The Drake University men's basketball team opens up Missouri Valley Conference action on New Year's Eve against Wichita State. Tipoff at Koch Arena is scheduled for 1 p.m. with the contest being broadcast on ESPNU. Thursday game marks the the second-straight season that the Bulldogs and Shockers have opened up Valley play on Dec. 31.
Drake enters the MVC portion of its schedule with a 5-7 non-conference record after defeating Abilene Christian, 87-70, in its final non-conference game. In that win, junior Kale Abrahamson scored 30 points on 9-of-14 shooting and a 5-of-9 night from the arc to earn his second MVC Newcomer of the Week honor. Abrahamson also earned his second MVC Scholar-Athlete of the Week honor. A Drake men's basketball student-athlete has now won the honor five-straight weeks and five times this season. A Drake student-athlete has won it in 12 times in the 19 weeks it has been awarded as well this season.
The Bulldogs made 10-of-18 three-point attempts against Abilene Christian to improve their three-point percentage to 43.2 percent, the seventh highest percentage in the nation. The Bulldogs' three-point shooting has been a team effort as Graham Woodward is the only Bulldog to rank in the top 50 nationally in three-point accuracy. Defensively, Wichita State is allowing 65.1 points per game with opponents shooting 37.6 percent from the three-point arc.
Senior preseason All-American guard Ron Baker leads Wichita State with 15.9 point per game while his backcourt mate, Fred Van Vleet is shooting 48 percent from the three-point arc. The Shockers are 6-5 this season while playing the nation's 25th toughest schedule according to kenpom.com.
For Drake, sophomore Reed Timmer is averaging 18.8 points per game this season, the eighth-most in the nation by a sophomore and a Bulldog as scored 20 or more points 10 times this season which already exceeds last year's total. The Bulldogs have also enjoyed a resurgence on the glass by outrebounding their last two foes by a combined 19 rebounds. Drake is 4-1 this season when outrebounding its opponent and 25-9 over the last four seasons.
Following Thursday's contest, the Bulldogs return home for a two-game MVC homestand beginning on Jan. 3 against Illinois State. Tipoff is scheduled for 1 p.m. Against the Redbirds.
