A fierce game was played by the Salukis (12-4) and the Drake Bulldogs (13-3) on Saturday, January 13 at the Banterra Center with Drake coming out on top, 76-58.

The Bulldogs’ head coach Darian DeVries is in his sixth year with the Bulldogs. He led them to last year’s Missouri Valley Conference championship and a tournament appearance. His son, Tucker DeVries, is the star of this Drake squad. 

The game was tied for a few seconds in the first few minutes, with the Bulldogs leading most of the first half averaging more than 10 to 20 points ahead, ending the first half with a substantial 11-point lead, 36-25.

The Salukis still put up a tough fight with 12 three-pointers attempted, trying to get back into the game. 

“I give Drake a ton of credit tonight. They were the better team. Disappointed with the result obviously,” Head Coach Bryan Mullins said. “We had a great crowd, great atmosphere in there and just wish we could’ve allowed the crowd to make a difference for us today.”

At the start of the second half, SIU guard Xavier Johnson started it strong with a three-pointer followed by another triple by forward Clarence Rupert at 17:38, with a score of 43-31, Bulldogs in front.

Mullins said the team let their offense impact its defense on the court tonight because of missed shots in the first half, but made sure to start off the second half strong. 

“We got to be able to respond and we have to come back out of the second half better than we did,” Mullins said. “I think they scored like five or six straight times to start the second half.”

Guard Trent Brown said the team’s communication can be better on defense and takes accountability for not communicating better on the court.

“I expect us to do a lot better come practice, so it starts with the next day,” Brown said. “It was disappointing, I’m disappointed in myself but that’s just the way it went tonight.”

He said credit to the Bulldogs for its performance on court playing like a championship team with expectations. The Salukis will play the same if not better in the future.

Mullins said with the previous practices communication on court has been improved but wasn’t shown fully on court tonight and plans to be better for the game against Bradley on Wednesday January 17.

Johnson led the way for the Dawgs as per usual, with 19 points and five assists. Rupert and forward Jarrett Hensley led the way in the rebounding category for the Dawgs, with five apiece.

That game will take place at 7 p.m. at the Banterra Center, on the Salukis’ home court. They hope to bounce back against a seasoned Bradley team.

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