The Wright State Lake men's basketball team opened their with a lot of promise as they took on a strong Indiana University South Bend team. Unfortunately Lakers came up on the short end losing 99-71.
How it Happened: Both teams opened up the game not being able to hit shots early. With 11 minutes to go Tyler Daniel hit a 3 to cut the Titan lead to three 15-12. The next 3 possessions Avery Harmon and Jeremy Jones hit three 3's to extend the Titan lead while the Lakers turned it over in each of their next three possessions. With 5 minutes to go in the first half the score stood 34-26 which is when IU South Bend used a big run and a poorly time drought for the Lakers. The Titans closed the half out on a 12-3 run. The Titans were on fire from the three point line shooting 9/11 from 3 in the first half.
In the second half the Lakers offense got going early with a three from Seamus Anglin. With every basket the Lakers scored it seemed the Titans had an answer. Typically that answer came from Avery Harmon gave the Lakers defense fits all night pouring in 32 points to lead all scorers. With 11 to go Ty Daniel sparked the Laker offense again getting out in transition pushing the tempo. The closest the home team could get was 12. The Lakers will travel to South Bend on November 12th for a rematch with the Titans.
By the Numbers: Wright State Lake shot just 35 percent from the field for the game, while IU South Bend shot 56 percent from the field for the game. The Lakers won the rebounding advantage over the Titans 38-33, but the Titans held the turnover advantage 17-24... Junior Tyler Daniel led the Lakers with 20 points and 6 rebounds, he also chipped in two assists and a steal... Gil Carter finished with 14 points, 3 assists, and 3 rebounds.
The Coach Says: "I think we were right there at different points during the game. We just couldn't ever get over the hump. We need to pay attention to the details and execute what we are trying to run. This is just our first game and its a long season. We will make adjustments and continue to embrace the process" Wright State Lake Head Coach Richard Westerlund said. "I liked the way we competed. I thought TY was awesome tonight he came out and really sparked our team. There is plenty to build off of as we play Indiana Tech on Friday.
Up Next: Wright State Lake travels to Fort Wayne on Friday for the Northern Lake Insurance Tournament where the Lakers will take on Indiana Tech Warriors on Friday at 4:00pm.