EVANSVILLE, Ind. – The Drake University women's basketball team closed January with a 78-47 road win over Evansville Sunday afternoon at the Meeks Family Fieldhouse.
Drake (15-4, 7-0 MVC) was led in scoring by
Becca Hittner's (Urbandale, Iowa) game-high 21 points with
Sara Rhine (Eldon, Mo.) narrowly behind with her seventh double-double with 20 points and 11 rebounds.
Maddy Dean (Jordan, Minn.) had 11 points and a team-high five assists while
Monica Burich (Roseville, Minn.) just missed a double-double with nine points and a career-high 11 rebounds.
Freshman Makayla Wallace scored a team-high 12 points for Evansville (2-17, 0-8 MVC).
In a game where the Bulldogs struggled shooting the basketball, they dominated the glass with a season-high 57 rebounds with a season-best 23 offensive rebounds. Drake controlled the paint with 46 points and 25 second chance points. Burich corralled a career-high eight offensive rebounds. Drake finished at 38.4 percent (28-of-73) from the floor and a season-low 14.7 percent (5-of-34) from behind the three-point line. The Bulldogs made 17-of-21 (81.0 percent) from the free throw line
After a slow offensive start, Drake ended the first quarter on a 13-0 scoring run holding Evansville scoreless for more than five minutes. Rhine scored 10 points for the Bulldogs in the opening period.
Off the bench, Burich provided a spark in the second quarter, scoring five points and grabbing six rebounds. Hittner also played well with seven points. Drake limited Evansville to 2-of-13 shooting from the floor with the Purple Aces doing the majority of scoring from the free throw line, making 9-of-10. 11 different Bulldogs played in the first two quarters.
Evansville began the third quarter with a 10-2 run the first three minutes. After head coach Baranczyk called a timeout, the Bulldogs held the Purple Aces to just four points the rest of the quarter. In the fourth quarter, Drake outscored Evansville, 21-10, while shooting 44.4 percent. The Purple Aces made just three field goals in the quarter with two coming from beyond the arc by Kerri Casper.
Sammie Bachrodt (Wichita, Kan.) equaled a season-high with four steals and claimed sole possession of fifth place all-time in career steals with 238.
Following Sunday's game, Drake returns to the Knapp Center to host Missouri State Feb.1. Going into its Sunday game against Valparaiso, MSU was also undefeated in league play. Tipoff with the Lady Bears Friday is scheduled for 6 p.m. and will be broadcast on ESPN+.
