HOUGHTON, Mich. – The seniors suited up for their last game of their Davenport career and they didn't disappoint. Davenport went into the SDC Gym for the first time in program history and walked out with a 101-99 victory over Michigan Tech. The Panthers saw monster games from two of their seniors, Wes Webbert and John McCloud. The two combined for 38 points, shot 13/16 from the field, and grabbed eight rebounds. Janeau Joubert also made major contributions with his near double double, scoring 19 points and dishing out nine assists. This is the first time in Head Coach Burt Paddock's career that he ended the season with a win.
 
THE BASICS
Final Score: Davenport-101 | Michigan Tech-99
Location: Houghton, Mich.
Records: Davenport 13-15 (7-13) | Michigan Tech 14-13 (11-9)
 
POINTS PER HALF
First Half: DU-33 | MTU-41
Second Half: DU-55 | MTU-47
OT Period: DU-13 | MTU-11
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
The first half of this game belonged to Michigan Tech and junior Kyle Monroe. The Huskies took a 5-4 lead with 16:30 in the half and led for the remainder of the half. Webbert did his best to keep DU in the game during the half, scoring 10 points on 4/4 shooting from the field.  However, Monroe scored 25 points to help give the Huskies the halftime lead. Monroe was 5/6 from beyond the arc in the half.
 
The lead continued to build for Michigan Tech in the second half. The Huskies had their largest lead, 70-56, with 9:06 left in regulation. From that point on Davenport outscored Michigan Tech 32-18. The Panthers chipped away at the lead possession by possession, getting quality looks at the basket repeatedly. Davenport made their first significant run from 8:49-7:26, scoring nine points and cutting the lead down to five points. Michigan Tech increased their lead back to 10 and then DU rattled off eight straight. During that period senior Cameron Burns nailed two triples and Webbert made a pair of free throws, DU trailed by two points with 5:51 to play. The first lead for Davenport in the second half came with only 68 seconds to go in the game. Webbert hit a three to give the Panthers a two-point advantage. On the next possession Michigan Tech finished a layup to tie it 84-84. McCloud responded with a layup of his own to give DU the lead again 86-84. With 16 seconds to go Joubert knocked down two free throws and Davenport led 88-85 with 16 seconds left. Michigan Tech came down and hit a three with eight seconds to tie the game and force overtime.
 
The overtime period showed just as much excitement as the end of the second half. The Huskies scored the opening points of the period to take a 90-88 lead, Joubert came down and hit a jumper to tie everything up 90-90. Following a McCloud block, Braima Hai finished a layup to give the Panthers another two-point lead. This time around Michigan Tech was in the driving seat with 55 seconds to go, the Huskies were up by one 98-97. Davenport quickly flipped the script and took the lead after a layup by Delano Smith with 46 seconds on the clock. The Panthers got a stop on defense and Hai went to the charity stripe for two free throws. Hai hit one of two and DU led 100-98. The Huskies made a communication error and turned the ball over with 14 seconds in the game. Smith got fouled with 11 seconds to go and he went to the line to shoot two free throws. Smith made one of two and DU led by three. The Huskies got a call late as the Panthers were whistled for a shooting foul with two seconds on the game clock. Bryan Heath of the Huskies stepped up to the line, he made his first, and then missed his second. Heath purposely missed his final free throw and the Huskies grabbed the offensive board. Michigan Tech shot a corner three as the time expired to potentially win the game, it hit off the back of the rim and missed. Davenport won!

The seniors showed a lot of resiliency in their last game in a Davenport uniform. Webbert, McCloud, Hai, and Burns combined for 50 points in the victory and shot an incredible 17/25 from the floor. Webbert led the way with 22 points on a perfect 6/6 shooting. Joubert and Smith had solid games for the Panthers as well. Joubert had a near double double with 19 points and nine assists, Smith scored 17 points in 25 minutes.


 
Coach Paddock said after the game that "I am incredibly appreciative of the effort and competitive spirit this team displayed from start to finish. They fought through a great deal and showed character most do not possess. I hope the trials and tribulations we went through as a group will help us in the future. I am sure this win over a very solid team, on the road and in conference play, will leave a great taste in our mouth as we get after it this off season! Many thanks to our fantastic senior class for all the contributions they've made the last four to five years."
 
UP NEXT
The Panthers 2017-18 season comes to an end following the overtime victory. Davenport didn't make the GLIAC conference tournament and will be back in action next winter.
 
Story by: Devin Steiner
 
Picture credit: Tyler Triemstra