GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - The Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference gauntlet begins on Thursday as the Davenport men's basketball team will host Saginaw Valley State in the conference opener. It will start a 20-game league schedule that is one of the toughest in NCAA Division II. The Panthers are in a great position heading into conference action at 4-2 overall after splitting a pair of games last weekend at the University of Tampa Thanksgiving Tournament.

On Friday, the team battled into double overtime against Claflin before falling 102-99. It was the first double overtime game for Davenport since Jan. 12, 2019 against Saginaw Valley State. Notably, DU had never played back-to-back overtime games in their history after going into overtime on Nov. 22 against Tiffin in a 66-59 win. Ken Walker was clutch as he scored the team's final basket in regulation with 1:11 on the clock and then his three-pointer with two seconds left in the first overtime sent the game into another extra session. Walker finished with a season-high 31 points for his second 30-point game of the young season. He matched his career high set at Earlham with seven triples on 11 attempts and contributed five assists. Dylan Smith had a career-high 27 points and set a single-game school record (minimum of eight field goal attempts) by going 12-of-13. Smith also went 3-of-3 at the free-throw stripe and registered seven rebounds and three blocked shots. Alden Ritt posted his third straight double-double with 11 points and a career-high 11 assists. That assist total matched the highest by a Panther since joining NCAA Division II. Ritt also had seven boards, three steals, and a blocked shot. DU shot 54.4 percent from the floor and canned 13 triples. Marshaun Flakes had his best game as a Panther to date with a season-high 17 points going 7-of-14 from the floor, including 3-of-6 from the arc. He grabbed six boards and dished out five assists.

Davenport then would rebound in the consolation game on Saturday with a commanding 92-54 victory over Puerto Rico-Mayaguez. Davenport shot 50 percent (32-64) for the game and were 18-of-21 at the charity stripe. DU had 40 points in the paint and got 24 points off the bench. Zavion McClendon had 11 points and a season-high seven rebounds in 15-plus minutes. Curtis Jackson finished with a season-high 10 points, eight assists, six rebounds and two steals in 23-plus minutes. Bernie Varnesdeel saw 10:25 on the court and had two assists and a steal. Ritt was a significant force, with a near double-double in the first half with nine points and eight rebounds. He contributed final totals of 18 points and 14 rebounds, marking his fourth straight double-double. He set a career high in points and also had four steals. Ritt has made incredible strides in his redshirt junior season and ranks first in the GLIAC in rebounding (9.7), sixth in assists (3.3), and seventh in steals (1.7). Davenport had five players in double figures in the scoring column. Imran Deen had a season-high 14 points to go with six rebounds and two steals in 26-plus minutes. Walker led the team with 19 points going 7-of-14 from the floor.

Scouting the Opponents
Saginaw Valley State (5-0, 0-0 GLIAC)
• The Cardinals are off to an impressive 5-0 start under first-year head coach Chris Fowler. They had a rare home-and-home series against Hillsdale to start the season and won both games by scores of 79-77 in University Center and 80-73 in Hillsdale. They picked up a big road win at Lewis on Nov. 19 (72-60) before coming back home for an 87-55 win against NCAA D3 Alma on Nov. 22. The last time out they beat Ashland on the road 80-71 to finish November undefeated.

• SVSU was picked to finish eighth in the GLIAC preseason coaches' poll after a 10-18 record last season. The Cardinals have played some stout defense thus far allowing just 67.2 points per game, including 26.7 percent allowed from the three-point arc. SVSU has also controlled the glass going +8.8 in that category.

• Xavier Thomas, a 6-6 guard from Detroit, is leading the team with 16.4 points and 30.9 minutes per game. Thomas erupted for 32 points on 11-of-17 shooting in the season opener against Hillsdale. Dontez Scott II, a 6-0 guard from Romulus, is averaging 15.2 points and has connected on 9-of-18 from behind the arc. Scott has scored in double figures in all five games this season. Marquese Josephs, a 6-1 guard from Mississuaga, Ontario, is scoring 13.2 points per game and connecting on 59.5 percent (22-37) from the floor. Josephs scored 19 points on 6-of-10 shooting, including 3-of-3 from the arc at Ashland.

Lake Superior State (3-3, 0-0 GLIAC)
• The Lakers have had a great deal of success over the past few years, including a 30-7 record last season. LSSU went 16-4 and finished second in the conference. They lost in the GLIAC Tournament final to Northern Michigan and then won the NCAA Midwest Regional to advance to the national quarterfinals. This year, they needed to replace a host of players who were the top six scorers on the team and scored 68.5 points per game.

• LSSU is currently 3-3 this season with two straight wins over Gannon (99-87) on Nov. 26 and Lawrence Tech (93-56) on Nov. 29 in their home opener. LSSU will face GVSU on Thursday before coming to DU on Saturday. Omar Suleiman, a 6-6 redshirt sophomore from Canton, leads the squad at 21.5 points per game. He is shooting 49.4 percent from the floor (40-81) which includes 18-of-42 (.429) from the arc. Tyler Jamison, a 6-5 junior from Port Huron, has played in three games this season and leads the team with 4.7 rebounds, while also scoring 10.3 points per contest.   

Live Coverage
Thursday, Dec. 4 - 7:30 PM vs. SVSU (Live Video - Live Stats)
Saturday, Dec. 6 - 3:00 PM vs. LSSU (Live Video - Live Stats)