SPRINGFIELD, Mo.— The Drury Panthers pulled away from Rockhurst in the second half to earn their 20th win of the season as they defeated the Hawks 84-71 on Senior Day and Homecoming at the O’Reilly Family Event Center Saturday afternoon.
Drury will head to the Great Lakes Valley Conference tournament with a 20-8 record and a 13-7 mark in the league. They dropped Rockhurst to 16-12 and 12-8 in the GLVC.
Panthers guard Conley Garrison led all scorers with 30 points as the junior from Bolivar went 10 for 16 from the floor, 5 of 9 from outside the three-point arc, and was 5 for 5 at the free throw. He also contributed six assists, five rebounds, and four steals.
Lane Duncan, a senior from Licking, Missouri, scored a career-high with 20 points and went 8 for 11 from the field.
“I couldn’t be prouder of Lane,” said Drury head coach Steve Hesser. “He’s hung in there, and he’s given us a boost at the end of the year.”
Drury owned a 37-33 lead at halftime and maintained the margin until a Rockhurst run gave the Hawks a 52-49 lead with 13:30 remaining. Two minutes later, senior Isaac Johnson hit a three that put the Panthers back in front, 55-54, and Drury never trailed again.
The Hawks pulled within two, 62-60, with 8:23 left, but the Panthers went on an 11-0 in a four-minute span to take a double-digit lead.
“I liked our grit down the stretch,” added Hesser. “We ran our offense good enough to be effective. They were trying to switch everything, but we got good movement and ended up getting some excellent looks.”
The Panthers shot 55 percent connecting on 35 of 58 attempts and were 11 for 12 from the free-throw line. Drury forced Rockhurst into 16 turnovers while only committing nine.
Chris Hamil led the Hawks with 24 points while Quinton Curry had 17.
The win marks Drury’s third consecutive 20-win season and is the 12th 20-win campaign in Hesser’s 16 seasons as head coach of the Panthers.
The postseason is next for Drury as they will head to the GLVC Tournament in Edwardsville, Illinois, next week. The event starts on Thursday, March 5, and runs through Sunday, March 8, and the league will announce the bracket and schedule later this weekend.
