GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - The Davenport men's basketball team needed a strong second half on Monday to pull ahead of East-West University in an 86-78 home win to begin 2023. The Panthers and Phantoms were tied at 33 heading into the halftime locker room, but Davenport went on a 17-0 run early in the second half to turn a 36 deadlock into a 53-36 lead at the 14:57 mark.
Marcedus Leech Jr. scored nine points during the run making three triples.
James Felton scored five points during the stretch and
Luke Bara's three-pointer gave Davenport a lead of 17 points.
The lead would remain at double digits in the second half until 28 seconds remaining as the Phantoms would not give up. De'Quannis Jackson turned in one of the best performances by an opponent in DU Student Center history for East-West. He finished with 30 points, 11 rebounds, and 11 assists for the triple-double.
Davenport shot the rock well going 29-of-57 from the field. They were 14-of-28 in the first half and 15-of-29 in the second half. DU connected on 9-of-25 from the arc and were 19-of-37 at the free throw line. Leech Jr. led the squad with 20 points for his ninth 20-point career game and the second straight with 20 points. He went 8-of-14 from the floor and 4-of-9 behind the arc. He also had six boards, three assists, and three steals in 30 minutes.
Chaz Birchfield had the first double-double of his career with 13 points and 11 rebounds in 28 minutes. Felton added 10 points, eight rebounds, one block, and one steal in 18 minutes.
Jaylen Hodges off the bench had 11 points including seven free throws. He also tied for the team lead with four assists.
The team is back in action on Thursday, Jan. 5 as they get back to GLIAC action at Purdue Northwest.
