Ferris Basketball Hosts GVSU On "Big Monday"

Big Rapids, Mich. - It's "Big Monday" this coming Monday (Nov. 30) night as the Ferris State University men's and women's basketball teams host archrival Grand Valley State in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) openers for both schools at FSU's Jim Wink Arena in Big Rapids.

The women's game between the two West Michigan rivals begins at 6 p.m. (EST) with the men's game to follow at approximately 8 p.m.

Free t-shirts will be given to the first 100 students in attendance and a special "dance-off" competition is scheduled to take place at halftime of the men's game.  The dance contest is open to anyone and prizes include 10 free tanning sessions at Tan Lines, a $20 gift card to Meijer, a $25 gift card to the Blue Cow and first prize being awarded free cover to The Gate for a full year.

The Bulldog women's team is coming off its first victory of the season with a 74-66 non-league triumph over Lewis (Ill.) in their home opener on Tuesday (Nov. 24) evening at Wink Arena.  Meanwhile, the FSU men will be looking for their first win after dropping three narrow non-conference road decisions to start the 2009-10 season.

GVSU's women's team holds a 2-1 overall record to date and is receiving votes in the Women's Basketball Coaches Association Top 25 Poll.  The Laker men also maintain a 2-1 mark and were listed 13th in the 2009-10 National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) Top 25 Preseason Poll.

Last season, the FSU men beat the Lakers 74-67 at Wink Arena (1/12/09), but fell to the Lakers in Allendale twice, including a season-ending 67-49 setback in the GLIAC Tournament Quarterfinals (3/3/09) at the GVSU Fieldhouse.  Overall, Ferris owns a slim 47-45 all-time series' advantage in the Anchor-Bone rivalry.

The Bulldog women split a pair of meetings with GVSU last campaign, winning 74-64 in Allendale (12/1/08) and falling 78-63 at Wink Arena (1/12/09).  Grand Valley State holds a commanding 50-24 edge all-time in women's competition.

Both games will also be a battle of teams predicted to finish in the top half of the GLIAC North Division in preseason media balloting.  The Laker men were chosen first in the division just ahead of second-place FSU.  GVSU's women's team was listed second and Ferris third in the divisional poll.

Two years ago (2/23/08), the Bulldogs drew a modern Wink Arena record crowd of 2,430 fans for the regular-season men's basketball finale against the Lakers, which was also played in front of the first-ever live television audience from the arena. The official women's halftime attendance of 1,640 fans for the "Fill The Wink" contest also represented the largest crowd ever to watch the FSU women play in the 2,400-seat facility.

Ferris has broke its own men's basketball arena attendance mark against GVSU three of the last four seasons and four of the top six crowds in the building's history have came against Grand Valley State. The Bulldogs have had more than 2,000 fans for the contest versus the Lakers two of the last three years.

Tickets for Monday's doubleheader against Grand Valley State will be available at the door starting one hour prior to the women’s tipoff. All single-game general admission ticket prices are $7. FSU students are admitted free with ID. For more information on home ticket sales, please contact the FSU Athletics Ticket Office at (231) 591-2888.

A live pay-per-view audio & video webcast will be offered for both games via B2 Networks.  The women's game will be carried live by Bulldog Radio on Charter TV Channel 21 in Mecosta County with the men's game airing locally on WBRN 1460 AM & 107.7 FM. Live internet statistics will also be available. Visit the FSU Athletics Website at www.ferrisstatebulldogs.com and click on the "upcoming events" tab in the scoreboard area for a complete list of all available links.