Leatherneck Males’s Basketball Journey to Des Moines to Face Drake

Who | Western Illinois vs. Drake

When | Tuesday, December 2, 6:30 P.M.

Where | Knapp Center | Des Moines, IA

Leathernecks Hit the Road to Des Moines 

Western Illinois now turns its consideration to its subsequent problem, hitting the highway for a Tuesday matchup in opposition to the Drake Bulldogs in Des Moines. The Leathernecks will look to construct on their current progress as they step into a troublesome highway atmosphere, going through a Drake squad that has established itself as one of many high packages within the Missouri Valley. Drake has misplaced quite a few gamers from final yr’s NCAA Tournament crew although they’re nonetheless a formidable opponent. 

Western Illinois vs. St. Ambrose Recap

Western Illinois males’s basketball topped St. Ambrose 89–73 on Sunday afternoon inside Western Hall.

The Leathernecks moved to 2–6 on the season behind a dominant offensive displaying that included 48 factors within the paint and 42 factors from the bench. WIU used a robust second half, capturing 22-for-39 from the ground, to drag away after main 34–26 at halftime.

Lucas Lorenzen led all scorers with 25 factors on six made threes. Isaiah Griffin added 14 factors and eight rebounds, whereas Karyiek Dixon supplied a set off the bench with 12 factors on 5-for-6 capturing.

Makai Kvamme ran the offense with eight assists to go together with seven factors and 4 rebounds. Francis Okwuosah completed with seven factors and 9 rebounds, and Antwaun Massey added seven boards as WIU outrebounded St. Ambrose 44–23.

Western Illinois’ depth proved to be a distinction maker, outscoring the Fighting Bees’ bench 42–16 and producing 23 second-chance factors on the energy of 20 offensive rebounds.

Finding the Right Starting Five

Western Illinois continued to form its rotation, rolling out a beginning group of Makai Kvamme, Lucas Lorenzen, Francis Okwuosah, Goanar Biliew, and Antwaun Massey. The unit confirmed encouraging indicators, highlighted by Lorenzen’s sturdy response to being positioned again within the beginning lineup. The junior delivered 25 factors, knocked down 6 of 12 makes an attempt from three, and added 4 rebounds.

Kvamme additionally continued to settle into his function because the crew’s main facilitator. The freshman recorded 8 assists, the best whole by any Leatherneck this season, and regarded more and more comfy orchestrating the offense.

Scouting Drake

Western Illinois now prepares for a troublesome highway check in opposition to a Drake program that has established itself as one of the constant and dominant groups within the Missouri Valley Conference. The Bulldogs are coming off a season wherein they reached the NCAA Tournament, extending a stretch of postseason success that has outlined this system in recent times.

This yr’s crew appears to be like a lot completely different following a significant offseason transition. Former head coach Ben McCollum left for Iowa and took reigning MVC Player of the Year Bennett Stirtz with him, forcing Drake to rebuild a lot of its roster and id. Even with the turnover, the Bulldogs have remained aggressive and enter the matchup at 5-3 as their new items proceed to settle in.

Drake is led by senior guard Jalen Quinn, who has taken command of the offense and averages 17.5 factors per sport. His scoring capacity and poise make him the focus of the Bulldogs’ assault. Despite the roster adjustments, Drake nonetheless performs with the self-discipline, spacing, and toughness which have grow to be hallmarks of this system, presenting Western Illinois with a difficult highway matchup in opposition to a historically sturdy opponent.

Key’s to the Matchup

• Win the perimeter battle by limiting Drake’s three-point appears to be like and establishing constant exterior capturing of their very own.

• Control the tempo and worth every possession by minimizing turnovers and stopping Drake from producing transition alternatives.

• Contain senior guard Jalen Quinn, who leads Drake with 17.5 factors per sport and drives their offensive manufacturing.

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