KIRTLAND, Ohio – Lakeland Community College men's basketball played some its best basketball in the final minutes and got the game close but the Lakers fell 101-90 to Lorain County Community College Wednesday night.
With the loss, Lakeland falls to 1-6 overall and 0-2 in the Ohio Community College Athletic Conference.
Jeramie Burge fought hard all game and led Lakeland with 24 points and added eight rebounds and seven assists. Cordell Dupree came off the bench and hit a couple big 3-pointers down the stretch and finished with 14 points. Trey Granger and Chandler Fointno each scored 10 points in the loss.
Lakeland never led in the first half but the Lakers kept the half close. Ben Sternberg hit a running layup with 11:47 left to get within 16-15 against Lorain. Burge scored 10 points in the first half but Lorain led 50-44 at the break.
Burge came out strong and scored the first five points in the second half to get Lakeland within 50-49 but Lorain recovered in the following minutes. Lorain led 83-64 with 8:11 left but the Lakers put up a fight in the closing minutes.
Back-to-back 3-pointers from Dupree and Sha'mar Latham with 2:12 left helped Lakeland get within 93-85 of Lorain. Burge got the game even closer after converting on a 3-point play with 1:30 to play to get within 94-90. Unfortunately, that would be the final points scored by the Lakers as Lorain padded its lead to hold on for the victory.
Lakeland will look for revenge on Saturday, Dec. 2 when it travels to face Erie Community College at 3 p.m. The Lakers lost to Erie 83-64 on Nov. 3 earlier in the season.
For more information about Lakeland athletics, visit www.athletics.lakelandcc.edu.
About Lakeland Community College
Founded in 1967, Lakeland Community College was the first college in Ohio created by a vote of the people. True to our mission, Lakeland provides quality learning opportunities to meet the social and economic needs of the community.
Offering day, evening, weekend and online classes, the college serves more than 10,800 credit and 2,800 noncredit students (2016). For more information about the College, visit www.lakelandcc.edu.
