FERRIS STATE MEN'S BASKETBALL TEAM BACK IN NATIONAL RANKINGS

Bulldogs Listed 24th In NABC Division II National Poll

Fort Hays State (Kan.) holds the top position in the national rankings followed by Delta State (Miss.), Saint Joseph's (Ind.), Virginia Union and Montevallo (Ala.) in the top five. Ferris received 16 points in this week's poll, which is conducted by the NABC Division II Congress with a member from each of the eight Division II regions included.

Fellow Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) members Grand Valley State and Findlay are eighth and 10th, respectively, in this week's poll with regional foes Southern Illinois-Edwardsville (11th) and Southern Indiana (17th) also listed in addition to Saint Joseph's.

The Bulldogs have not been ranked this season since earning the number 18 spot in the NABC Division II Preseason Top 25 Poll released on Nov. 8th. FSU had been listed among other teams receiving votes in seven of the previous 10 regular-season polls this campaign. Ferris was ranked 23rd in last season's final (March 8) NABC Division II Regular-Season National Poll. Last year marked Ferris State's first appearance in the national rankings since holding down the number one spot in the final poll of the 1988-89 season on March 6, 1989. This week's national listing represents the 21st time the program has been ranked in the Division II poll.

Ferris State will visit archrival and eighth-ranked Grand Valley State for its regular-season finale this Saturday, Feb. 25, with the league tipoff set to begin at 8 p.m. (EST) inside GVSU's Fieldhouse Arena in Allendale, Mich. The Bulldog men's basketball squad currently is 16-10 overall and 13-4 in league action this season, which ranks second in the division.

FSU has clinched a quarterfinal-round GLIAC Tournament home game, which will take place Tuesday, Feb. 28, against Northern Michigan in FSU's Jim Wink Arena at Big Rapids, Mich. The game time and ticket prices will be announced this weekend following the completion of the league's regular-season schedule on Saturday (Feb. 25).

Rankings Notes: The Bulldogs' 10 losses this season are the most of any team ranked in the current poll ... No team with more than five overall losses this season is ranked other than Ferris State ... Ferris has played six teams currently ranked in the top 25 this campaign, including five of this week's top 11 squads ... Five ranked opponents and NCAA Division I Toledo (Ohio) are among FSU's 10 losses this campaign.

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