The Tiffin University men's basketball team led for the vast majority of the 2nd half, but the final minute proved costly as the Dragons were unable to hold on, falling 80-71 to the Grand Valley State Lakers.
The Dragons and Lakers traded buckets to open a very physical 1st half. After an Alex Brown made jumper, the Dragons held a 23-21 lead with 06:28 left before halftime. The lead was short-lived as the Lakers used an 11-4 run to take a 32-27 lead with a little over two minutes remaining in the half. The Dragons dug in and scrapped their way back, pulling to within a bucket at 36-34 as the halftime horn sounded.
The Dragons feasted on the Lakers' perimeter defense, nailing 7 of 10 triples and hitting 40% of their 1st half field goal attempts. The Lakers lived in the paint, scoring 16 points in the post while shooting 61.5% from the field.
The Dragons were hot when the 2nd half began, rolling ahead on a 17-8 run to lead 51-44 with 15:04 left in the half. The Lakers slowly chipped away at Tiffin's lead, and eventually tied the score with 07:49 left at 59-59. Grand Valley State tried to create some distance from Tiffin, but the Dragons' three point shooting kept them right on the Lakers tail. Terrell Mabins knocked down a pair of free throws with 01:25 left to tie the score for the 11th time in the game. Those two free throws would be the last time Tiffin would score, as the Lakers ended the game on a 9-0 run, using the free throw line to do so.
Turnovers proved costly for Tiffin in the 2nd half, committing 10 miscues which led to 14 points for the Lakers. The Dragons' three point shooting never wavered during the game, hitting 8 of 12 attempts in the 2nd half, and 15 of 22 attempts for the game. The 15 made triples ties a single game record, and their 68.2% shooting from beyond the arc is a new single game record.
Alex Brown led Tiffin in scoring, netting 21 points. Brown knocked down five three pointers and grabbed four boards. Austin Schaub chipped in with 12 points and five rebounds, and Justin Miller finished with 11 points on 3 of 3 shooting from beyond the arc.
The Dragons fall to 6-10 overall and 2-7 in the GLIAC.