DES MOINES, Iowa – Missouri State’s six-game win streak came to a halt here Saturday as the Bears (6-2, 1-1 MVC) ran into a buzzsaw in Valley preseason favorite Drake, falling 74-57 at the Knapp Center.
Tucker DeVries led all players with 24 points for Drake (7-1, 2-0) on 10-of-19 field goals, while Darnell Brodie added 12 points and 9 rebounds for the home side.
The Bears were led by Chance Moore’s 17 points, while Tyler Bey contributed 10. Raphe Ayres also contributed 9 points for the visitors with N.J. Benson sharing game-high rebounding honors with 9.
Missouri State had a season-low in 3-pointers (5) and assists (6) while committing 14 turnovers behind 9 Drake steals.
The Bears trailed by 11 at the half and cut their deficit to single digits four times before Drake gained separation midway through the second half. Ayres’ 3-pointers with 13:55 to go made it a 44-36 game before the Bears surrendered a traditional three-point play on the ensuing Drake possession.
Matthew Lee answered with an elbow jumper with 13:23 to go, making it a 47-38 contest. But as it did all afternoon, Drake responded to every MSU run with one of its own. The Bulldogs reeled off six unanswered points to push ahead by 15 and force a Bears timeout.
MSU went on a 6-2 run with one last push from there. Cesare Edwards’ stick-back at the 8:57 mark made it 55-44, but MSU went more than three minutes without a field goal from there. Drake used a 13-3 run in less than three minutes to lead 68-47 and would build their lead to as many as 25 before a late surge from MoState.
The Bears finished 22-of-62 (.355) from the field, 5-for-22 (.227) from long range and 8-of-11 (.727) at the line with a 43-37 rebounding advantage.
Drake was 32-of-74 (.432) overall, 6-for-27 (.222) from long range – three by DeVries – and 4-of-5 (.800) at the line with just 6 turnovers and 15 assists.
In the first half, Moore provided 8 points, but the Bears couldn’t find an offensive rhythm to fall behind 36-25 at the midway point. Missouri State was just 11-for-35 (.314) from the field in the opening 20 minutes, while Drake’s DeVries scored 16 points on 7-of-13 from the field. The Valley preseason player of the year also had three steals in the opening half.
The Bears resume non-conference play Tuesday at Middle Tennessee (6:30 p.m./ESPN+) before returning to Great Southern Bank Arena on Saturday, Dec. 9 to square off with Sam Houston at 6 p.m. on Art Hains Day.
Tickets for the Art Hains Day festivities are available at MissouriStateBears.com or by visiting the Missouri State Box Office at Great Southern Bank Arena, (417) 836-7678, during regular office hours.
