Anna Miller had a game-high 17 points on Sunday afternoon, leading Drake University to a 72-56 women’s basketball win over Maine in the final game of the Vibrant Thanksgiving Classic at the Knapp Center on the campus of Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa.
Maine (4-3) never led, as Drake scored the first five points of the first quarter and 10 of the first 13. The Bulldogs led 24-12 after the opening 10 minutes. The Black Bears got within six on a pair of free throws by Adrianna Smith in the second, but the hosts ended the period on a 9-2 run to take a 13 point lead to halftime at 39-26. Drake used another spurt of 12-2 in the third quarter to extend the advantage to 21, and Maine never got closer than 14 after that.
Smith led Maine in the loss with a double double finishing with 16 points and 11 rebounds. Anne Simon added 14 points and eight rebounds, while Paula Gallego came off the bench to chip in 12 points. Miller added four rebounds to her point total in the victory for Drake (5-2) out of the Missouri Valley Conference. Grace Berg also contributed 15 points, eight rebounds and five assists, and Katie Dinnebier had 14 points and five rebounds. The Bulldogs shot 55% from the floor, while the Black Bears went 35%. Maine returns to action on Thursday night at the Cross Insurance Arena in Portland when they host MacKenzie Holmes and nationally ranked #21 Indiana at 7 p.m.
Recap by Chris Lessner
