1The team had dropped a January road game at then-No.4 Hillsdale – its first conference loss of the season – but the No. 13 Lakers had made it through the first-half of the season injury-free and looked to carry that health for the rest of the season.

Fast-forward to February, and those same healthy, first-placed Lakers are now injured and one game behind now-first-place Ferris State University. In a short two-week period, the Lakers have lost senior guard K’Len Morris (knee), and juniors Nick Wadell (knee) and Alvin Storrs (concussion).

Despite the rash of injuries, GVSU has fought through this tough stretch with help from a familiar place: the Laker football team. Juniors Jovonne Augustus, a wide receiver, and Isiah Grimes, a quarterback, have swapped shoulder pads for shorts to assist the short-handed basketball team.

“(GVSU head coach Ric) Wesley contacted me since they were in a tough spot, and we just put our heads together and looked at Jovonne and Isiah in terms of ‘pros’ and ‘cons’,” said GVSU head football coach Matt Mitchell, who also said graduating senior Kyle McMahon was expected to play, but could not due to recovery from thumb surgery. “Both guys are athletic enough that they can get in and play some minutes to take pressure off the starters.”

Augustus and Grimes both point to prior experience as keys to their swift transition from football to basketball. Grimes, who has yet to see action since joining the team, played three years of varsity basketball at South Haven High School, earning second team All-State honors in his junior and senior seasons.

“Making the switch (from football to basketball) shouldn’t be too hard,” said Grimes, who redshirted in 2009. “I feel like I know enough about the game to where I won’t be lost with what the team is talking about. I feel that once Jovonne and I get in there and know what’s going on, we should be able to go out there and help out.”

Prior to arriving at GVSU, Augustus, who has logged 12 minutes of playing time this season, played three years of varsity basketball at Grand Rapids Creston High School as well as two years in junior college at the College of the Canyons in California.

“The basketball coaches said we should pick up the plays pretty fast because our football playbook is so deep with plays and sets,” said Augustus, who caught a team-high nine touchdown passes last football season. “But basketball shape is way different from football shape.”

Getting into basketball shape as well as understanding the playbook was a concern for both players, but as the practice mounts, so will the experience. Wesley said he sees the additions as a positive for everyone involved.

“Those guys are doing a good job and we really appreciate coach Mitchell and the football program to come out and help us,” Wesley said. “Jovonne gave us eight minutes and a three-pointer against Lake Superior State, and each day at practice the guys get more comfortable with what we’re doing.”

Wesley and Mitchell have not put a time-table on Augustus and Grimes’ participation with the team, and will take it on a week-by-week trial. The revamped GVSU men will return to the court tonight on the road against Ashland University.

[email protected]