DES MOINES, Iowa –  The Drake men's basketball team carved out a second straight victory with some historic defense, beating Evansville 63-40 Saturday evening at the Knapp Center.
 
The Bulldogs held the Aces scoreless for long stretches, including nearly 9 minutes to start the second half, and found their shooting touch in the final 20 minutes after struggling on the offensive end early.
 
Evansville's 43 points were the fewest it has scored in the 63-game series, which Drake leads 35-28 after its 12th straight victory over the Aces, and the fewest Drake has allowed in any game to a Division I opponent since a 58-40 victory over Colorado State on Jan. 2, 1992.
 
It was the fewest points Drake has given up in a Missouri Valley Conference game since beating Creighton 63-36 in Omaha on Jan. 31, 1948.
 
Bennett Stirtz, who went without a field goal in Drake's victory at Bradley on Wednesday night, led the Bulldogs (14-2, 4-2 MVC) with 16 points and sparked the run that broke it open after a tight first half. He also had seven rebounds, six assists and three steals.
 
Daniel Abreu added 12 points and Tavion Banks recorded the first double-double of his Drake career with 11points and a career-best 13 rebounds – the fifth different Bulldog with a double-double this season. Kael Combs, who is becoming a valuable asset off the bench, contributed nine points, four rebounds and two steals, the second of which, he turned into a crowd-pleasing two-handed jam.
 
Drake, leading the Valley in rebound margin, piled up a 41-24 edge on the boards with a season-high 19 offensive rebounds, which led to a 17-3 advantage in second-chance points. The Bulldogs also came up with 10 steals, the third straight game with at least 10 and the eighth overall.
 
The Bulldogs held the Aces to 37 percent shooting and forced 16 turnovers. The Aces went just 4-for-15 from 3-point range. Tayshawn Comer's 11 points led Evansville (6-11, 3-3), which had won three of its previous four.
 
Ahead 25-20 at halftime, the Bulldogs buried Evansville with a 19-1 run coming out of the break. Stirtz was right in the middle of it.
 
The junior guard fed Combs for a layup, did the same for Cam Manyawu, then calmly swished a 3-pointer when he was left alone on the perimeter, making it 32-20 just 2:03 into the half and forcing an Evansville timeout. And the Bulldogs were just getting started.
 
Banks and Stirtz executed a perfect pick-and-roll that led to a Banks layup, Stirtz followed with a jumper in the lane and Banks made a free throw for a 38-20 lead.
 
Evansville got its first point of the half on a free throw at the 11:05 mark and then the Bulldogs came back with six more. Stirtz lobbed to Isaia Howard for a dunk, stole the ball and jammed it home with both hands and Abreu drove the baseline for a layup, stretching the lead to 44-21 with 9:22 left and all but finishing off the Aces. Evansville didn't get its first basket of the half until Kaia Berridge hit a three pointer with 9:08 to play. When you include the final 2:36 of the first half, Evansville went almost 13.5 minutes without a field goal.
 
Drake went 5 minutes between field goals during one stretch in the first half and Evansville went on a 12-2 run to take a 14-9 lead. The Bulldogs responded with a 12-2 run of their own and led the rest of the way.
 
Mitch Mascari ended the field goal drought with a trey, Stirtz scored on a drive and knocked down a 3 of his own and Combs converted a three-point play off a drive to the hoop, leaving the Bulldogs ahead 21-16. Evansville twice cut the lead to three before Banks sank two free throws for the 25-20 edge at halftime, matching the fewest points the Bulldogs have scored in a half this season.
 
"We were fortunate enough to execute our scout defensively," Drake head coach Ben McCollum said. "And then offensively get enough points to secure the win. It's a different style of basketball where you kind of know it's going to be low scoring, and we're used to low scoring right now, but you just have to make sure you're efficient with what you're doing, and I thought our kids did a good job of that."
 
Drake will complete a two-game homestand when Illinois State visits on Wednesday for an 8 p.m. tipoff.
 
Post-Game Notes
—Drake matches the third best start in school history with its 14-2 mark tying the start by the 1967-68 Bulldog team, while only trailing a 24-1 start by the 2007-08 team and an 18-0 start by the 2020-21 squad.
—Drake improved to 4-2 in the MVC, including a 2-1 league home mark.
—Drake, which ranks fourth in the NCAA in scoring defense (58.1 avg.), held Evansville to 40 points -- the fewest points scored by the Purple Aces in the 63 meetings between the schools.
—The 40 points also were the fewest points Drake has allowed a Division I opponent since claiming a 58-40 home victory past Colorado State, Jan. 2, 1992.
—It also was the fewest points Drake has allowed in a Missouri Valley Conference game since beating Creighton, 63-36, Jan. 31, 1948, in Omaha.
—Drake, which leads the MVC in steals (9.20 avg.) collected 11 steals, marking the eighth time (including third straight game) the Bulldogs had 10-plus steals in a game this season.
—Drake, which leads the MVC in rebounding margin (plus 7.27), out-rebounded Evansville, 41-27. That total only trailed a season-high 42 rebounds Drake collected against St. Ambrose.
—Drake grabbed a season-high 19 offensive rebounds, marking the 11th game this season the Bulldogs had 10-plus offensive rebounds in a game.
—Drake's bench outscored Evansville, 27-6.
—There were two lead changes and two ties in the game.
—Drake held Evansville without a basket for 13 minutes 26 seconds (from 2:35 of first half to 9:08 in second half) with the Purple Aces missing nine shots.
—Drake's 25 points in the first half matched the Bulldogs' fewest points in the first half this season against Stephen F. Austin Nov. 10.
—Drake shot just 28.6 percent (8-28) from the floor in the first half — its lowest shooting percentage of any half this season, eclipsing the previous low of 36.4 (8-2) in the first half against Murray State last Sunday.
 
Individual Notes
—Junior guard Bennett Stirtz led Drake with 16 points, including nine in the second half, along with a game-high six assists and three steals.
—Graduate forward Daniel Abreu chipped in with 12 points, including two three-point baskets, and two steals.
—Junior swingman Tavian Banks came off the bench to earn his first career double-double with 11 points and a career-high 13 rebounds.
—Banks becomes the fifth Drake player to collect a double-double this season joining teammates: Cam Manyawu (2), Bennett Stirtz (2), Daniel Abreu (1) and Isaiah Jackson (1).
—Sophomore reserve Kael Combs, playing a season-high 24 minutes, three seconds, had nine points.
—Sophomore forward Cam Manyawu tied a career high with four steals
 
The Series
—Drake, won its 12th straight game against Evansville, including its ninth in a row in Des Moines.
—Drake owns a 35-28 lead in the series, including a 21-10 mark in Des Moines