Huskies fall short at Davenport 77-70

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – Strong shooting by Davenport doomed Michigan Tech for the second straight day as the Huskies fell 77-70 in Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference men's basketball Saturday at Davenport Student Center. Trent Bell had 15 points, nine rebounds, and Owen White led MTU with 20 points but the push to tie the game in the second half came too late for the Huskies, who fell to 8-5 in the road sweep.

Davenport shot 59.6-percent and made 10 of 20 tries from beyond the arc. Chris Rollins excelled with 19 points (8-of-15) and Scott Ulaneo contributed 15 points along with four rebounds.

Despite the pair of defeats, Tech had a pair of noticeable positive takeaways. Carter Johnston entered the weekend fourth in the conference in assists. He posted nine assists Friday and 10 assists Saturday. Houghton freshman Brad Simonsen also made an impression with seven 3-point makes between the two games for 21 points.

"Davenport was a very good team this weekend," said head coach Kevin Luke. "We competed better today but our shooting woes continued. Brad (Simonsen) had a nice weekend and I am looking forward to seeing how he continues to develop. I'm excited to play Northern Michigan on Tuesday. 

FIRST HALF BREAKDOWN: Following a slow start on offense, the teams traded 3-point tries by the mid-point of the first half. Dawson Bilski connected on a pair of threes and Simonsen entered the game and immediately hit a long-range jumper. Davenport remained efficient and extended their advantage to 12 before Eric Carl cut the deficit to three with two made 3-pointers in the final two minutes of the half 36-33.

Michigan Tech shot 43.3-percent and 7-for-22 from 3-point range. Davenport shot 58.3-percent from the floor and 4-for-11 from beyond the arc. Following a season high nine assists, Johnston frequently found Bell inside with five assists in the first half. Owen White and Chris Rollins tallied nine points apiece.

SECOND HALF BREAKDOWN: Brackton Miller hit threes on back-to-back Panther possessions and the Huskies trailed 46-38 after the break. Davenport continued its hot shooting with points in the paint and the Huskies fell 16 points shy of a tie 67-51 with seven minutes to play. White found a pair of 3-pointers from the left wing before the final media timeout but Michigan Tech still trailed by 14.

Down 71-60 with just over three minutes to play, Johnston connected with Bell again and the Huskies made a 10-0 run to get within eight points, but Ulaneo drove the lane and completed the 3-point play, catapulting the Panthers ahead 74-64. Simonsen made his fourth 3-pointer of the game with 1 minute, 26 seconds remaining.

White came up empty on three 3-point tries in an attempt to force a two-possession game. Chaz Birchfield and Chris Rollins made free throws on the other end to keep the contest just out of reach.

Michigan Tech shot 27-for-63 (42.9-percent) from the field and 14-for-46 (30.4-percent) from 3-point range. The Huskies made just three trips to the free throw line and recorded 31 rebounds, 22 assists, and nine steals. Davenport made 28 of 47 shots from the floor (59.6-percent), including 10 of 20 (50-percent) from beyond the arc. The Panthers also downed 11 of 12 free throws and nabbed 26 rebounds.

The Huskies (8-5) returns to action Tuesday, February 16 when they host Northern Michigan at 5:30 p.m. Davenport (5-8) plays Grand Valley State Tuesday night. Five games remain in the GLIAC regular season.