2:00 PM (CST).​