Viking men raid Lansing

A remarkable first half by sophomore Daivion Boleware helped give the Glen Oaks men's basketball team a cushion heading into the locker room Monday at Lansing. But it was a complete team effort that produced a 92-88 victory for the gritty Vikings. 

After a quiet first eight minutes without a point and the Vikings trailing 16-12, Boleware went bonkers on the Stars over the next 12 minutes, scoring 25 of his 29 points to push GOCC to a 52-44 lead at the break. The scoring streak included a pair of 3-pointers and three consecutive free throws at the 7:08 mark that gave Glen Oaks a 29-28 advantage — its first since eight minutes earlier when the Vikings held a 12-9 lead. 

Boleware hit two more 3-pointers before the half was done to go along with clutch buckets by Lavonta Ash, a triple by Tylan Harris, a scrappy putback by Jordan Turner and a jumper by Tyler Swanwick to close out the half. 

The second half was a slow start for the Vikings until Swanwick knocked down a jumper at the 16:56 mark, followed by a field goal by Turner two and a half minutes later to keep GOCC out front, 56-50. Turner turned in his most impactful performance of the year, dumping in 21 points to go with a fine defensive effort. 

Turner struck again with a little over 13 minutes to play and Lansing just having cut the deficit to a point. Another Swanwick jumper pushed the lead back to five points. The Centreville native ended the game with eight points. 

Darrius Roach connected on a pivotal 3-pointer, Boleware knocked down a shot and Roach made another bucket in a mid-half spurt that put the Vikings out front by eight points with 10:43 to play. 

Lansing's Jamison Eklund, who ended the contest with 30 points, proceeded to keep the Stars within striking distance, but Turner had an answer with back-to-back field goals and a free throw for a five-point punch in a span of 27 seconds to put Glen Oaks ahead, 72-63. 

Harris found the bottom of the net on a jumper and a 3-pointer that finally stretched the lead back to double digits for the Vikings. A couple of key buckets by Roach were enough to keep the Stars at arm's length until Lansing's Jay Wallace tied the game at 81-81 with 2:31 remaining. 

Another clutch shot by Roach, followed by a silky 3-pointer by Swanwick with just under two minutes left made it a four-point lead for the visitors. Made shots by Boleware and Turner in the final stretch, including a pair of free throws at the end by Boleware, sealed the win for Glen Oaks, which improved to 12-7 overall and 3-1 in MCCAA Western Conference play. 

Lansing fell to 10-9 overall and 1-4 in the conference. 

Glen Oaks got a huge shot in the arm from its bench as Roach added 13 points to pair with Turner's big night. The Vikings outscored the Stars 34-7 in bench points. 

Harris had 11 for the game, Ash finished with six and Shane Handlon had four.