TAMPA, FLA. - Ty Rogers 26-foot three-point basket just before the
clock expired lifted Western Kentucky to a 101-99 overtime victory past
Drake in the first round of the NCAA Tournament Friday.
The loss
ended one of the top seasons in school history for the Bulldogs
who were making their first appearance in the NCAA Tournament since
1971.
No. 5 seeded Drake, which closed out the year with a 28-5
record, overcame a 16-point deficit with 11 minutes 51 seconds left in
regulation.
Two free throws by junior forward Jonathan Cox with 5.7 seconds left had given Drake a 99-98 lead before Rogers' heroics.
Western
Kentucky guard Tyron Brazelton raced across midcourt before rifling a
pass to Rogers who made the dramatic basket from the right wing over
three Drake defenders.
"I thought we played pretty good defense," said Drake head coach Keno Davis. "We contained them. We forced him to an outside jumpshot, past the three-point line, and they knocked it down.
The two teams set two NCAA Tournament records, combining to make 30 three-point baskets in 70 three-point attempts.
Cox,
a second-team All-Missouri Valley Conference performer, played his
greatest game in a Drake uniform, scoring a career-high 29 points while
grabbing a career-high 16 rebounds.
A three-point basket by Cox
from the left wing with 30-seconds left in regulation capped
Drake's second-half comeback to send the game into overtime tied at
98-98.
Cox and sophomore guard Josh Young keyed a 33-18 run by Drake in the last 9:28 of regulation. Cox scored 17 points during the spurt. Young had two free throws and a three-point basket in a 23-second span to pull Drake within 86-85 with 1:24 remaining in regulation.
After a jumper by Brazelton gave Western Kentucky an 88-85 lead, Cox took a pass from senior guard Adam Emmenecker and hit the three-point basket from the left wing to send the game into overtime.
Senior forward Klayton Korver
scored 21 points for Drake, making six three-point baskets. He moved
into a tie on the school career three-point basket made list at 241.
Emmenecker, enjoyed his fourth double-double of the season, with 11 points and a career-high 14 assists.
Young hit two three-point baskets in the overtime with his second trey giving Drake a 96-92 lead with 2:12 left. Young finished with 18 ponts
