DES MOINES, Iowa: Hours after earning its first national ranking in 13 years, the No. 25 Drake University men's basketball team rode a career-high 30 points from Tremell Murphy to a 95-60 victory over Illinois State at the Knapp Center on Monday night.
  
The unbeaten Bulldogs needed overtime to escape with a 78-76 win over the Redbirds on Sunday, but they led from the start in this one and then broke it open behind 61 percent shooting in the second half.
  
ShanQuan Hemphill added 18 points for the Bulldogs, who improved to 17-0 for the season and 8-0 in the Missouri Valley Conference with its fourth straight two-game sweep. Drake had gained its spot in the Associated Press poll earlier Monday, the program's first appearance in the Top 25 since March of 2008. That 2007-08 season also is the last time the Bulldogs started 8-0 in the Valley.
  
"It's a nice recognition for our guys and the work they've put in and how they've represented the school," Drake head coach Darian DeVries said of the Bulldogs' ranking. "I'm happy for them and what they've done to this point."
 
Antonio Reeves led Illinois State (5-12, 2-9) with 20 points, turning in another solid effort after his career-high 27 on Sunday. DJ Horne added 11 points for the Redbirds, a young team with no seniors on the roster.
  
Topping his previous best of 26 points, Murphy made 10-of-15 shots, including 6-for-10 from 3-point range. The six 3s also were a career-high and he added eight rebounds, two steals and a block -- all in 28 minutes.
  
He left the game for good with 8:45 remaining after capping his big night with an eight-point surge in just 53 seconds. First came a 3 from a left wing, then a dunk off an alley-oop pass from Joseph Yesufu and finally, a 3 from the left corner. Murphy became the first Drake player in two years to score 30 and the first in three years to do it in regulation.
 
"Tremell is a good player and has been solid all year, he just hasn't had that breakout game yet and tonight was certainly that," DeVries said. "It's hopefully something that can springboard him as we move forward."
 
Hemphill was dogged by foul trouble on Sunday and scored only six points. He came back strong by making 8-of-10 shots, grabbing four rebounds, handing out three assists and making two steals. Jonah Jackson contributed off the bench with 12 points on 4-for-6 3-point shooting to match his season high. Roman Penn had seven assists and two steals to go with his seven points.
  
The 35-point margin was the Bulldogs' largest ever against Illinois State, matched the fourth largest of all time in a Valley game and was the widest in league play since a 109-67 victory over Wichita State on Feb. 28, 1994.
 
"I thought we really came out focused on both ends of the floor," DeVries said. "We got a few shots to fall and Tremell Murphy had an incredible game for us. Overall, both offensively and defensively, the guys did a good job tonight."
 
Drake shot 51.5 percent overall and went 13-for-31 from 3-point range, a sharp turnaround after struggling through a 4-for-30 day behind the arc in the series opener.
 
"The ball movement was better and the threes we got were just better shots," DeVries said. "The guys shared it and moved it really well tonight."
 
On Sunday, the Bulldogs needed 13:34 to get their first lead. They needed only 42 seconds in this one.
  
Hemphill converted a three-point play off a nifty move inside to start the scoring and followed that with a reverse layup for a 5-0 lead. Illinois State quickly got to within a point but never pulled ahead. D.J. Wilkins' 3-pointer and back-to-back 3s by Murphy sent the Bulldogs into a 27-12 lead and a five-point burst in the final 36 seconds of the half left Drake ahead 38-24 at the break.
  
The closest it got after that with a 40-30. Drake then held the Redbirds to one basket over the next 4 1/2 minutes and Murphy scored nine points in a 16-2 run that stretched the lead to 56-32. Murphy's final basket gave the Bulldogs their first 30-point lead at 68-38 and the lead grew to 38 late as DeVries was able to give his reserves some minutes down the stretch.
  
Drake heads out on the road for its next two games, playing at Valparaiso on Saturday and Sunday, Feb. 6 and 7, before returning home to meet UNI on Wednesday, Feb. 10.