A day after winning its first ever NCAA Division II tournament game, the Saginaw Valley men’s basketball team ensured that its quest for a championship would continue for a little longer.
The No. 5 seed Cardinals defeated the No. 1 seed University of Wisconsin-Parkside 92-77 Sunday night, advancing to the third round of the NCAA tournament.
SVSU started the game on a 5-0 run to take the early momentum. Wisconsin-Parkside trailed until five minutes into the game, when the Rangers took a 9-7 lead.
The Cardinals would regain the lead a few minutes later, eventually adding on by going on a 12-0 run.
SVSU would head into the locker room at halftime with a 46-35 advantage.
Things were much tighter in the second half.
SVSU scored the first four points of the half, and eventually jumped to a 61-43 lead.
However, the Rangers didn’t go away.
Wisconsin-Parkside pulled within eight points. The Cardinals managed to fend off the top seeded Rangers with each attempt they made to get back into the game, eventually coming away with the victory.
The Cardinals’ bench came up huge.
The SVSU bench outscored Wisconsin-Parkside’s bench 44-11.
SVSU shot 52 percent from the field, while making better than 62 percent of its free throw tries.
C.J. Turnage led the Cardinals with 19 points. He also added 10 boards.
Wade Gelhaus played a significant role off the bench, scoring 18 points and pulling down six rebounds.
Garrett Hall also put forth a good effort, coming away with 15 points.
SVSU will face a familiar foe in its next contest.
The Cardinals will play the GLIAC champion Ferris State Bulldogs, a team that SVSU defeated twice in the regular season.
The Cardinals will look to win their third game of the tournament at 8 p.m. Tuesday, March 15, at Wisconsin-Parkside.
