POINT LOOKOUT, Mo. – Davenport takes on No. 5 Black Hills State University (S.D.) in the second round of the 2011 NAIA National Tournament. The Panthers enter with an overall record of 28-5 while the Yellow Jackets are 27-5. Davenport advanced by defeating Briar Cliff 72-68 while Black Hills State advanced by beating Holy Names (Calif.) 85-62. Check out the preview for the game including links to live video/audio and stats.
Tipoff: Friday, March 11th, 9:30 AM EST
Location: Point Lookout, Mo.
Video: http://naia.cstv.com/sports/m-baskbl-div2/spec-rel/082310aaa.html
Live Stats: CLICK HERE
Internet Radio: CLICK HERE
The Opponent: Black Hills State (Scout) – The Black Hills State Yellow Jackets are making their ninth trip to nationals and third in a row after winning the Dakota Athletic Conference regular season and conference tournament. Black Hills State finished the season 27-5 overall and 12-2 in conference which was good enough for the five-seed in the national tournament. The yellow jackets are 9-9 in the national tournament and advanced by defeating Holy Names (Calif.) 85-62.
The yellow jackets will be led by Luke Enos. Enos leads his team with 16 points per game and 38 blocks on the season. He is second on the team in rebounds (7.8 rpg) and assists (60). Enos finished with 24 points and 10 rebounds in the win over Holy Names.
Cain Atkinson and Will John Johnson will also start for Black Hills State and each average double-digit points for the yellow jackets. Will John leads the team averaging 11.1 rebounds per game. Tanner Adler leads the team in assists with 93 on the season.
Against Holy Names, Black Hills State had a 41-34 lead at halftime and then outscored Holy Names 44-28 in the second for the pull away win. Black Hills State shot 62% from the field in the second half while holding Holy Names to 37% shooting for the game and 14% from behind the arc.
The Series: This is the first meeting between Davenport and Black Hills State
Assistant Coach Craig Heatherly's Thoughts - "Friday we take on Black Hills State University at 8:30am. In the National Tournament there are no longer average/good teams left to play, especially when you get to the sweet sixteen. BHSU is a very good basketball team, that plays extremely hard. Offensively, each player can shoot the basketball well from beyond 15ft. Their post players (Johnson and Enos) will be a challenge for interior defense, along with very capable scorers from the perimeter. The key to this game is "How bad do we want it"? Each team has the same amount of time for preparation, it comes down to transition defense and rebounding. We look forward to the challenge of advancing the Davenport University Panthers deeper into the 2010 NAIA National Tournament!"
NAIA National Tournament History for DU – Davenport is making its second straight appearance and second overall at the NAIA D2 National Tournament…The Panthers lost in the opening round in 2009-10 to Eastern Oregon and have an 1-1 overall record in Point Lookout after their win over Briar Cliff…The Panthers were an un-seeded team in 2009-10 and enter the current tournament as the No. 12…JaVontae Ford led the Panthers with 23 points and Nathan Cox added 20 points as Davenport defeated Briar Cliff 72-68
2011 Post-Season Quick Facts - The 27 wins overall and 13 in league play are the most in school history...DU has won 8 straight games entering post-season play...Davenport posted wins over #17 Grace (Ind), #25 Indiana Tech and #3 Cornerstone as well as NCAA D3 powers Calvin College and Hope College...Nathan Cox became the school's all-time leading scorer, rebounder and also sits on top in field goals made and free-throws made...Cox was voted as the WHAC Player of the Year...James Humphrey and James Nelson were named 2nd Team All-WHAC...Humphrey and freshman JaVontae Ford were named All-WHAC Newcomer team...Ford was also named All-WHAC Defensive team
