The Lakeland men's basketball team played host to the Edison State Chargers today in OCCAC play and came away with a thrilling 70-69 victory. With the win, the Lakers improve to 13-5 overall and 7-1 in conference play. This game was marked by a series of runs before the Lakers held on at the end for the win. Lakeland started fast as they took an early 17-8 lead. That stretch was paced by a basket and pair of 3-pointers from Jadallah Suleiman. The Chargers would then score before Alikai Creque dunked to put the Lakers up 19-12. The Lakers would then miss shots on their next few possessions while the Chargers came all the way back to tie the score at 19. The teams would then trade baskets until the final minute of the period. With the Lakers leading 33-31, Suleiman would score on a layup. On the Chargers next possession, Suleiman would steal the ball and score on another layup. The Lakers then quickly put a full court press on forcing a Charger turnover. Micah Blackmon ended that play and closed the half with a dunk as the Lakers went into the break leading 39-31.
In the 2nd half, the Lakers would go up 10 points following an Isaiah McAdams jumper. The teams would trade baskets again before McAdams scored on another layup to put the Lakers up 12 points, 55-43, with 10:15 to play. The Chargers answered as they hit back-to-back three pointers to make the score 55-49. On Lakeland's next possession, Isaiah McAdams grabbed an offensive rebound and fed Juwan Turner in the corner for a 3-pointer to put the Lakers up 58-49. Following a Charger score, the Lakers executed great ball movement before feeding McAdams for a 3-pointer and a 61-51 Laker lead. The teams exchanged baskets before Lakeland went cold for a couple possessions. Edison State took advantage and and closed the gap to 63-61 with under 5 minutes to play. On Lakeland's next possession, Micah Blackmon grabbed an offensive rebound, scored a layup, and hit the free throw after being fouled. After a Charger turnover, Marlon Landingham scored on a driving layup for 68-61 Laker lead. The Chargers answered with a 3-pointer before both teams missed a couple of shots. Following a Laker turnover, the Chargers scored again to cut the Laker lead to 2 points, 68-66, with 1:34 to play. On Lakeland's next possession, Jadallah Suleiman was fouled and he sank both free throws to put Lakeland up 70-66 with 1:24 to play. Following a Charger basket, the Lakers missed 4 free throws in the final minute. The last missed free throw came with 4.9 seconds remaining. On the miss, the Chargers grabbed the rebound and drove the court taking a shot as time expired. As the horn sounded, a foul was called putting the Chargers on the line with a chance to tie the game. The Chargers made the first free throw before missing the second as the Lakers earned the victory.
Lakeland had 3 players finish in double digits. Marlon Landingham led all scorers with 25 points. Jadallah Suleiman finished his afternoon with 16 points while Isaiah McAdams recorded 12 points for the Lakers. Micah Blackmon picked up 7 points while Alikia Creque added 4 points. Juwan Turner and Chauncey Brashers each chipped in 3 points in the win.
From the Players: Marlon Landingham on the day and the week: "Success is when preparation meets opportunity."
Jadallah Suleiman on the day and the week: "A lot of games this week - we just pushed hard and got it done."
Coach T's Talk: "We played 3 games this week and didn't practice 2 days (day in between 2 games and weather cancellation) and it showed. We lost a lot of these close games in the first half of the year. We battled today though and were able to pull it out. I'm proud of our effort and the way we handled the week. We have a good test coming up for us next Saturday as Owens is a good team that's added some players."
Next Up: On Saturday (1/24), the Lakers will play host to the Owens Express in OCCAC play. Tipoff is scheduled for 11:00 am. Prior to the game, there will be a special presentation made to recognize Lakeland's newest member of the Athletic Hall of Fame - former Lakeland men's basketball coach, Terry Bowe.
