DES MOINES, Iowa — Career-best performances by Okay Djamgouz and Tucker DeVries helped propel the Drake University men’s basketball team to an 80-54 victory over UT Martin at the Knapp Center on Sunday afternoon (Dec. 19).
They were among five Drake players who scored in double figures in the hastily arranged game as the Bulldogs improved to 8-4 on the season with their 30th straight home victory in nonconference play.
The Chicago State at Drake men’s basketball game originally scheduled for Sunday, Dec. 19 was postponed due to health and safety protocols within the Chicago State men’s basketball program. Drake replaced Chicago State on the schedule with UT-Martin. The Skyhawks were originally supposed to play at Evansville on Saturday (Dec. 18), but that matchup was canceled.
“We were very fortunate to come up with a game on short notice,” head coach Darian DeVries said. “It was a great opportunity to continue to work and improve. There were some good things during stretches today that can really help us.”
The Bulldogs got off to a slow start in both halves, but got rolling once they righted themselves and broke the game open with three big runs.
Drake missed its first five shots and committed a couple of turnovers as UT Martin (4-8) jumped to a 10-2 lead. The Bulldogs then held the Skyhawks to one basket over the next 7 1/2 minutes and went on a 24-3 run in which seven different players scored.
Hemphill started the burst by converting a three-point play off a high-arching shot from the baseline and finished it with two dunks — the first on a lob for Akinwole and the second on a nice feed from DeVries, putting the Bulldogs in front 26-13.
Drake led 43-25 at halftime, then stalled at the start of the second half and UT Martin sliced the lead down to 43-32. It got no closer.
DeVries fed Brodie for a layup and the Bulldogs took off again, scoring 15 of the next 17 points to open a 58-34 lead. Sturtz finished that run with a two-handed dunk, the ball bouncing up before dropping through the basket. A 10-0 run that featured five points each from DeVries and Djamgouz gave the Bulldogs their biggest lead, 76-46.
Djamgouz, a sophomore from Toronto, Canada, came off the bench to score a career-high 15 points with his parents watching from the stands. He knocked down 5-of-7 shots, including 3-of-5 from 3-point range and made both his free throws. DeVries, a freshman, also scored 15, handed out a career-high seven assists and pulled down six rebounds.
Darnell Brodie added 12 points, his third straight game in double figures, while ShanQuan Hemphill and Ayo Akinwole each scored 10. Garrett Sturtz contributed seven points to go with a team-best nine rebounds, three assists and two steals. It’s fifth game the 6-foot-3 senior has led the team in rebounding.
“Ayo and Okay gave us a great spark off of the bench,” DeVries said. “I liked the way the ball moved today. Defensively, we are getting more connected and covering for one another.”
Drake finished with a season-high 19 assists, made 12 steals and held UT Martin, which did not return a single player from last season, to 35 percent shooting. KJ Simon led the Skyhawks with 13 points.
