DES MOINES, Iowa – Fueled by a raucous crowd and generations of former players, the Drake University men's basketball team defeated visiting UNI, 83-77, Saturday afternoon at the Knapp Center.
 
The win, in front of a crowd of 5,632, was the Bulldogs' 18th of the season to equal the 2011-12 team for the most wins in the last decade. At halftime of the game, the Bulldogs honored former players as part of Legends Weekend, including the 1969 Final Four team. To further commemorate the 50th anniversary of that historic season, the Bulldogs wore jerseys modeled off those worn by the 1969 team.
 
"It was an exciting weekend for us and a great crowd to see an in-state rivalry game," said Drake head coach Darian DeVries. "I'm really proud of the guys. I thought they made some big plays down the stretch and gave us the plays we needed to close things out."
 
Senior Nick McGlynn (Stoughton, Wis.) had many of those big plays for Drake (18-7, 7-5 MVC) as he scored 17 second-half points to finish with 22 points. Two minutes into the second half he became the 25th Bulldog to record 1,000 career points. He also added seven rebounds.
 
"We knew going into this game it was going to be a physical dogfight and we needed to be true to us and execute from start to finish," McGlynn said.
 
D.J. Wilkins (Merrillville, Ill.) added 18 points and matched a career high with five assists in 40 minutes of action. Brady Ellingson (Menomonee Falls, Wis.) also never left the court and finished with 12 points. Tremell Murphy (Griffith, Ind.) posted 15 points and eight boards while his brother, Anthony, added nine points and seven rebounds.
 
As a team, Drake shot 50 percent from the field and 17-of-18 from the free-throw line to secure the win.
 
Freshman AJ Green led UNI (10-15, 5-7 MVC) with 19 points on 20 shots with five assists.
 
Drake owned a 40-36 lead at halftime following a first half that saw 17 lead changes. The Bulldogs stretched that lead to seven points in first four minutes of the second half on a McGlynn layup before UNI briefly took the lead on a Spencer Haldeman three-pointer with 9:21 remaining in the contest.
 
Drake retook the lead but did not lead by more than two possessions until an Ellingson jumper with 1:07 left gave Drake a five-point, 75-70, cushion that forced UNI to foul in the final minute. The Bulldogs continued to get defensive stops and made eight-straight free throws in the last minute to emerge with the victory.
 
The Bulldogs return to the road for their next contest, Feb. 12, when they travel to SIU to face the Salukis.