ST. LOUIS – Jonah Jackson tied a career-high with 15 points on 5-of-6 shooting as the Drake University men's basketball team earned a 75-65 win over Illinois State on Thursday night to open the 2020 Missouri Valley Conference Tournament. The Bulldogs advance to face top seed Northern Iowa in the second round on Friday.
 
"I thought it was a great effort by our guys tonight," said Drake head coach Darian DeVries. "It was great to see them playing a little loose and free. I was really proud of our effort from start to finish."
 
Anthony Murphy scored the opening points of Arch Madness with a 3-pointer, but it was the Redbirds who caught fire from distance early. Illinois State connected on three of its first four 3-point attempts as it leapt out to a 14-8 lead.
 
Drake buckled down on defense to swing the game back in its favor. The Bulldogs held Illinois State scoreless for 6:30 as part of an 11-0 run that gave Drake a 19-14 advantage.
 
The Redbirds briefly regained the lead after back-to-back treys, but a layup by Murphy with 7:01 remaining in the first half put Drake ahead for good. Murphy finished with 17 points to go along with four rebounds.
 
The Bulldogs led by nine points heading toward halftime when Illinois State returned to the well with another 3-point barrage. The Redbirds poured in a pair of 3-pointers and converted an old-fashioned 3-point play to close the half on a 9-2 run and cut Drake's lead to 38-36.
 
Once again, Drake turned to its defense to stem the tide. The Bulldogs opened the second half on a 17-2 run, holding Illinois State to 1-of-7 shooting and forcing eight turnovers in that span.
 
The Redbirds refused to go quietly, however, as they rattled off a 14-1 run to slice Drake's lead to four. Illinois State flexed its defensive muscle by holding Drake without a field goal for over seven minutes.
 
Garrett Sturtz, whose 17 points were one shy of his career high, ended the run with an and-one after cutting backdoor and receiving a feed from Liam Robbins.
 
Robbins then sandwiched an and-one of his own between a pair of threes by Jonah Jackson as Drake had suddenly pushed its lead to 14.
 
"Coach said they're going to hit us with a run and to stay composed," said Murphy. "That's what we did. Jonah hit some big shots and Liam and Garrett made some free throws. We just didn't panic."
 
Jackson tied a career-high with five made 3-pointers.
 
"Going into the game, the coaches told me to shoot the ball when I'm open and just have fun," said Jackson. "I got my feet set and hit a couple today. I have really good teammates who look for me at all times."
 
While Jackson was prolific from the outside, Robbins dominated inside the arc. He finished with 18 points, five rebounds and three blocks in addition to playing a key role in Drake outscoring Illinois State, 32-12, in the paint.
 
Roman Penn finished with a game-high six assists. His passing helped Drake record 18 assists on 25 made field goals.
 
The Bulldogs (19-13, 8-10 MVC) take on Northern Iowa in the second round of the MVC Tournament on Friday. Tipoff at the Enterprise Center is slated for 12 p.m.