HOUGHTON, Mich. — Michigan Tech's late comeback bid fell short in Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference men's basketball game today as the visiting Lake Superior State Lakers claimed a 58-51 victory. The Huskies had a cold shooting night at 29 percent in falling to 9-8 overall and 6-6 in league play.

Tech, which trailed by as many 17 in the second half, used a 12-1 run to close within 53-47 with 1:46 to play. LSSU missed five free throws in the final 90 seconds, but the shots wouldn't fall to get the hosts any closer.

"I thought we were over it, but obviously we're not," said head coach Kevin Luke in regard to the team's shooting woes. "We defended exceptionally well today and rebounded well. We needed our offense to hold us up, and it let us down."

Tech battled to within 28-26 under a minute left in the first half before a Laker 3-pointer made the score 31-26 at intermission.

Lake Superior State built up its lead as the Huskies went through a 10-minute stretch of the second half with only one field goal. Still, the Tech defense kept it in position for the comeback.

Michigan Tech held a 43-37 rebounding margin and committed fewer turnovers (10 compared to 12), but shooting played a critical role. The Lakers made 44 percent including 8-of-17 3-pointers while Tech was 29 percent and 3-of-21 from behind the arc.

Nine different Tech players had points and all 10 had at least two rebounds in the contest. Fedrick Bowe and Robby Springborn tied for team-high scoring honors with nine apiece. Georgio Holt added eight.

Michigan Tech will return to action Thursday (Jan. 29) when it hosts Grand Valley State at the SDC Gym at 7:30 p.m.