Men's Basketball Falls to Drake

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - - Belmont University men's basketball dropped a 79-61 decision to Missouri Valley Conference preseason favorite Drake Sunday from the Curb Event Center.
 
Belmont entered having won seven straight games and 10 of its previous 11, but the Bruins were unable to find a rhythm on either end of the floor against one of the most experienced starting lineups in the nation.
 
With Keishawn Davidson and Ben Sheppard in early foul trouble, Roman Penn led Drake to a 7-6 lead.
 
A Sheppard free throw and a Ja'Kobi Gillespie basket gave Belmont a 9-7 lead less than six minutes in.
 
From there, Belmont endured a five-minute scoring drought as bench contributions from Okay Djamgouz and Nate Ferguson gave Drake a 20-9 lead.
 
Gillespie and Cade Tyson sparked a Belmont response, with the Bruins getting within 22-18 with 6:30 left in the first half.
 
Penn and Conor Enright initiated a 13-2 run to make the score 35-20 with 3:05 left in the first half.
 
Belmont battled through a series of uncharacteristic missed free throws and turnovers.
 
A Sheppard basket got Belmont within 39-26 at halftime.
 
13 Drake bench points and nine Belmont turnovers – several player control fouls - told much of the first half story.
 
Belmont made six of its first seven shots of the second half, with a flurry of scoring from Sheppard and Gillespie closing the margin to 46-36 with 16:22 left.
 
However, Darnell Brodie scored nine points in the first 3:56 of the second half to inhibit the Belmont comeback charge.
 
A conventional 3-point play from Even Brauns got Belmont within 50-43 with 15:02 left.
 
Then after an exchange of scores from Enright and Gillespie, Djamgouz made a 3-pointer to give Drake a 10-point lead, 55-45, with 13:03 remaining.
 
Sheppard would almost single-handedly carry the Belmont offensive scoring in the second half, but an efficient Drake would consistently provide an answer.
 
All told, Belmont shot 42 percent (27-for-65) from the field – but just 1-for-16 from 3-point distance; its fewest 3-point field goals in a game in over two decades.

Sheppard led four Belmont players in double figures with 21 points and six rebounds.
 
Gillespie had 15 points and five rebounds, while Tyson had 13 points and six rebounds.
 
Brauns recorded his second double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds.
 
Penn and Sturtz led Drake (17-6, 8-4 MVC) with 16 points each.
 
Belmont (16-7, 9-3 MVC) returns to game action Wednesday at Murray State.

Belmont University men's basketball has earned postseason invitations 15 of the last 17 seasons, including nine berths to the NCAA Tournament. The Bruins have won 20 conference championships since 2006 - third-most nationally over that span (Gonzaga, Kansas). Belmont has won 20 or more games in 12 consecutive seasons (Gonzaga, Kansas, Oregon). Belmont is one of only five NCAA Division I programs outside the Power 5 to post Top 100 rankings 12 consecutive seasons (Gonzaga, Saint Mary's (CA), San Diego State, Wichita State). Belmont University men's basketball boasts an NCAA-leading 19 CoSIDA Academic All-America selections since 2001 and is the only NCAA Division I program to make the NCAA Academic Progress Rate (APR) Honor Roll every year of existence