DES MOINES, Iowa – Led by 17 points from junior Nick McGlynn (Stoughton, Wis.), the Drake University men's basketball team held off in-state rival UNI, 71-64, Saturday afternoon in the Knapp Center in front of a crowd of 5,121.
McGlynn helped Drake (14-13, 8-6 MVC) to its first victory over the Panthers since the 2013-14 season with a 7-of-8 shooting performance and six rebounds. Senior Reed Timmer (New Berlin, Wis.) added 15 points while C.J. Rivers (Cahokia, Ill.) matched a season-high 12 points while grabbing a team-high nine rebounds to help the team improve to 9-2 at the Knapp Center this season.
"I'm really proud of our guys and the way we played," said Drake head coach Niko Medved. "There was great energy in the crowd and defensively we did a great job guarding the interior better than we did in Cedar Falls.
UNI (12-14, 4-10 MVC) was led by Wyatt Lohaus with 17 points off the bench and a 4-of-8 three-point performance. The Panthers leading scorer, Bennett Koch, recorded a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds. Drake held UNI to 37.9 percent shooting to improve to make Drake 8-0 when holding an opponent under 40 percent this season.
"I thought we had a lot more confidence on the defensive end," Timmer said. "When you a group of guys you can count on defensively, it creates that confidence to convert on the other end."
Drake was unable to break away and extend a comfortable lead as the Panthers held on throughout the second half, never allowing the Bulldogs larger than a 10-point lead. Midway through the second half, a 7-0 run for the Panthers brought them within two points, 48-46, before Drake responded with three-straight baskets to hold a 54-46 lead. UNI continued to fight back, remaining within eight points as the Bulldogs continued to go to the free throw line, earning 27 attempts on the day. After a pair of missed free throws from the Bulldogs, who rank 10th nationally in three-point percentage, UNI responded with back-to-back layups to pull within five points before Timmer sank two final free throws to secure the Bulldog victory.
"We held them off and had some opportunities to push the lead out," Medved said. "But they hung tough. We made the plays and free throws we needed to get it done."
The Bulldogs opened the game by jumping out a quick 9-0 lead after forcing five UNI turnovers. The Bulldogs opened the game shooting 8-of-10 before building a 17-9 lead. UNI briefly pulled within one possession on a three-pointer before Drake redshirt junior Casey Schlatter (Iowa Falls, Iowa) hit back-to-back three-pointers for a 28-21 Drake lead. Drake went scoreless for over four minutes to allow UNI to tie the game for the only time at 28-28. However, the Bulldogs ended the half with seven straight points, including a buzzer-beating tip-in from Ore Arogundade (Chicago, Ill.), for a 35-28 lead at halftime. Those were Arogundade's only points of the night, but they were significant in fueling the victory.
"We got off to fast start," Medved said. "They came back and I thought that run we made at the end of the first half was huge and Ore made a huge hustle play for us and we went into halftime with some momentum."
Following Saturday's victory, the Bulldogs remain home to host Indiana State, Wednesday, Feb. 14, at the Knapp Center. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m.
