Sunday, Jan. 15, 2012
DES MOINES, Iowa--Junior Ben Simons scored a game-high 21 points and senior Kraidon Woods recorded his first career double-double with 11 points and 12 rebounds to lead Drake to its third consecutive victory, 77-60 over visiting Illinois State on Sunday.
Box Score | Updated Season Statistics
With the win the Bulldogs move to 11-7 on the season and into a tie for third place in the Missouri Valley Conference at 4-3. It was Drake's 13th victory in its last 14 home games. The Redbirds fell to 11-7 overall and 3-4 in MVC play.
Drake Head Coach Mark Phelps was impressed by his teams' ability to shut down Illinois State's talented offense.
"Illinois State is a very explosive team." Phelps said. "They can come at you so many different ways and score so many different ways. Jackie Carmichael, we've seen what he can do and Jon Ekey's explosive, (John) Wilkins, they're very talented, and to our guys' credit they did a great job closing the game out."
Woods' career night saw him hit all three shots he took from the field, and he added a career-high five free throws as well as four blocked shots.
"He's stepping up," Phelps said of Woods. "He's playing the way he expected to play. I don't think we've seen the best of him yet, and I'm sure he'll tell you the same thing. I'm really proud of him. He keeps coming in every day and chopping wood every day and getting better, and now he's starting to reap the benefits of that."
Simons (Cadillac, Mich.) topped the 20-point plateau for the second time in the last three games, and converted four three-point field goals while senior Kurt Alexander (Toronto, Ontario) added 13 points in a reserve role.
"Guys are coming off the bench and giving us great contributions," Phelps said of Alexander and Woods. "Kurt has the ability when things break down at the point guard spot, to go get his shot. I thought he did that probably three times tonight where he got into the paint and rose up and got us a shot."
The Bulldogs opened the game with a 15-4 advantage, much to the delight of the 3,400-plus Knapp Center crowd. Illinois State was able to quell the storm, but could only cut the lead to eight by half, at 41-33.
Drake came out strong again to open the second half, scoring three baskets in a row after a Redbirds three-pointer.
The Bulldogs controlled the game and tempo for the majority of the half and held Illinois State to just 35% shooting from the field (20-57) on the night, much in part to Woods dominating effort down low. The Bulldogs shot 56% from the field (27-48) and 42% (9-21) from 3-point range, and outrebounded Illinois State 37-28.
Drake will look to keep its record above .500 in MVC play this Wednesday when it visits Southern Illinois (6-12, 3-4 MVC).
Phelps is proud of what his Bulldogs have done in this past stretch, but emphasizes they're hungry for more.
"We started eight days ago with four games in eight days," Phelps said. "We've come back and won three in a row, two home wins and a road win. I'm really proud of our guys, because they are stepping up in a big way."
Notes:
- Ben Simons played all 40 minutes for the third time this season and second in the last three games. He scored more than 20 points for the fourth time this year and second in the last three games.
- Simons' four three pointers were his most since hitting four in back to back games versus Boise State (11/30) and Air Force (12/3), and it was his sixth game this year with four or more, extending his Valley-leading total 46.
- Rayvonte Rice shot 60% (6-10), his second-best shooting game of the season. He shot 67% (12-18) versus Central Arkansas (12-21).
- Kurt Alexander had 13 points, putting him in double figures for the second consecutive home game (17 versus Bradley, 1/10).
- Woods had double-figure rebounds for the second consecutive home game after grabbing 14 versus Bradley. His double-double tonight was nearly his second in three games, as he scored nine in the Bradley game, all in the first half.
- Jordan Clarke started the game but played just five minutes due to illness.
- The Bulldogs shot 56.3 percent from the field, their second consecutive game over 50 percent, giving them their best two-game percentage of the season (.587; 54-92).
- Drake's three-game winning streak is its longest since last February.
