TIFFIN, Ohio -- The Lake Erie men's basketball team competed against the Tiffin Dragons in another conference matchup on Saturday, coming away with an 82-71 victory. Despite entering the game at just 6-16 overall, every G-MAC opponent has talent and can be competitive, and Tiffin gave the Storm a run for their money, especially in the first half. Lake Erie was able to pull away in the second half thanks to an increased emphasis on scoring in the paint, ultimately winning their fifth game in a row to move to 17-7 overall and 11-5 in G-MAC play.
Game Recap
After going tit-for-tat for the first seven minutes in a one-possession game, Lake Erie gained some steam and built a 21-12 lead, but just minutes later, it was the Dragons back in front at 24-22. With five minutes left before halftime, the score was all knotted up, but the Storm finished strong and carried momentum into the break with a 33-26 lead in a classic low-scoring Tiffin affair.
The Dragons once again kept things interesting for the first seven minutes of the second half, as with 12:30 remaining, Lake Erie had only stretched its advantage to eight. That's when the Storm flipped the switch and reached another level, scoring ten straight points thanks to contributions from across the lineup. While they never increased their lead beyond that margin the rest of the way, they also never allowed the Dragons to mount a serious comeback. Some late desperation threes kept the home team hanging around longer than they should have, but the Storm calmly went 6-for-8 at the free-throw line in the final 58 seconds to cement the victory.
Analysis
There's clearly something that Coach Conley and his staff see in Tiffin that shifts the Storm's offensive philosophy, as they attempted just 20 three-pointers tonight — their fewest of the season. In the first matchup this year, they took only 28, another unusually low number for the G-MAC leader in this category, as they entered the game averaging 34.6 attempts per contest. This season, Lake Erie has attempted 816 threes, 141 more than the next closest team. That figure already surpasses last season's conference-leading total of 798, which came in five fewer games. In the second half tonight, the Storm attempted just six from deep, instead finding significant success attacking the rim in half-court offense. The Storm starters connected on just one three-pointer all night.
Tiffin shot an unbelievable 23-for-25 at the free-throw line, a season-high 92%. Entering the game, the Dragons ranked second-worst in the conference in that category at just 65.5%. Even while converting at an extremely high level, it still wasn't enough to secure the win.
The Dragons played just an eight-man rotation and dealt with foul trouble down the stretch, with their season-leading scorer, Jonah Nesmith, fouling out and another player finishing with four fouls. Redshirt senior D'monyae Davis logged 37 minutes for the home team and finished with a game-high 27 points. After recording just one double-digit scoring game in his first 11 contests this season, Davis has now poured in 82 points across his last three games combined.
The Storm's depth and balance were on full display, as it didn't even matter that their leading scorer and go-to offensive option, Amari Williams, had a quiet night by his standards, finishing with 11 points on nine shots along with one rebound, one assist, and four turnovers. Kai Bloom delivered one of his most productive performances of the season with 20 points in just 18 minutes, adding four rebounds, three assists, and zero turnovers. Caelum Ethridge and Jake Leibacher also reached double figures, with Ethridge leading the team with eight rebounds and Leibacher scoring his while coming off the bench and grabbing a team-high three offensive boards.
Looking Ahead
With four regular-season games remaining, the Storm are in prime position to secure a high seed, host at least one playoff round, and potentially represent the G-MAC in the NCAA Tournament. Their attention now shifts to Thomas More, as they visit the Saints on Thursday, February 19, for a 7:30 p.m. matchup. Two weeks ago, Lake Erie earned a hard-fought 91-86 win when the Saints visited Painesville. In that game, the Storm also attempted just 21 threes as Thomas More ran them off the line, fouled aggressively on drives (leading to a season-high 33 free-throw attempts), and lost the offensive-rebounding battle, a category they usually dominate.
The Saints are led by Kai Simpson, who averages the second-most points in the conference at 18.5 per game. Simpson scored 15 points with three assists by halftime two weeks ago and, while somewhat contained in the second half, still finished with 23 points on 8-of-12 shooting. He presents a tough assignment for the Lake Erie defense and will demand the full attention of all five defenders on the floor.
Despite Simpson's production, the Saints sit at just 11-13 overall. After defeating this same Tiffin team by 29 points, they have gone 1-5 in their last six games, with losses to ranked Walsh in two close contests, Lake Erie by five, Ashland by six, and, most recently, a 59-58 defeat to Malone on Saturday.
Thomas More ranks as the conference's best three-point shooting team by percentage at 36.3% and is second in rebounding margin at +7.5, but struggles with turnovers, posting the worst turnover margin in the conference at -3.63 per game.
