MARION, Ind. -- Three free throws with 6.0 seconds left lifted No. 8 Davenport (Mich.) past No. 1 and defending national champion Indiana Wesleyan University by a 79-75 score in the 2015 NAIA Division II Men’s Basketball National Championship Quarterfinals in Point Lookout, Missouri.

“It was an incredible year and I am so proud of our guys,” said IWU head coach Greg Tonagel. “Hands down my most enjoyable year of coaching.”

Lane Mahurin (SO/Rockville, Ind.) scored an old-fashion 3-point play with 2:15 remaining to put Indiana Wesleyan ahead 75-71. Those three points would be the final three points of the game for Indiana Wesleyan. Davenport tied the game 75-75 on a basket as the shot clock expired with 1:06 on the clock.

“It was still our game," said Tonagel. "We didn’t come down and execute. We drew something up and again we didn’t run it right. We got a shot that wasn’t a high percentage shot and not the shot we wanted.”

Indiana Wesleyan’s Zac Vandewater (SR/Warsaw, Ind.) drove to the basket late in the possession and his shot rolled around the rim but did not go down as Davenport grabbed the rebound with 39 seconds left. There was four seconds difference between the game and shot clock.

“We didn’t execute down the stretch,” continued Tonagel. “The ball did not go where it was drawn to go. At the end of the day it wasn’t great execution. We executed plays all season long but we failed to do so in the final two minutes."

The Panthers struggled to find a shot as the shot clock dwindled down. Dominez Burnett was forced to chuck a long 3-point attempt that was contested by Zac Vandewater. The referee blew his whistle and called a foul and gave three free throws to Burnett with 6.0 seconds to play. He hit all three to give the Panthers a 78-75 advantage.

Indiana Wesleyan threw the ball down passed midcourt and called a timeout with 5.4 seconds left. On the ensuing inbounds, Bob Peters (SO/Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio) threw the ball across the court to Jacob Johnson (FR/Mooresville, Ind.) who quickly got the ball into the hands of DJ Bettinger (SR/Richfield, Ohio). The senior got a clear look but the shot was short. Davenport got the rebound, was fouled, and finished the game with one free throw.

“It was a great look,” stated Tonagel. “I thought our guys executed the play well and he let it fly. Playing three games in four days it was short. Can’t fault our guys for that execution.”

Both teams shot the ball extremely well Saturday night. Indiana Wesleyan finished at 62.8-percent (27 of 43) shooting while Davenport shot 57.7-percent (30 of 52). Indiana Wesleyan hit at a clip of 55-percent (11 of 20) form 3-point range.

Lane Mahurin earned a team-best 18 points and 5 rebounds while Bob Peters added 16 points and Zac Vandewater added 12 points and 5 assists.

The loss brings a close to the career of four seniors, Vandewater, Bettinger, Tyler Greathouse (SR/Columbus, Ind.), and Josiah Godbey (SO/Indianapolis, Ind.).

“I love these guys,” conclude Tonagel. “These guys are absolute winners in life. They are going to be huge in life and they are going to have huge success in life because of who they are and their character. They had incredible careers and they represent our program very well.”

The Indiana Wesleyan season is completed with a 33-3 record. The 33 wins is the most in program history as it eclipsed last season’s 31 wins. Indiana Wesleyan won their seventh consecutive Crossroads League regular season championship and won the program’s second ever Crossroads League postseason tournament.