GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — The final minutes proved to be the undoing for the Davenport men's basketball team (12-8, 6-6 GLIAC), who fell to No. 10 Northern Michigan (19-3, 10-2 GLIAC) 77-63 on Saturday at the DU Student Center. The crunch time span of the finishing seven minutes saw the game change towards the visitors from Marquette. DU trailed 58-56 with 7:16 to play, but Northern Michigan closed out the game on a 19-7 run to secure the road victory.
The first half was very entertaining with seven ties and nine lead changes. The Wildcats led for nine minutes and the Panthers led for 6:31. Davenport had their biggest run of the half going 11-0 which started down 34-27 at the 5:16 mark and ended with a 38-34 lead with 2:10 remaining in the half. Northern Michigan would take a 41-38 lead into the locker room for halftime.
In the second half, NMU would not give up their lead despite the best efforts by the Panthers. It was a back-and-forth segment in the first 10 minutes of the half. The Wildcats would build a seven-point lead and Davenport would answer to get within one possession. Northern Michigan led 58-49 with 9:27 to go, but DU went on a 7-0 run to make it a 58-56 game with 7:16 left. The Panthers scored their final points with 2:50 to play and NMU closed out the game on a 11-0 run.
Ken Walker played all 40 minutes and finished with 24 points. He was guarded tightly all game and finished 9-of-21 from the floor. It was his seventh 20-point game of the season.
Curtis Jackson was the other Panther to score in doubles figures with 12 points. He also led the team with six rebounds and six assists. The Panthers took great care of the ball with just six turnovers, while also sharing it well with 16 assists.
Davenport Top Performers
Curtis Jackson
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- 12 points
- 5/9 field goals made
- 6 assists
- 6 rebounds
- Led the team in rebounding for the fifth time this season
Ken Walker
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- 24 points
- 9 field goals made
- 3 three-pointers made
Dylan Smith
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- 8 points
- 4/7 free throws made
- 5 rebounds
