BIG RAPIDS, Michigan -- The Lake Erie Storm men's basketball team wrapped up their annual season-opening GLIAC/G-MAC Crossover Tournament against #25 Ferris State on Saturday. The Bulldogs handed the Storm their first loss of the season via a score of 94-72, moving their record to 1-1 on the year.
Game Recap
Despite what the final score reads, this game was highly competitive and back-and-forth for long time. With just under six minutes left in the first half, the teams found themselves in a 33-33 tie. From here until halftime, however, the Bulldogs were unconscious on the offensive side, making nine of their final ten shots. In the meantime, the Storm finished 2-7 and were uncharacteristically sloppy with three turnovers. This key run was a crucial factor to the game, as Ferris State broke away for a comfortable 13-point lead entering the break.
Three consecutive three-pointers by the Storm out of halftime cut their deficit back down to single digits at 57-48, however they would then experience a four-minute scoring drought, missing ten shots in a row. Although there seemed to be a lid on the rim, their high defensive intensity kept them in the game, and with only 12 minutes remaining, Lake Erie found itself only eight points in the hole, trailing 62-54. Their offensive struggles would prove to be to much to overcome, as from this point forward, the Storm made just five buckets the rest of the game, suffering their first defeat of the year.
Analysis
Major problems last year were the defensive consistency and free throw differential, but so far this year those areas are highly encouraging. The Storm's high-motor, high-pressure defense has allowed the team to enjoy a comfortable margin in both turnovers created and points following turnovers. As for free throws, Lake Erie was dead-last the previous season in G-MAC free throw differential rate versus their opponents, yet have gotten to the line more than their opponents in both games thus far. Once there, the team is shooting an otherworldly 82.6% (38-46). If the Storm can continue with this trend of drawing fouls on offense, playing fast-paced but disciplined defense on the other end, and continue to shoot 80+% from the charity stripe, expect a lot of wins out of this squad.
The offense is where this team certainly needs more time to gel, understandably so considering of the 23 players on roster, only ten are returners from last season. The team starts the season 48-139 from the field (34.5%) and 15-57 (26.3%) from beyond the three-point arc. While not ideal, expect these percentages to increase as the offense becomes more natural and has a better flow. Through the first two games the team combined for only 25 assists, a clear indicator that the players are still figuring each other out, are developing more counters to defensive schemes, and are adding further variations to offensive plays.
One of the strengths of this 2024-2025 Lake Erie team should be that they are extremely multi-demential. Guessing who the leading scorer will be on any given night will be a very challenging task, whereas in the past, this was much easier. This makes it harder to game-plan against the Storm, as seemingly anyone can pop off for a good 15 points. Expect them to have their bench outscore their opponents frequently. In their first game, the Storm won this category by a staggering 24 points in a seven-point victory. Against Ferris State, they lost this stat by 14 points.
Leaders for the Storm:
Points:
Caleb Piks (15),
Derrick Anderson (11),
Joshua Dames (7),
Cameron Johnson (7), and
Josh Irwin (7).
Rebounds:
Derrick Anderson (5),
Kai Bloom (4),
Todd Simons (4), and
Gio Moore (4),
Assists:
Derrick Anderson (4),
Cameron Johnson (2).
Steals:
Joshua Dames (3), and
Derrick Anderson (2).
Blocks:
Cameron Johnson (2),
Caleb Piks (1).
The Matchup
Saturday's defeat places the all-time matchup record at 9-0 in favor of Ferris State. Last year the Storm came dangerously close to snatching their first win in the series yet ultimately fell in overtime.
Looking Ahead
The Storm will welcome Bryant & Stratton on Tuesday, November 12th for the first home game of the season. The Bobcats will enter the game with a record of 1-2, coming off of a win against Penn State Scranton. After this matchup, Lake Erie will once again play host when Great Lakes Christian College comes to town on Friday, November 15th. They are 3-2 so far this year.
