It’s hard to believe, but college basketball season is almost here. This week, we’ll preview Michigan’s nine Division II schools.

By Patrick Hayes

At a glance

• Coach: Bill Sall, 11th season
• Last year: 16-11, 13-6 GLIAC
• Conference: Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC)
• Key losses: Dontae Molden, Spencer Sellner, Jim Boylan
• Key additions: Matt Stoll (Muskegon C.C. transfer), Josh Fleming (freshman from Illinois), Jibreel Jackson (freshman from Chicago), Bryant Orange (transfer from Triton C.C.), Raymoan McAfee (Bethune-Cookman transfer)
• Team website
• Team roster
• Ferris State news on BallinMichigan

Overview

Ferris State is one of three teams who tied for first in the GLIAC North last season. Like Michigan Tech, they also return their best player in the quest to win the division outright this season.

Strengths

Kenny Brown was one of the GLIAC’s top players last year, averaging 16.9 points per game. He also made 36 percent of his 3-point shots.

Fellow returner Daniel Sutherlin gives the Bulldogs another reliable scorer. He averaged 12.3 points per game and led the team with 8.0 rebounds per game. Sutherlin was also great at getting to the line, shooting 199 free throws (7.4 per game) for the season.

The lineup should also be bolstered by impact transfers Orange and McAfee.

Ferris State was one of the best team’s in the league at forcing turnovers, creating nearly 15 per game. The Bulldogs took decent care of the ball themselves, averaging just 10 turnovers per game.

Weaknesses

The team was not a strong shooting squad last year, hitting just 41 percent of its shots overall and just 31 percent of its 3-pointers. The Bulldogs also made just 63 percent of their free throws, a number that, if they improve on, would be extremely beneficial considering the number of players they have who are adept at getting to the line.

Circle these dates …

• Nov. 3 – The team plays Loyola in Illinois, which should be an interesting matchup considering the Bulldogs have three players on the roster from Illinois.
• Jan. 6 and Feb. 7 – Ferris State lost to Michigan Tech twice last season. They’ll likely have to beat them at least once to win the GLIAC North this season.
• Jan. 26 – Ferris State had a bad road loss to 6-13 Saginaw Valley State last season. Winning that game would’ve been enough to put Ferris State in first in the division outright.

Outlook

Expect Ferris State to be right back in the mix for the GLIAC North title this year.

• Previously

  • Northern Michigan hopes transfers can make immediate impact
  • Michigan Tech returns reigning GLIAC Player of the Year in quest for league title
  • New coach hoping to change the fortunes of Saginaw Valley State
  • Northwood has to replace production of Bobby Lewis to repeat last season’s success
  • High-scoring Derek Billing returns as centerpiece of Lake Superior State lineup
  • Healthy return of Mike Hollingsworth should help Wayne State stay among the best in the GLIAC

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