DES MOINES, Iowa – Despite a second consecutive 20-point scoring effort from sophomore Antonio Reeves, the Illinois State Redbirds fell in the two-game series finale to the 25th ranked Drake Bulldogs on Monday evening by a 95-60 final score.
Reeves went 8-of-11 from the field, and 2-of-3 from both three-point range and the charity stripe in the loss. DJ Horne also reached double-figure scoring with 11 points on 4-of-9 shooting from the field. Freshmen Emon Washington and Harouna Sissoko each scored seven points in the loss. Abdou Ndiaye pulled down a team-leading seven rebounds, while adding a pair of steals and a pair of blocked shots.
The host Bulldogs scored the first five points of the game and never trailed in the contest. The Redbirds quickly fought back with a jumper from Reeves and a Ndiaye lay-in, but an 8-2 run by Drake pushed the margin up to seven, before the first-half lead grew to 15 with 5:40 to play in the contest. Trailing by 14, the Redbirds scored seven of the next nine points to cut the gap to single digits at nine. Drake closed the half on an 8-2 run to take a 15-point, 39-24 lead into the locker room at halftime.
Illinois State quickly cut the margin to 10 a minute and a half into the second half after a Washington three-pointer, but a 16-2 Bulldog run pushed the margin to 24, before Drake cruised to the 35-point win.
Tremell Murphy scored a game-high 30 points, making 10-of-15 shots from the field and 6-of-10 from beyond the arc, while ShanQuan Hemphill scored 18 points on 8-of-10 shooting. Jonah Jackson added a dozen points off of the bench for Drake.
The Redbirds return home to Redbird Arena for a two-game series with the Missouri State Bears starting on Saturday, February 6 with a 2 p.m. tip-off.
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