FSU Basketball At A Glance: The Ferris State men’s basketball team will visit Saginaw Valley State Saturday, Dec. 3, for a 3 p.m. (EST) Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) encounter in SVSU’s O’Neill Arena at University Center, Mich.

Media Coverage: Saturday’s game will be carried live locally by News Talk 1460 AM (WBRN). Rob Bentley will handle the play-by-play duties for Saturday’s coverage. It will also be available via the internet by clicking on the Bulldog Athletics Webcast icon at www.ferris.edu/sports.

FSU Wins GLIAC Opener: Ferris State shot 51.5% (34-66) from the floor in winning its 2005-06 GLIAC opener Thursday (Dec. 1) evening over visiting Northwood by an 88-71 count in FSU's Jim Wink Arena at Big Rapids, Mich. Ferris jumped out to a 47-34 halftime advantage and outscored NU 41-37 in the final half while improving to 3-2 overall this season. The victory ended a 13-year Bulldog slide in conference-opening contests and was FSU's third consecutive triumph this campaign. Senior guard Antwuan Holt (Okemos) netted a personal career-high and game-best 21 points for FSU. Senior forward Jeffery Shananan (Flint/Kearsley) also tallied a personal best with 15 points and grabbed eight rebounds. Senior guard Dennis Springs (Toledo, Ohio) chipped in 15 points along with 10 assists while junior forward Michael Daniels (Detroit/Murray-Wright) scored 10 points.

Ferris Claims Home Opener: FSU overcame a 15-point first half deficit to win its 2005-06 home opener last Saturday (Nov. 26) as the Bulldogs defeated California (Pa.) 76-67 in FSU's Jim Wink Arena. The visiting Vulcans jumped out to a 24-9 advantage with 8:12 remaining in the opening half and led by nine points (34-25) at halftime. However, the Bulldogs outscored California 51-33 in the final period to notch their second consecutive victory this campaign. Junior forward Terrance Shaw (Saginaw/Bridgeport) led the Bulldogs with 18 points and eight rebounds. Dennis Springs added 13 points along with seven assists while freshman guard Jessie York (Muskegon Heights) chipped in 13 points, including three three-point baskets in the final half.

Last Season: Ferris State capped off a banner 2004-05 season with a runner-up finish in the NCAA Division II Great Lakes Regional Tournament (March 12-15) held in Findlay, Ohio. FSU reached the regional championship game for only the third time in school history last season. The Bulldogs, who won their second-straight Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) North Division Championship with a 13-5 league mark last campaign, concluded the year with a 24-7 overall record and fell one game shy of advancing to the NCAA-II Elite Eight for the second time ever. FSU's 24 victories represented the third-most wins in school history. Ferris State, which was ranked 23rd in the final (March 8) National Association of Basketball Coaches/Division II Bulletin Regular-Season National Poll, also advanced to the GLIAC Tournament for the second year in a row in 2004-05. Last season marked Ferris State's first appearance in the national rankings since the 1988-89 campaign.

Nationally-Ranked: Ferris State was ranked 18th overall in the 2005-06 National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) Division II Preseason Top 25 poll. Tarleton State (Texas) earned the preseason number one ranking. GLIAC member Findlay was seventh in the poll with regional foe Southern Indiana listed ninth. League members Grand Valley State, Gannon and Ashland were listed in the others receiving votes category. The poll is conducted by the NABC Division II Congress with a member from each of the eight Division II regions included.

FSU Third In Poll: Two-time defending divisional champion Ferris State was picked to finish third in the 2005-06 GLIAC Men's Basketball Coaches Preseason North Division Poll. The Bulldogs totaled 28 points along with one first-place vote in the balloting, which was conducted by the conference's head coaches. Northern Michigan was selected as the North Division favorite as the Wildcats recorded 33 points along with four first-place votes. Findlay took the top spot in the South Division with 24 points and four first-place votes. The league's 13 head coaches voted for the division in which they play, but not allowed to vote for their own team.

Head Coach Bill Sall: A 1994 Calvin graduate, fourth-year FSU head coach Bill Sall previously held assistant coaching positions at Calvin (1992-95), Ferris State (1995-98) and Hillsdale (1998-02) prior to being named Ferris State’s 11th head coach. The Zeeland, Mich., native served as Ferris’ interim head coach for a portion of the 1995-96 campaign and led the Bulldogs to a 5-8 mark. Before joining the coaching ranks, Sall was a standout player at Calvin from 1985-90. He twice (1989-90) received second-team National Association of Basketball Coaches Division III All-America honors and led Calvin to three Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAA) championships, four NCAA-III Tournament bids and the 1990 NCAA-III Final Four. Including his stint as interim coach, Sall has a current 57-46 (.553) career mark. He is 52-38 (.578) overall since being appointed head coach prior to the 2002-03 campaign.

The Bulldog Tradition: The 2005-06 campaign marks the 78th season of Bulldog men’s basketball. The program began in 1925 although Ferris did not field a team from 1942-45 due to World War II. FSU has compiled a 919-845 (.521) all-time mark. The Bulldogs have won 11 GLIAC titles, made seven NCAA Division II Tournament appearances and reached the 1988 NCAA-II Elite Eight. Ferris, which captured a league-record four consecutive GLIAC titles from 1986-90, notched its 900th all-time win last season with a 110-104 overtime triumph over Indianapolis (12/21/04) in the Lions Club Holiday Classic at FSU.

Reversal Of Fortune: The Bulldogs had posted only a 21-82 (.204) mark in the four seasons prior to current head coach Bill Sall's arrival, but have since went 52-38 (.578) and claimed back-to-back divisional titles along with making a regional finals appearance last campaign. FSU won only four games (4-22) the year before Sall arrived in 2001-02.

Jim Wink Arena: The Bulldogs have posted an impressive 29-8 (.784) overall record at Jim Wink Arena in Bill Sall’s head coaching era at FSU. Ferris, which holds an all-time mark of 37-37 (.500) to date in the seven year old facility, registered a school-best 15-1 (.938) overall record at home during the 2004-05 campaign. FSU is 24-31 (.436) to date in league play at Wink Arena. The 2,400-seat facility replaced Old Jim Wink Arena, which was converted into the current Student Recreation Center after the 1997-98 season.

On The Road: Ferris is 376-314 (.545) overall since 1980-81 and sports a 174-216 (.446) record in road/neutral site contests during that span. The Bulldogs were 7-5 (.583) on the road in 2004-05.

Racking Up Assists: FSU’s Dennis Springs compiled double-figure assists for the 12th time in his career versus Northwood. His 15 points and 10 assists also represented his ninth double-double (points & assists) effort. Springs netted his only career triple-double with 16 points, 13 assists and 10 rebounds as a freshman against Calvin in 2002-03 (11/26). The 5-6 Springs was honored prior to Thursday’s contest both for notching his 1,000th career point in the season opener at Saint Joseph’s (Nov. 15) and for becoming the school’s career assists leader in the NCAA Tourney last year.

GLIAC Games On The Air: All eighteen of FSU’s 2005-06 league games will be carried live by local radio station WBRN (News Talk 1460 AM). Selected contests can also be accessed live via the internet by clicking on the Bulldog Athletics Webcasts icon at www.ferris.edu/sports .

Live Stats: “Live Stats” of all 2005-06 Ferris State home basketball games will be provided in progress via the internet. Visit www.ferris.edu/sports and click on the “Live Stats” icon.

On The Internet: Ferris State University Athletics’ official web site can be found at www.ferris.edu/sports. The site features information on all of FSU’s varsity athletics programs including rosters, statistics, yearbooks and more.

The Bulldog Roster: Ferris’ 2005-06 roster includes three seniors, three juniors, two sophomores and four freshmen. Six of the 12 players are guards while the remaining six are frontcourt players. Eleven of the 12 players hail from Michigan with Dennis Springs the only out-of-state player on the active roster.

The Team Captains: FSU’s three seniors will serve as the squad’s team captains this campaign. They include Dennis Springs, Antwuan Holt and Jeffery Shanahan . Both Springs and Shanahan are returning three-year letterwinners while Holt played his first two collegiate seasons at GLIAC-member Northern Michigan before his transfer to FSU prior to last season.

Ferris State Notes: Thursday’s attendance of 1,007 against Northwood represented the fourth-largest crowd in the seven-year history of FSU’s Jim Wink Arena. The top four crowds in the facility have all came in the last three seasons, including the top draw of 1,413 last season (11/16/04) against Cornerstone ...... Ferris has won five consecutive regular-season meetings against Northwood to date following Thursday’s victory.

Bulldog Bites: Ferris State has posted 37 winning campaigns and 42 non-losing seasons in its previous 77 seasons ............ Last Saturday’s (Nov. 26) game versus California (Pa.) is Ferris’ only contest this season decided by 10 points or less ........ FSU has presently won 23 of its last 25 home games dating back to the 2003-04 campaign ...... Dennis Springs has scored 10 points or more in all five outings this season while Jessie York has netted four double-figure scoring performances ......... Dennis Springs was chosen as last week’s (Nov. 22) GLIAC North Division Player of the Week for his performance in FSU’s initial two outings this campaign at Saint Joseph’s (Nov. 15) at Southern Illinois-Edwardsville (Nov. 19).

FSU Ends Streak: Ferris had dropped its league-opener 13 consecutive seasons to date prior to Thursday’s victory. The Bulldogs had won seven-straight GLIAC openers before the 13-year slide. FSU, which lost each of its previous eight GLIAC openers to Findlay, is now 8-14 (.364) in its first league tilt since the 1984-85 campaign. Prior to Thursday, Ferris had also lost six consecutive league openers at home, including last year’s 87-85 setback at the buzzer to Findlay (12/2/04).

The Next League Game: The Bulldogs are 7-4 (.636) in their second league game since the 1994-95 campaign. Ferris, which has lost its second league game four of the last six seasons to date, is currently 13-8 (.619) overall in its second GLIAC contest since the 1984-85 season. The Bulldogs beat Ashland 85-81 in their second league tilt last season (12/4/04) in Big Rapids, Mich.

FSU Fall Recruits: Ferris head coach Bill Sall announced the addition of current Muskegon Heights High School frontcourt players Edward Sanders and Lou Williams , who both plan to attend and compete in men's basketball at FSU beginning with the 2006-07 academic year. They inked national letters-of-intent with the Bulldogs during the fall signing period. The 6-7 Williams and the 6-8 Sanders helped guide the Tigers to a 26-2 overall record and a runner-up finish in the Michigan High School Athletic Association (MHSAA) Class B State Tournament last year. The duo will join current junior guard Julius Vines along with Jessie York and freshman guard Anthony Sydnor from the Muskegon Heights program.

Players To Watch: FSU’s Dennis Springs and Terrance Shaw were chosen among the top 10 West Michigan collegiate players to watch this year by the Grand Rapids Press in the Nov. 15 edition. Springs was picked second overall behind Grand Valley State center Callistus Eziukwu while Shaw was the seventh player listed. GVSU had three selections, Ferris and Hope College both had two honorees while Aquinas, Calvin and Cornerstone each had one player on the top 10 list.

Possible Breakthrough Team: Ferris State was listed as a possible breakthrough squad in the 2005-06 Street & Smith's College Basketball Magazine Division II Preview, which recently hit news stands. The annual list of teams, which was compiled by Chuck Mistovich of the Basketball Times, included a preseason top 10 list and 30 additional teams receiving possible breakthrough recognition. The Bulldogs were one of three league institutions featured in the additional category along with defending GLIAC South Division champion Findlay and archrival Grand Valley State.

A Look At Saturday's Opponent:

Saginaw Valley State: Ferris holds a 41-28 lead heading into this Saturday’s 70th series meeting and defeated SVSU 101-69 in the last contest (2/12/05) in Big Rapids, Mich. Saginaw Valley State is currently 2-4 overall and 0-2 in league play following Thursday’s (Dec. 1) 86-67 league home loss to Grand Valley State. The Cardinals, who are guided by first-year head coach Jamie Matthews, were 10-17 overall in 2004-05 and recorded a sixth-place 5-13 GLIAC North Division mark. SVSU, which was picked to finish sixth in the 2005-06 GLIAC North Division Preseason Coaches Poll, is led in scoring by junior guard Sydney McDaniel (12.5 ppg) and has lost four of its last five outings to date this campaign. Ferris has won five of the last eight series’ meetings while FSU head coach Bill Sall presently holds a 4-2 career coaching mark against SVSU. The Cardinals pulled out an 82-79 overtime win in last season’s initial meeting (12/11/04) held in University Center, Mich.