The Lakeland men's basketball team continued their quest for nationals today as they faced the Kellogg Community College Bruins at Mott Community College in a District C semi-final matchup. The Lakers used a strong first half to build a big lead and then were able to close out a solid 95-86 victory. With the win, the Lakers improve to 24-3 on the season. Early on, both teams came out and took some time to adjust to the atmosphere. Both teams missed shots early and the score was tied at 11 each 7 minutes into the game. Lakeland then took charge of the game. For the Lakers, it started when Adam Williams made a layup. Later, Chris Tackett blocked a shot which led to a basket by Nate Houston on a Williams assist giving the Lakers a 15-11 lead. After a Bruins basket, Adam Williams scored on a jump shot to keep the Laker lead at 4 points. Williams later stole the ball and Ansoumane Oulare set up Alex Benson for a thunderous dunk and a 19-13 Laker lead with 10:24 to play in the half. After a Bruins turnover, PJ Daniels scored an old-fashioned 3-point play as he scored a layup and converted the free throw after being fouled. The Bruins would sink 1-2 free throws before Ansoumane Oulare grabbed an offensive rebound and scored on a put back to give the Lakers a 24-14 lead with just under 9 minutes to play in the half. The Bruins would miss a shot and PJ Daniels would set up Alex Benson for another layup. Later, Chris Tackett would steal the ball before PJ Daniels was fouled while shooting. Daniels would sink 1-2 free throws. After the Bruins would hit 1-2 free throws, Chris Tackett would grab an offensive rebound and feed Bishop Thomas on a made jumper and a 29-15 Laker lead. The Bruins would hit two free throws on their next possession before Dondi Harper would answer with 1-2 free throws for the Lakers. The Bruins would score again before Brandon Lane grabbed an offensive rebound and scored on a layup for a 32-19 lead with 5:57 remaining in the half. After a Bruin missed shot, Lane would get an assist by feeding Nate Houston for a Laker basket and a 34-19 lead.The Bruins would score 1-2 free throws and later hit a layup before Alex Benson sank a pair of free throws to give the Lakers a 36-23 lead with 4:36 to play in the half. The Bruins would then score on a 3-pointer before Alex Benson answered with a jump shot on an assist from Justin Covington. Both teams would then miss shots before PJ Daniels was fouled and sank both free throws for Lakeland. Late in the half, Chris Tackett and Adam Williams would both hit a pair of free throws around a pair of foul shots made by the Bruins. Following another Bruin miss, Williams would find Dondi Harper for a big 3-pointer to give the Lakers a 47-28 lead. Nate Houston would then steal the ball and find Williams who connected on a jump shot. After a pair of missed Bruin free throws, Jareon Mayo would find Benson for a layup and a commanding 51-28 Laker lead. Lakeland went onto the break with a 51-30 advantage.

In the second half, the teams would trade baskets early on as the Laker lead ranged from 18-22 points. The Bruins would start to whittle away at the lead by taking advantage of a couple of Lakeland missed shots and turnovers. Every time Kellogg started to get close though, the Lakers answered. With just over 11 minutes to play, the Bruins cut the lead to 12 points before Jareon Mayo stole the ball and fed Justin Covington for a 3-pointer and a 68-53 lead. The Bruins would connect on 4 free throws after a Lakeland tech was called to trim the deficit to 13 points at 72-59. Mayo would then nail a jumpshot to squelch the Bruin momentum. The Bruins would take advantage of a Laker turnover and a couple of missed shots to climb within 6 points at 74-68 with 7:34 to play. Dasjaun Williams would later steal the ball setting up Adam Williams who was fouled while shooting. Williams drained both free throws to up the Laker lead to 76-68. Following a Bruin missed shot, the Lakers were active on the boards. Ansoumane Oulare grabbed an offensive rebound before another Laker miss. Brandon Lane was able to secure the offensive rebound and score on a put back to put the Lakers back up by 10 at 78-68 with 6:27 to play. The Bruins would answer hitting a 3-pointer before being fouled and hitting both free throws to climb within 5 points at 78-73 with 5:49 to play. After a Laker miss, the Bruins would score a layup to make the score 78-75 with just over 5 minutes to play. Ansoumane Oulare was then fouled and connected on both free throws to put the Lakers back up at 80-75. On the Bruins next possession, they would miss and Oulare would grab the defensive rebound. Oulare was fouled and stepped to the line and calmly drained both free throws for a 7 point 82-75 Laker lead with under 5 minutes to play. The Bruins would score and the Lakers would answer on a PJ Daniels offensive rebound and jumper. The Bruins would score again and then both teams would miss on possessions before Jareon Mayo scored on a layup to keep the lead at 7, 86-79 with 1:38 to play. The Bruins continued to battle though as they hit a 3-pointer before fouling Justin Covington. Covington connected on both free throws for an 88-82 Laker lead with just over a minute to play. From there, the Lakers would close out the victory.

Lakeland was able to use a very balanced approach as 12 different players scored; five were in double figures. Alex Benson was Lakeland's high scorer with 16 points and 4 rebounds. Jareon Mayo finished the game with 15 points and 8 rebounds while Adam Williams recorded 12 points and 4 assists. PJ Daniels collected 10 points and 5 assists while Ansoumane Oulare finished with a double-double collecting 14 points and 12 rebounds. Nate Houston added 6 points and 2 steals while Justin Covington finished with  5 points, 4 rebounds, and 3 assists. Dondi Harper, Chris Tackett, and Brandon Lane each picked up 4 points while Ben Hamilton hit a deep 3-pointer. Bishop Thomas finished with a bucket and a blocked shot in the Laker win. Lakeland shot a solid 78% from the free throw line connecting on 29 of 37 shots.

T's Thoughts: "Kellogg is a a good team gave us a good challenge. I thought we played pretty well defensively and fortunately made enough plays to win in the end. Region XII is a challenging Region and it won't get any easier on Sunday. We are looking forward to what should be a very good game."

Next Up: The Lakers will face the St. Clair County Community College Skippers in the District C Championship at Mott Community College. Tipoff is scheduled for 11:00am. The winner of this game will advance with an automatic bid to the NJCAA DII National Tournament in Danville, Illinois.