TERRE HAUTE, IND. -- Jay Tunnell scored 16 of his game-high 25 points in the second half to rally Indiana State to a 69-57 Missouri Valley Conference victory past Drake Wednesday night.
Tunnell, who was coming off a career-high 28 points in the Sycamores' 75-73 overtime upset at Illinois State Sunday, made three straight three-point baskets during a 4 minute 51-second stretch in the second half.
That outburst triggered a 17-6 run by Indiana State which turned a 47-46 deficit into a 63-53 advantage with 4:52 left.
He finished the game, making 10 of 11 shots from the floor, including five of six shots beyond the arc.
"Tunnell broke open the game," said Drake head coach
Mark Phelps. "He picked right up where he left off Sunday and is playing outstanding basketball."
Senior forward
Jonathan Cox (Barrington, Ill.) led Drake with 15 points and a game-high eight rebounds.
The Bulldogs shot just 25 percent in the second half, making only six of 24 shots. Drake finished the game, hitting 17 of 49 shots for 34.7 percent.s
Meanwhile, Indiana State scorched the nets firing at a 65 percent clip in the second half hitting 13 of 20 shots.
Junior guard
Josh Young (Lawton, Okla.) added 13 points for Drake, which fell to 15-11, including a 6-8 league mark.
The lead changed hands 13 times in the first half.
"It was certainly a tale of two halves. Clearly we didn't play good basketball in the second half," said Phelps. "For the most part we had decent shots. I thought we had some open point blank looks at the rim, but we weren't able to knock them down."
Drake made six of its first eight shots to open the game, including three-point baskets from Young,
Bill Eaddy (Ypsilanti, Mich.),
Josh Parker (Harvey, Ill.) and Cox, to enjoy a 16-15 lead.
But the Bulldogs went the next 5 minutes 49 seconds without a basket, allowing the Sycamores to grab a 22-19 lead.
A three-point basket by Cox from the right baseline ended Drake's drought with 7:29 left in the first half.
"Drake has a shifty zone defense but tonight we were patient and got good looks," said Indiana State coach Kevin McKenna.
Parker added 10 points for Drake which will host Illinois State in a 6:05 p.m. tip-off this Sunday at the Drake Knapp Center.
