UNIVERSITY CENTER -- Looking to bounce back from a Thursday defeat at Wayne State, the SVSU men hosted Davenport University on Saturday (1/13) afternoon in another GLIAC contest. The Cardinals stormed back from being down 11 points in the second half to eventually claim an overtime victory over the Panthers by a 72-69 score.
Davenport had a solid first half, leading by eight points three times with the third coming at the half when the Panthers led by a 35-27 margin.
That lead would extend to a game-high of 11 points at the 14:25 point of the second half when the score stood at 44-33.
The Cardinals would charge back from there, going on a nice run and eventually using 11 straight points from Mike Wells Jr. to take a 54-49 lead with just 7:06 to play in the contest.
Wells would come up clutch later in the game as well, tying the game at 62-62 with a jumper as 46 seconds remained on the clock. Then, after Davenport led by a 63-62 score with 21 ticks left, Wells hit a step-back three to give the Cardinals a 65-63 edge.
The Panthers, however, got a runner layup with just under two seconds left to knot the score at 65-65, forcing an overtime session.
In the overtime period, the visitors held a two-point lead with the score 69-67 and just 46 seconds left.
The next time down the court, Wells found James Toohey in the corner and he drilled a three-pointer to give SVSU the 70-69 lead with just over 30 seconds remaining.
After Davenport turned the ball over, Malik Garner was fouled and connected on two huge free throws to give the Cardinals a 72-69 lead.
The Panthers would get off a desperation three try but that would not work and Saginaw Valley escaped with the three-point win.
Inside the Boxscore
- Wells had a huge second half for SV, scoring 16 of his game-high 22 points in the final 20 minutes. He was named the Meijer "Player of the Game" for his performance, adding three assists and a rebound. It marks Wells's third 22-point game in the past four contests.
- Fred John Jr. had a career-high 14 rebounds in the victory, adding eight points to the cause with three assists.
- Sebastiano Lamonato added 15 points and five boards in the game.
- Garner netted 10 points with five rebounds, three assists and a pair of steals.
- The teams were even on the glass, each recording 36 rebounds.
- The Cardinals posted a narrow 28-26 edge in points in the paint and a 10-6 margin in fastbreak points.
Postgame Interview - James Toohey
Up Next...
Saginaw Valley has three straight more games at home, beginning on Thursday (1/18) with a league game versus Ashland University. Tip-off for that game is set for 8:00 p.m. at the James E. O'Neill Jr. Arena. The Eagles are coming off a 78-66 home win over Purdue Northwest.
@SVSU_MBB | #svsumbb | @SVSUAthletics | #GoSVSU
--- www.svsucardinals.com ---
