DES MOINES, IOWA - A balanced scoring attack sparked by five players scoring
in double figures propelled Drake to a 72-69 victory over Boise State in the
Bulldogs' first home game in nearly a month at the Knapp Center on Sunday (Dec. 12).
Drake evened its ledger at 4-4 overall with the triumph,
while dropping Boise State to 6-3 overall.
The game marked the Bulldogs' first appearance in the Knapp
Center since Drake downed Texas Southern, 60-46, in its season opener on Nov.
13.
The Bulldogs led by as many as 10 points in the affair,
65-55, with 4:11 left in the second half, but the Broncos went on a 10-2 run over
the next 3:30 to cut the lead to 67-65 with 41 seconds left in the game.
After a made basket by Paul Noonan, Drake garnered a
thunderous dunk from freshman Rayvonte Rice (Champaign, Ill./Centennial) with
31 ticks remaining to give the Bulldogs a 69-65 advantage.
Boise State twice cut the margin to two points before senior
Ryan Wedel
(Minneapolis, Kan./Minneapolis) hit a free throw with nine seconds remaining to
provide the final margin.
Sophomore Seth VanDeest (Bettendorf, Iowa/Bettendorf) recorded his first
career double-double with a 13-point, 10-rebound effort. Ten of his 13 points came in the
deciding second half.
Wedel contributed 13 points, while sophomore Aaron Hawley (Rogers, Ark./Rogers), Rice and
junior Kurt Alexander (Toronto, Ontario) added 12, 11 and 10 points, respectively. Alexander's 10 points established a
career high.
The Bulldogs finished the game shooting 53.1 percent from
the floor, while limiting the Broncos, who came into the game connecting on
45.4 percent of their shots, to a .381 shooting mark.
Boise State won the battle of the boards, 39-29, including
15-3 on the offensive glass.
The key to victory for Drake may have been its production
off the bench, where the Bulldogs received 26 points, including 12 and 10,
respectively, from Hawley and Alexander.
Noonan posted a game-high 20 points for the Broncos, while
La'Shard Anderson registered a 15-point, seven-assist effort.
The contest began as a back-and-forth affair with the first
half featuring three lead changes and five ties with neither side garnering
more than a five-point advantage.
Drake now turns its attention to final exams this week
before hosting in-state rival Iowa on Saturday (Dec. 18) at 7:06 p.m.
