ASHLAND, Ohio -- The Lake Erie men's basketball team concluded their four-game road trip against the Ashland Eagles on Thursday evening, coming away with a 90-85 victory. It was a bloodbath early on, as after nine minutes of action, the Storm led 30-11 thanks to 12/13 shooting overall and 6/6 from deep. They carried that momentum to finish the half up 50-35 and extended it to 74-54 midway through the second half, but Ashland mounted an impressive comeback. With 15 seconds remaining, Lake Erie led just 88-85, but late defensive stops ultimately sealed an impressive 90-85 Storm win.
With the victory, Lake Erie improves to 12-6 overall and 6-4 in the G-MAC, good for a four-way tie for second place behind 8-2 Walsh. With 10 conference games down and 10 to go, the Storm are in a strong position to make this season one remembered for a long time in Painesville.
Game Recap
After missing their first shot of the game, Rokas Castillo fought for an offensive rebound and kicked it out to Gio Moore for a quick 3-0 lead. Over their next 11 shots, Lake Erie didn't miss once, as the lead grew from 7-0 to 12-3, then 24-9, and eventually 30-11 with exactly 11 minutes left in the half. The scoring stalled briefly, as neither side scored for the next two minutes, but Ashland began mounting a small comeback, cutting the deficit to 35-24. The Storm offense stayed hot, however, rolling into halftime up 50-35 thanks to 9/13 shooting from three. Amari Williams (10), Gio Moore (10), and Gavin Welch (9) led the way offensively, combining to go 7/8 from deep.
Last year's G-MAC Player of the Year, Maceo Williams, scored the first four points out of halftime for the Eagles, trimming the Storm lead to 50-39. Two Amari Williams threes quickly helped LEC regain control, pushing the lead back to 19. Ashland responded with an 8-1 run of their own, but with 11 minutes remaining, Lake Erie still held a 74-54 advantage, their largest lead of the night. From there, things got interesting. The Eagles buckled down defensively, forcing nine turnovers the rest of the way while finally connecting on some three-pointers themselves. What was once 74-54 became 76-65, and then 81-72 with six minutes remaining, single digits for the first time since it was 16-7 just minutes into the game.
With 25 seconds left and Lake Erie up 88-82 with possession, the Storm appeared poised to survive the scare. However, a turnover and an instant Ashland three made it a one-score game with 15 seconds remaining. Trace Bishko was fouled immediately and went 1/2 at the line, and Ashland got the ball into the hands of their best three-point shooter, but he was unable to connect. Griffin Turay secured the rebound and was fouled right away, also going 1/2 from the stripe. With just four seconds left, the five-point gap proved too much to overcome, as the Storm secured an impressive road win.
Analysis
For the third straight game and fourth time in five contests, the Storm offense has scored 50 or more points in a half against a G-MAC opponent. Separately, Lake Erie has also finished with 90+ points in a conference game in four of their last five outings. Neither of these trends is normal. Across the previous five seasons (2020/21–2024/25), each of these marks has occurred just five times total. What the Storm are doing offensively right now is out of this world.
Lake Erie was electric from deep, finishing 14/27 after going 9/13 in the first half. In their previous two games, Ashland had limited Tiffin and Cedarville to just 9/39 combined from three. This time around looked much different!
Gio Moore turned in the best game of his collegiate career, scoring a career-high 25 points on 7/14 shooting and 5/8 from beyond the arc. The 6'6 junior is now averaging 11.9 points per game on the season and leads the team in blocks.
After tying the program record for three-pointers made in a single game against Northwood by going 8/9, Gavin Welch followed it up with another strong shooting performance, finishing 3/4 from deep and scoring 12 points. Welch now leads the G-MAC in threes made with 52 and is shooting them at an incredible 45.2%, second-best in the conference among qualifying players.
Amari Williams continues to be a weapon from distance as well, as the Storm's primary guard has now knocked down 47 triples this season, third-most in the conference. He went 4/6 from deep on Thursday and was a major contributor to the first-half scoring barrage.
Overall, and especially early on, the Storm did a strong job protecting the basketball, but Ashland's late defensive pressure fueled their comeback. Lake Erie committed nine turnovers in the final 10:33 of action and finished with 19 total, their most against a conference opponent this season.
Looking Ahead
Now at the midway point of the conference slate, with 10 games in the rear-view mirror and 10 still ahead, the Storm will enjoy three straight home games, beginning with Findlay on Saturday, January 24th at 3 p.m. Just one week ago, Lake Erie earned an impressive 99-94 win over the preseason coaches' pick to win the G-MAC. The Oilers come to Painesville at 12-7 overall and 6-5 in conference play, following a 78-72 loss to Hillsdale earlier today.
What worked the first time around:
Dominant first-half stretch – LEC went 7/9 from deep and scored 29 points in a seven-minute span, building a 19-point lead.
Offensive precision – The Storm committed a season-low seven turnovers and tied their most assists in a conference game since joining the G-MAC with 24.
Aggression without fouling – Lake Erie forced the most turnovers Findlay has committed against a G-MAC opponent this season (14), while committing just 17 fouls, their fewest in a conference game.
What they need to focus on:
Offensive rebounding (both ends) – Findlay grabbed 17 offensive boards in the first matchup, the most the Storm have allowed since the opening game of the 2024/25 season. Lake Erie also collected just 10 offensive rebounds themselves, well below their G-MAC-leading average of 15.7.
Containing Mekhi Elmore – The 6'3 senior guard entered the first matchup averaging 9.4 points per game, but has gone on a notable scoring stretch since then. Elmore erupted for a career-high 31 points on 11/20 shooting with nine rebounds against the Storm, followed by 26 points two days later versus ODU and 20 more in a loss to Hillsdale earlier today. After nearly tripling his season average over that three-game span, he has become a much bigger factor to account for defensively.
