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POINT LOOKOUT, Mo. – The Davenport men's basketball team has matched their performance at the NAIA National Tournament from a year ago by reaching the round of eight.  DU reached the quarterfinals with an 80-52 blowout of No. 14 Indiana University Southeast.  The Panthers will play the last quarterfinal game on Saturday at 8:00 p.m. against No. 6 Cardinal Stritch.

The Grenadiers started the game with a 2-0 lead, but DU would quickly take command of the game after that.  An early 8-0 run capped off by a James Humphrey dunk put the Panthers up 14-4 at the 11:07 mark.  Davenport would finish the half with another 8-0 run giving them a 38-18 lead going into halftime.

DU kept IU Southeast scoreless from 3-point range in the first half.  The defense pressure from the Panthers got the Grenadiers out of rhythm early nabbing seven steals and forcing nine turnovers.

IU Southeast made their first trey of the game as the second half got underway.  Coupled with a field goal from Brice Mitchell, the Grenadiers were within 15 but couldn't muster much momentum from there.

The Panthers were strong on transition defense and on the boards creating a lot of offensive opportunities.  In the second half alone, DU shot 6 of 8 from 3-point range.  JaVontae Ford was 2 for 2 from behind the arc and finished with 17 points.

Humphrey neared a double double with 16 points and eight rebounds.  Lonnie Fairfax was close as well with 10 points and nine rebounds.  Also reaching double figures were Damacious White and James Nelson with 12 points each.

Post-Game Comments

JaVontae Ford on team's offensive performance – “The offense was right on point today.  All the guards and bigs even were dishing me the ball and we just got shots up."

James Humphrey on team's defensive performance – “We pride ourselves on defense.  We want to hold teams to their lowest points possible.  The defense leads to offense and gets us transition buckets."

Coach Burt Paddock on keys to winning a third game in three days – “It's more of a mental focus than it is a physical focus.  These kids can play all day, it's more of the mindset of wanting to do it and being willing to be a great teammate."

Post-Game Notes

IU Southeast came into the game as the third highest team in the NAIA in scoring offense averaging over 87 ppg…DU held them to their lowest point total of the season…Davenport outrebounded the Grenadiers 39-18…Fairfax led the Panthers with 9, which is a career high…DU is 24-0 when they outrebound their opponent…Saturday's game will feature live audio on the “DAN”