Dority, Felder Receive Weekly #HLMBB Honors

INDIANAPOLIS -- Valparaiso senior guard LaVonte Dority [Chicago, Ill./Foreman (USF)] has been named the Horizon League Men’s Basketball Player of the Week, while Oakland guard Kahlil Felder (Detroit, Mich./Pershing) has been named the Freshman of the Week, for the week of Jan. 27-Feb. 2. The award is the second of the season for Dority, while Felder is receiving the honor for the fifth time in his young career.

Valparaiso (14-10, 6-3 Horizon) moved into a tie for second place in the Horizon League after going 2-0 last week. The Crusaders knocked off League-leading Green Bay, 75-60, on Wednesday ahead of a 70-46 road win at UIC on Saturday afternoon. The Golden Grizzlies split results on the week, edging past Youngstown State, 86-85, on Friday, before running out of gas in an 86-64 loss at Milwaukee. Oakland (9-15, 4-5 Horizon) sits in seventh place in the conference standings, one-half game outside of fourth.

In both Valpo wins, Dority was the catalyst, averaging 29.5 points per game. Against Green Bay, Dority scored 14 points in the first 7:16 of the game, staking the Crusaders to a lead they would not relinquish. Going 9-of-12 from the field, Dority finished with 26 points.

Playing in his hometown two days later, Dority erupted for 22 first-half points en route to a career-high 33 points against UIC. The senior went 10-of-15 from the floor, hitting 5-of-6 attempts from 3-point range. Dority matched his career highs with five rebounds and three steals in the win.

Averaging 20.3 ppg in conference play, Dority is tied for second in the League in scoring. Among League leaders in field-goal percentage, Dority is the highest-ranking guard with a 54.1-percent mark.

Felder continued his strong play at the point for Oakland, posting his first career double-double in the Golden Grizzlies’ one-point win over Youngstown State. Felder had 19 points, including the game-winning free throws with 4.0 seconds left, to go along with a career-high 12 assists. The point-assist double-double was the first in Horizon League play this season.

The freshman notched his 10th game of the year with at least seven assists on Sunday, recording nine assists and 10 points in the road defeat. Felder assisted on Travis Bader’s 458th career 3-pointer, helping the senior establish the NCAA record. With an average of 5.8 assists per game, Felder leads the Horizon League; in conference play, Felder is averaging 7.1 apg.

Valparaiso will host Detroit (10-14, 3-6 Horizon) on Friday, Feb. 7, before an ESPNU audience at 9 p.m. ET, before welcoming the Golden Grizzlies to the ARC on Sunday, Feb. 9, at 2:35 p.m. ET. The Horizon League Network will have live coverage. Oakland opens its week on Thursday, Feb. 6, hosting second-place Cleveland State (15-9, 6-3 Horizon) at 7 p.m. ET. The game will be carried on the HLN Regional platform, ESPN3 and HLN.

Top Performers for the Week:

• Jordan Aaron, Milwaukee (Sr., G) - Shooting 54.2 percent from the field, Aaron helped Milwaukee go 2-0 on the week. The senior had a game-high 23 points in the Panthers’ win over Oakland.
• Travis Bader, Oakland (Sr., G) - With six 3-pointers on Sunday, Bader broke J.J. Redick’s NCAA career 3-point field goal record, pushing the mark to 361. With 21 points in the game, Bader notched his second straight game with 20 or more points.
• Bryn Forbes, Cleveland State (So., G) - Led Cleveland State to a 2-0 week, averaging 26.0 points per game. In matching his career high with 27 points at Detroit, Forbes extended his school record streak to 24 games with a 3-pointer.
• Juwan Howard, Jr., Detroit (Jr., F) - Howard, Jr. has now reached 20 or more points in five of his last six games, doing so in both of Detroit’s contests last week. In the Titans’ win over UIC, Howard Jr. finished with 25, following up the performance with 20 against Cleveland State.
• Keifer Sykes, Green Bay (So., G) - Averaging 18.5 ppg on the week, Sykes climbed into 13th place on the Green Bay scoring chart. The junior combined with Greg Mays to score 27 of Green Bay’s 33 second-half points, finishing with 18 total, in the Phoenix’s 62-55 win over Wright State.
• Matt Tiby, Milwaukee (So., F) - One of five Panthers in double figures in their 86-64 win over Oakland, Tiby posted a double-double with 10 points and 17 rebounds. The 17 boards were the most in conference play this season.
• Ryan Weber, Youngstown State (So., G) - Scored a career-high 20 points in YSU’s narrow loss at Oakland, knocking down 4-of-8 3-pointers. The sophomore matched his career high with nine boards.
• JT Yoho, Wright State (So., F) - Fueled a furious Wright State rally at Milwaukee, scoring 19 of his career-high 20 points in the second half. Two days later, Yoho added 15 points and eight rebounds at Green Bay.