DES MOINES, Iowa – The Drake men's basketball team led for nearly 38 minutes and had four players score in double figures to beat Indiana State, 80-68, on Senior Night in the Knapp Center and remain tied for first place in the Missouri Valley Conference.
 
Before tip-off, Nick McGlynn, (Stoughton, Wis.) Brady Ellingson, (Menomonee Falls, Wis.) and Nick Norton (Bloomington, Ill.) were honored for their outstanding careers as Bulldogs.
 
"I'm really happy for our guys, especially the seniors, for the season they've had," said Drake head coach Darian DeVries. "To finish up our home season, I was excited for them and what they've gotten started here. Tonight was another great example of their leadership."
 
Drake (22-8, 11-6 MVC) was led by their two veterans McGlynn and Ellingson who scored 15 and 16 points, respectively. Tremell Murphy (Griffith, Ind.) had a double-double with 12 points and pulled down a team-high 10 rebounds. Anthony Murphy (Griffith, Ind.) chipped in a career-high 13 points.
 
It was a back-and-forth battle in the first 20 minutes of play. Following the first media timeout, the Bulldogs went on a 13-4 run forcing a Sycamore timeout with 12:28 to go. Indiana State responded with a 14-5 run of their own, but Drake held on to the 27-25 lead with 6:55 left in the half.
 
Drake enjoyed a 36-32 lead heading into halftime after a buzzer beater from Garrett Sturtz (Newton, Iowa) to close the first 20 minutes.
 
Drake came out of the break firing as they increased their lead to 39-48 heading into the media timeout with 14:46 remaining. The Bulldogs were 5-of-7 from the floor in the first six minutes which included five points from Tremell Murphy who was held scoreless in the first half. 
 
"I thought we did a good job defensively and in the second half limited a lot of their easy opportunities," said DeVries. "Tremell was a good boost for us in the second half and was a good spark. Everyone fed off that."  
Indiana State (14-15, 6-11 MVC) got as close as 10 points with two minutes remaining, but Drake executed down the stretch to earn its 22nd win of the season and tie for the third-most wins in school history.
 
Drake shot 50.0 percent for the game compared to Indiana State's 35.3 percent clip. The Sycamores were led by junior Jordan Barnes who had a game-high 21 points while Tyreke Key added 18 points.
 
Drake travels to Springfield, Mo., to take on Missouri State on Saturday, March 2nd at 3 p.m. in the regular season finale and a critical MVC matchup. The Bears enter Saturday's game in third in the MVC standings.