Namon Wright scored 25 points, McKinley Wright IV had 17 points and six assists, and the Colorado Buffaloes used a quick start to the second half to beat the Drake Bulldogs, 100-71, in Boulder, Colo., on Tuesday night.
Tyler Bey had 14 rebounds for Colorado (1-0), which moved to 7-2 in season openers under coach Tad Boyle.
Nick Norton had 18 points and D.J. Wilkins scored 16 for the Bulldogs (1-1). Drake has lost the last three in the series with Colorado, which now is tied at 3-3.
It was a tight game for most of the first half, with both teams grabbing a lead only to have the other make a run. Colorado's biggest early lead was 30-24 after Drake's Wilkins was called for a technical foul.
That appeared to spark the Bulldogs. Nick McGlynn hit two free throws and Brady Ellingson and Norton hit 3-pointers to put Drake ahead 32-30 with 3:59 left before intermission.
The Buffaloes responded with a big run to close the second half. Namon Wright hit a 3-pointer and then made a dunk and McKinley Wright hit two free throws to put Colorado ahead for good. After Ellingson was given a technical, Namon Wright hit two more free throws to give the Buffaloes a 39-32 lead.
Alexander Strating's dunk and McKinley Wright's layup gave Colorado a 45-34 lead at halftime.
The Buffaloes ended any hope of a Drake rally with a strong start to the second half. Bey and Namon Wright made layups, and Wright drained another 3-pointer to give Colorado a 52-34 lead just 1:33 into the second half.
The Bulldogs didn't hit their first field goal after halftime until Noah Thomas' layup with 15:26 left. By then, the Buffaloes had built a 22-point lead.
The gap remained around 20 points for the next six minutes before Colorado put it away. Leading 74-55, McKinley Wright assisted on Lucas Siewert's 3-pointer and then hit a layup to spark a 12-4 run.
The Buffaloes broke the 100-point barrier on Evan Battey's 3-pointer with 1:11 left.
--Field Level Media
Drake | Colorado | |
Nick Norton 18 | Scoring | Namon Wright 25 |
Nick Norton 4 | Assists | McKinley Wright IV 6 |
Nick McGlynn 7 | Rebounds | Tyler Bey 14 |
Nick McGlynn 7 | Free Throws Made | Shane Gatling 5 |
Nick Norton 2 | Steals | McKinley Wright IV 2 |
Nick McGlynn 1 | Blocks | Evan Battey 1 |