GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Davenport men's basketball (9-4, 3-2 GLIAC) narrowly defeated Purdue Northwest (6-6, 2-3 GLIAC) 77-74 on Thursday night at the DU Student Center and improved to 2-1 in games decided by five points or less this season. Davenport got off to a hot start with a 10-0 run in the first 3:26 as
Ken Walker scored eight of those points. The lead would increase to 23-3 at the 12:10 mark on a fast-break three by
Alden Ritt, which prompted a 30-second timeout by Purdue Northwest. The Pride slowly began to climb back into the game and went on a 14-3 run over the next four minutes to make it 26-17.
Purdue Northwest came all the way back and took a 30-29 lead with 1:44 left until halftime on a Trevon Stoutermire dunk to give him eight points at the time. The Pride would take momentum into the locker room as Davontae Hall hit a half-court shot as time expired in the half to give the Pride a 34-33 lead at the break. The Pride started 1-of-13 from the floor, but finished the half going 12-of-16. Davenport connected on 6-of-14 from the arc in the first half as Walker nailed four of those and scored 18 points in the first 20 minutes.
In the second half, the intensity was shared the entire 20 minutes as both teams battled to get their third GLIAC win of the season. Neither team led by more than one possession until the 14:52 mark when Walker was fouled on a three-pointer and made all three free throws. The Panthers led by six points on four different occasions and then took a 56-49 advantage on a Walker three-ball at the 9:59 mark which gave him 29 points.
Aidan Moon had a dunk at 8:45 left in the contest which gave Davenport their largest second half lead at 60-51. The Pride responded and regained the lead at 64-60 with 5:38 remaining on a Stoutermire hook shot. The game tied four times after that point including 70-70 with 1:50 left. Walker hit a tough jumper in the paint to give DU a 72-70 lead with 53 seconds left and
Curtis Jackson was credited with his 12th assist.
Dylan Smith would make a pair of clutch free throws at the 35-second mark to give DU a 74-70 lead. Ritt also nailed a pair of free throws with 21 ticks left for a 76-72 lead. Moon, on his birthday, split at the line with 11 seconds remaining and the Pride was forced to heave a desperation three from 30 feet on the right wing by Ahlante Askew, which did not find the mark and Davenport escaped with the win improving to 7-0 at home this season.
Jackson had a standout performance with a career-high 12 assists, the most by a DU player since joining NCAA D2. He tied his career high with eight rebounds set at SVSU, which is also a season high at Davenport. Walker set a season high with 38 points, the most by a Panther at the DU Student Center. He went 13-of-21 from the floor, including 7-of-12 from the arc to tie his career high in triples made. Smith finished with 19 points and was 5-of-7 from the floor, while making a season-high nine free throws. Moon finished with nine points and five rebounds in 36-plus minutes.
Davenport Top Performers
Ken Walker
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- 38 points
- 13/21 field goals made
- 7/12 three-pointers made
Dylan Smith
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- 19 points
- 5/7 field goals made
- 9/16 free throws made
Curtis Jackson
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- 3 points
- 12 assists
- 8 rebounds
Aidan Moon
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- 9 points
- 3/4 field goals made
- 5 rebounds
In their next game, Davenport will face off against Wayne State on Saturday, Jan. 10. Tip-off is set for 3 p.m. at the DU Student Center.
