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DES MOINES, Iowa – After trailing home-standing Drake by 13 points with 11 minutes to go and by nine with two-and-a-half minutes remaining, Missouri State made a furious late comeback here Sunday, only to fall short, 71-69, in a Missouri Valley Conference shootout.
 
Gaige Prim had a career day for the Bears (10-11, 4-4 MVC), going for season highs with 23 points and 12 rebounds, while Keandre Cook posted 12 points and 13 boards. It marked the first time two MSU players had a double-double in the same game since Jan. 7, 2018 (Alize Johnson and J.T. Miller).
 
Drake (15-6, 5-3 MVC) led 37-25 at the half and pushed its advantage to 59-46 on a 3-pointer by D.J. Wilkins with 11:40 remaining. Missouri State's defense then rose to the occasion, holding the Bulldogs without a field goal for more than seven minutes while they chipped away with a trey from Cook, a jumper by Lamont West and a bucket by Ja'Monta Black. When Prim knocked down a pair of free throws at the five-minute mark, the Bears had made a game of it, 61-55.
 
Roman Penn, who led DU with 17 points, 8 rebounds and 8 assists, soon knocked down a triple to push the Bulldogs' lead to nine on Drake's next possession. But just when it looked like things were out of reach, Missouri State knocked down back-to-back 3-pointers from Isiaih Mosley and Black to make it a 66-63 contest with 1:23 remaining.
 
Cook corralled a huge rebound for Missouri State on Drake's next possession, and Prim then made it a one-point contest with another pair of free throws with 45 seconds left, making it 66-65.
 
Penn soon made the shot of the game moments later, draining a three from the top of the key with 22 ticks to play and giving the home side a four-point cushion.
 
Still, the Bears were game for a fight down the stretch with a pair of layups by Cook sandwiching a 1-of-2 free throw possession by Penn to make it 70-69 with seven seconds to go.
 
Missouri State quickly fouled Anthony Murphy at the 4.3-second mark, and he also made 1-of-2 from the line, giving the Bears the ball with a chance to win the game in the final moments. Cook grabbed the rebound from the missed free throw, drove down the floor, and pulled up from 30 feet to let a potential game-winner fly. But his shot ricocheted off the glass, off the rim and out as time expired.
 
The Bears out-rebounded Drake, 27-8, in the second half and outscored the Bulldogs by 10 in the second period to nearly erase a double-figure deficit on the road.
 
The Bears finished 27-of-70 (.386) from the field with a season-high in attempts. Coach Dana Ford's squad was also 7-of-25 (.280) from 3-point range and 8-of-10 (.800) at the foul line with 48 rebounds and 12 turnovers.
 
Mosley also had 16 points for Missouri State with Ford Cooper Jr. dishing out a season-high 5 assists.
 
Drake was 25-of-67 (.373) overall from the field, 9-of-25 (.360) from bonus distance and 12-of-17 (.706) at the stripe with 39 rebounds and 8 turnovers.
 
In the first half, Missouri State used a 10-2 run led by Prim and Mosley to erase an early six-point deficit and lead 16-14 at the 12-minute mark. However, the Bulldogs held MSU to just nine points the rest of the half to take a 37-25 lead at the intermission. 
 
The Bears got 7 rebounds from Cook in the first 20 minutes but were out-rebounded 27-21 in the opening period.
 
The Bears will conclude their two-game Valley road swing through Iowa on Wednesday (6 p.m.) at UNI before returning to JQH Arena on Saturday, Feb. 1 against Indiana State.
 
Tickets for the Indiana State game, and all home contests, are available at MissouriStateBears.com, or by visiting the Old Missouri Bank Box Office at JQH Arena, (417) 836-7678, during regular box office hours.