Final Score – Lipscomb: 70, Drake: 85
Location – Des Moines, Iowa (Knapp Center)
Records -- Lipscomb: 0-2, Drake: 1-0
THE SHORT STORY
Despite a quality first 20-minutes for the Bisons, Drake's offense was too much for Lipscomb to handle down the stretch as the Bisons fell 85-70 in Des Moines on Wednesday night.
HOW IT HAPPENED
After setting a career-high in the opening game of the season,
AJ McGinnis picked up right where he left off with the opening bucket of the night. His triple gave Lipscomb the early lead.
The opening minutes of the game were back-and-forth and the Bisons continued with the quick-trigger three pointers as
Derrin Boyd connected for an 8-7 lead.
With a high-octane opening sequence, Lipscomb held a 13-12 lead at the first media timeout at the half.
Out of the break, McGinnis and
Will Pruitt had back-to-back buckets, pushing out to a 17-12 lead. Lipscomb's run continued as McGinnis scored another triple and Boyd drove the basket for a 22-15 advantage, forcing a Drake timeout.
Drake punched back with a 4-0 run out of the break, cutting the Lipscomb lead 25-21. The already fast pace, however, picked up to a frantic pace as the teams traded buckets over the next several minutes. After
Owen McCormack knocked down a close-range shot, Lipscomb head coach
Lennie Acuff called a timeout with a 36-32 lead to give his team a breather.
Out of the timeout, the Bulldogs pulled back within a bucket, but Lipscomb used a 4-0 run to get more of a cushion with 3:36 left in the first half.
Drake threatened to retake the lead for the first time since the opening minutes when it pulled within a point, 43-42, but McGinnis drilled another trey to stop the mini run with 2:01 left in the frame.
Each team scored a basket in the final two minutes of the half as the Bisons took a 48-44 lead into the halftime locker room. At the half, McGinnis had already set a career-high with 18 points. The Bisons shot 59-percent in the first half and 60-percent from deep.
The Bisons looked good out of the break when McCormack connected on a three-pointer, but a 9-0 Drake run, gave the Bulldogs a 53-51 lead with 17:00 minutes to play. The lead marked Drake's first since the first three minutes of the matchup.
Lipscomb didn't panic and McGinnis once again got a big-time bucket from midrange, tying things up at 53 a piece. The scoring slowed down as Lipscomb was held scoreless for the next four minutes and Drake took advantage, getting out to a 57-53 lead, its largest of the night.
Once again, McGinnis stopped the bleeding with a driving layup, getting Lipscomb deficit back to a pair at the media timeout with 11:58 left to play.
Over the next minutes, the Bisons and the Bulldogs kept pace, but a big Drake triple edged it out to a 67-60 lead in favor of the home team with 7:56 left to play.
Over the next three minutes, Drake caught fire as the Bisons went cold offensively as Drake got out to a 79-66 lead at the final media timeout.
Drake closed things out as the Bisons fell 85-70 in its second game of the season.
HERD NOTES
- The Bisons' 48 first half points were the most scored against Drake in the first half since the 2013 season.
- McGinnis had a career-high 26 points. Boyd also scored double-digits with 16 points.
- Lipscomb shot 47-perfect from the floor and 33-percent from three-point range.
- McGinnis also led Lipscomb with six rebounds on the night.
UP NEXT
Lipscomb will return to Nashville for its home opener as part of Bison Weekend. Tipoff in Allen Arena against Asbury is set for 4 p.m. CT.
