GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - With five seconds remaining in overtime and the score tied at 71 apiece, the Davenport University men's basketball team had possession of the ball, looking to pick up its first conference win of the season against Michigan Tech on Saturday afternoon (Jan. 4). 

Jovan Tucker received the inbound pass, drove the length of the court and sank a mid range jumper from the baseline as the buzzer sounded to clinch the game for the Panthers (5-7, 1-3 GLIAC) while breaking a seven-game winning streak for the Huskies (8-4, 3-1 GLIAC), which included a win over No. 3 MSU Moorhead.

"I saw there was five seconds on the clock and I knew I just needed the ball," Tucker said. "When I got it, I saw daylight and I just took the shot that I work on every day."

Tucker finished with 17 points, seven rebounds and a pair of three-pointers. Helping lead the way with Tucker were a trio of freshmen all finishing in double-figures; Joey Cabana (21), Dylan Smith (16) and Matyas Vrabel (12). Smith also grabbed 12 rebounds, marking the second double-double of the season for the Novi, Mich. native.

In the early stages of the game, the Panthers used stifling defense to get out to a 11-4 lead with 8:17 remaining. DU only gave up one field goal in the opening 12 minutes to MTU. For the game, the Panthers held the Huskies to shooting 37 percent from the floor. Heading into this week's contests, Tech shot the ball at 51 percent clip, the fifth best percentage in the nation.

"I think defense travels," said head coach Burt Paddock. "Whenever you are playing offense you can't guarantee that you are going to make shots, but you can guarantee that you are going to have a lot of effort and focus on defense."

Davenport also finished with a huge rebounding advantage, grabbing 51 in the contest as opposed to 37 for Michigan Tech.

Up Next
The Panthers head to No. 14 Lake Superior State on Thursday evening at 7:30 p.m.