Strong second half performances helped the Grand Valley State University women’s basketball team nab a pair of victories to open GLIAC play.

Thanks to a 21-9 run to open the second half, the No. 14 Lakers downed Tiffin University 84-72 Saturday. On Thursday, GVSU had an 18-2 run during the final 20 minutes in a 74-50 win against Ohio Dominican University.

GVSU improved to 6-0 overall (2-0 GLIAC) with the victories.

“This is how we thought we were going to start,” said sophomore center Alex Stelfox. “We’re just going to get better each and every day. This is a great way to start off the year.”

Sophomore forward Briauna Taylor led all scorers with 21 points and eight rebounds against Tiffin while junior guard Jasmine Padin tallied 20 points and four assists and Stelfox added 18. The Lakers dished out 18 assists and out-rebounded the Dragons, who also entered the game unbeaten, by 18.

GVSU opened up a 12-point lead with 9:55 to play, but Tiffin fought back, and Mandy Jaeb’s jumper brought them to within five with less than three minutes to play. With the shot clock below three seconds on GVSU’s next possession, freshman guard Dani Crandall knocked down a three-pointer from the corner to help the Lakers seal the victory.

“I think it was a great challenge for us,” said GVSU head coach Janel Burgess. “Tiffin is a solid little team.”

After shooting 46 percent in the opening half and heading into halftime tied 40-40, Tiffin shot only 35 percent from the field in the second half of Saturday’s game. The Dragons went cold from beyond the three-point arc, hitting only one shot from behind the line in the final period after draining six before halftime.

“I was proud to see our defensive adjustments,” Burgess said. “I thought we finally played our defense in the second half. The first half, I don’t know whose defense it was, but it was definitely not Grand Valley defense.”

Stelfox said Tiffin’s offense posed problems for GVSU’s defense in the first half, but adjustments and better communication allowed the Lakers to get their defense back on track.

“I thought they came out really strong and pushed the ball like we knew they were going to do,” Crandall said. “At halftime, we made a couple of adjustments with screens and whatnot to try to cut back on that.”

The Lakers dominated both teams on the blocks, using a combination of their size and athleticism to score from inside. GVSU shot 52.7 percent from the floor against Tiffin and outscored the Dragons 36-16 in the paint. Against Ohio Dominican, the Lakers shot 61.3 percent from the floor in the second half and tallied 44 points in the paint.

“We work on it all the time in practice,” Stelfox said. “We have really physical players. The (Taylor) twins are great penetrators going to the basket, and our post players are all very physical. We know how to work it in to the post.”

The undefeated Lakers ended a five-game home stand with an average margin of victory of more than 24 points. GVSU next faces Northwood University Thursday for the first of a five-game road trip that spans into January.

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