DES MOINES, Iowa – The University of Minnesota Crookston men's basketball team led Division I foe Drake University 41-35 at the break, but the Bulldogs used a big second half to a claim a 86-73 victory at the Knapp Center in Des Moines, Iowa.
The exhibition showing was the best for the Golden Eagles against a NCAA Division I foe since a 64-63 loss to North Dakota State University Nov. 25, 2014 in Fargo, N.D.
The Golden Eagles led by as many as 10 at 41-31 with 3:51 left in the first half. However Drake out-scored Minnesota Crookston 51-32 in the second half. Minnesota Crookston falls to 0-1 in exhibition play, their only official scrimmage of the 2017 season. Drake starts the exhibition season out with a 1-0 record.
Minnesota Crookston got strong guard play on the day. Alan Hodge Jr. (Jr., G, Mesquite, Texas) had an impressive Golden Eagle debut with 24 points on 10-of-18 from the field and 4-of-9 from beyond the arc. Hodge added three assists on the day. Reining NSIC Freshman of the Year Harrison Cleary (So., G, Oak Creek, Wis.) finished with 20 points on 7-of-16 from the field and 4-of-4 from the charity stripe. Ben Juhl (Fr., G, Clive, Iowa), a native of the Des Moines metro, returned home on Saturday. Juhl played well off of the bench with 11 points on 4-of-7 from the field, including going 3-of-4 from beyond the arc. Chase Knickerbocker (Jr., G/F, Annandale, Minn.) added seven points and seven points off of the bench.
The Golden Eagles shot 28-of-60 from the field for 46.7 percent. They were 11-of-26 for 42.3 percent from beyond the arc and 6-of-8 for 75 percent from the charity stripe. Minnesota Crookston had a strong offensive showing, but struggled to slow down Drake in the second half. In addition, they struggled hanging on to the ball as they finished with 16 turnovers compared to just 10 assists.
Drake was led by 6-8 junior forward Nick McGlynn, who had 18 points and five boards on 8-of-8 from the field. Casey Schlatter came off of the bench for 13 points and five rebounds. Reed Timmer notched 11 points on 4-of-5 from the field. He added three assists on the day. Ore Arogundade chipped in 14 points and six assists.
The Bulldogs shot 31-of-58 from the field for 53.4 percent. They were 7-of-15 for 46.7 percent from beyond the arc and 17-of-25 from the charity stripe.
Drake got out to an early 5-2 lead in the first half after a McGlynn jumper. The Golden Eagles responded with an 8-4 run to go ahead 10-9 with a Knickerbocker trey. Drake countered with a 6-0 run to take the lead back 15-10 with a pair of free throws from Timmer. The Bulldogs would lead 20-14 following a Schlatter jumper.
That is when Minnesota Crookston caught fire as they went on 13-2 lead to take the advantage 27-22. The Golden Eagles looked to seven points from Cleary and five from Hodge during the run.
Drake closed the deficit to 27-26 with a dunk from McGlynn with 7:30 left in the first half. Minnesota Crookston responded with another crucial run, this time 12-3 as they took their biggest lead of the game, 39-29, with 4:35 left in the first half. The Golden Eagles were ignited by six points from Juhl.
Drake ended the first half on a 4-0 run as they cut the Minnesota Crookston lead to 41-35 going into the break.
Minnesota Crookston moved their lead to 44-37 early in the second half as Cleary connected on a three-pointer with 18:51 left in the game. That is when Drake kicked into gear as they went on a 14-0 run to take the 51-44 lead with 15:21 remaining in the tilt. The Bulldogs were guided by five points from Timmer and four from Arogundade.
The Golden Eagles bounced right back with four-straight points as they cut the lead to 51-49 with a trey from Hodge and a jumper from Knickerbocker. Drake fended off Minnesota Crookston with a 7-0 run as they took the 58-49 lead with a Jalen Gibbs bucket. A pair of Cleary free throws would cut the lead to 58-51.
Drake continued to build the momentum with a 12-0 run as they went up 70-51 with 9:14 remaining guided by six points from Graham Woodward.
The Golden Eagles pulled the game back within 15 points with a Cleary jumper to make it 75-60. Drake again fended off the charge as they extended the lead to 81-60 on a Noah Thomas triple.
Minnesota Crookston would make a charge late to cut the deficit to 86-73, but it would be too late as the Bulldogs held on for the win despite a valiant effort from the Golden Eagles.
Minnesota Crookston will open up regular-season action Fri., Nov. 10 at Arkansas Tech University at 7 p.m. in Russellville, Ark.
