DES MOINES, IOWA - Sparked by a season-high 22 points from senior
Ryan Wedel (Minneapolis,
Kan./Minneapolis), including back-to-back-to-back three pointers to start the
game, Drake snapped a three-game losing streak with a 76-68 victory over
Illinois State on Tuesday (Jan. 18) at the Knapp Center.
The win improved the Bulldogs' record to 8-11 overall and
3-5 in the Missouri Valley Conference, while dropping the Redbirds' ledger to
8-11 and 0-8 in league play.
Joining Wedel with a double-figure scoring effort was
freshman Rayvonte Rice (Champaign, Ill./Centennial), who poured in 17 points to go along with
pulling down a game-high eight rebounds.
Buoyed by a 56 percent shooting mark in the first half,
Drake finished the affair connecting on 51.1 percent of its shots, while
limiting Illinois State to a 43.3 field goal percentage.
The Bulldogs quickly established the momentum in the contest
twice racing out to 11-point leads in the first 20 minutes.
The Redbirds chipped away at the deficit cutting the margin
to 26-25, on a layup by Blake Mishler with 3:58 left in the half.
A pair of three pointers from sophomore Aaron Hawley (Rogers, Ark./Rogers) and one from
Rice allowed the Bulldogs to close the stanza on a 13-8 run to enter the
intermission leading 39-33.
Drake garnered 15-, nine- and eight-point efforts in the
first half from Wedel, Rice and Hawley, respectively.
After a dunk by Jackie Carmichael to begin the final 20
minutes, the Bulldogs went on an 11-0 to stretch their lead to 50-35, with
16:12 remaining.
Fueling the surge were three, three, two, two and one
points, respectively, from sophomore Ben Simons (Cadillac, Mich./Cadillac), Wedel,
Rice, redshirt sophomore Cory Parker (Aspen, Colo./Aspen) and redshirt sophomore Jordan Clarke (Rockville,
Md./Our Lady of Good Counsel).
Drake later added a 10-run to extend its lead to a game-best
21 points, 62-41, after a three pointer by Rice at the 10:22 mark.
Illinois State whittled the advantage down to five points,
73-68, with 43 seconds remaining, but the Bulldogs sealed the game at the line
to collect the victory.
The Redbirds won the battle of the boards, 32-30, although
Drake bested Illinois State on the defensive glass, 25-21.
Redshirt junior Kraidon Woods (Henryville, Pa./Pocono Mountain
East) collected the start in place of injured sophomore Seth VanDeest (Bettendorf, Iowa/Bettendorf) and
turned in a stellar seven-point, seven-rebound effort.
Hawley and Simons added nine and eight points, respectively,
for Drake, while Clark had a six-point, four-assist performance.
Three Illinois State players finished in double figures led
by Austin Hill with 18, while Carmichael and Mishler added 12 and 10 points.
The Bulldogs return to action on Saturday (Jan. 22) with an
in-state showdown at Northern Iowa. Game time from the McLeod Center is slated for 7:00 p.m.
