ESCANABA — It was almost like survival of the fittest in front of a packed house here Tuesday night as the Bay College men managed to grind out a physical 91-78 basketball triumph over Mid Michigan College.

The victory enabled the Norse to improve to 23-5 overall and finish 12-2 in the Michigan Community College Athletic Association’s North Conference.

They will begin their post-season by hosting Delta College (11-16) in a Region 12 quarterfinal contest Tuesday at 7:30 p.m.

“The game was definitely physical,” Norse coach Matt Johnson said. “At halftime, we told the guys they had a decision to make and hallenged them to step up to the plate. Mid Michigan plays physical and it was up to the guys to match their physicality and intensity. They were really good. This was a big test. These were two really good teams battling it out.”

No. 10 Mid Michigan took a 44-41 lead on a layup by sophomore guard/forward James Wright in the opening moments of the second half.

Sophomore guard Kairee Gadson tied the score on a 21-foot jump shot from the left wing.

Nic Williams sank a pair of free throws on a technical foul to send the Norse ahead 46-44 and a layup by sophomore forward Joe Ofori made it 48-44 slightly more than three minutes into the second half.

After the Lakers got within 48-46, sophomore guard Ryan Sweeney sparked a 7-3 run, giving the No. 18 Norse a 55-49 cushion on a steal and layup with 14:56 left in the contest.

“It was a battle,” he said. “Some of us got battle scars and I got a couple. We could feel the energy. You’ve got to have energy to finish games and tonight we had a little more than Mid Michigan. They had some momentum for sure at the half.”

Sophomore forward Jayden Hardiman grabbed an offensive rebound and turned it into a layup, bringing the Lakers within 55-51.

The Norse responded with five unanswered points, gaining a 60-51 lead on a reverse layup by freshman guard Tre Sanigar.

Mid Michigan got within 64-61 on Hardiman’s jumper from top of the key midway through the second half.

Bay answered with an 8-1 run, gaining a 72-62 advantage on a four-foot jumper by Sanigar at 8:27.

Mid Michigan was still within 80-72 following a lay-in by sophomore guard Mario Johnson with four minutes left to play before the Norse put the game out of reach on two free throws by Williams with 2:27 remaining.

“The crowd definitely helped us,” coach Johnson said. “It just adds to the energy and makes it feel like a big game. This gives us momentum knowing we can play with the top teams in the nation. It was a great night for both of our teams. This is a huge win for us. It’s definitely important.”

The Norse scored six in double digits. Ofori led the way with 16 points. Sophomore guard Josh Williams added 15. Sanigar finished with 13. Gadson scored 12. Sweeney tallied 11 points and seven rebounds and freshman point guard D’Marco Chelley had 11 points.

“They were swinging the ball and we were challenging every shot,” Sweeney said. “Down there they got too many open shots (in a 113-97 loss Feb. 1). Tonight. we closed out with a lot of effort. We got a lot of guys who can score on this team. When you get six in double digits, you’re probably going to win the game. We got a lot of energy from the fans and (Escanaba High School) band. That’s good energy.”

The Norse hit 38-of-76 field goals, but were outrebounded 42-36. They finished with 12 turnovers, including just two in the second half.

“Twelve is pretty solid and two in a half is really good,” coach Johnson said. “Although, we turned the ball over too many times in the first half. We told the guys we needed to take better care of the ball and they responded. We scored six in double digits and we needed every one of them. We had three off the bench in double digits. That’s huge.”

Wright led the Lakers with 21 points and 10 rebounds. Freshman guard Amonti Greene added 20 points and sophomore guard-forward Joe Iung had 11.

They shot 30-of-77 from the field and had 17 turnovers.

Box score

Mid Michigan  42  36  —  78

Bay College  41  50  —  91

Mid Michigan College — Griffin 7, Iung 11, Greene 20, Wright 21, Hardiman 5, Johnson 2, Overshown 6, Clark 3, Kelsey 3. FT: 9-16; F: 15; Fouled out: None; Technical foul: Greene; 3-point field goals: Overshown 2, Griffin, Iung, Hardiman, Kelsey.

Bay College — Sweeney 11, N. Williams 8, Gadson 12, Fahning 2, Ofori 16, Sanigar 13, Chellley 11, Hayes 3, J. Williams 15. FT: 11-19; F: 15; Fouled out: None; 3-point field goals: Sweeney, Gadson, Chelley, Hayes.