Brady Ellingson scored 13 points with three 3-pointers and six rebounds and Drake held off UMKC 66-63 on Wednesday night for the Kangaroos' sixth straight loss.
D.J. Wilkins, Nick McGlynn and Garrett Sturtz scored nine points apiece for the Bulldogs (3-1), who shot 36 percent but made 9 of 27 3-pointers.
UMKC scored eight straight to open the second half for a 37-30 lead and led by as many as 10, but the Bulldogs rallied on a 14-3 run capped by Tremell Murphy's free throw for a 52-49 lead. Drake led by as many as five until UMKC closed to 66-63 on Xavier Bishop's free throw with 36 seconds left, but Brandon Mckissic's 3 at the buzzer fell short.
Murphy's free throw put Drake up 30-29 at halftime after a back-and-forth first half in which neither team shot better than 36 percent. Nineteen fouls were whistled in the first 13 minutes and the Kangaroos made 1 of 12 3-pointers.
Bishop scored 27 points and Jordan Giles added 11 for UMKC (0-6), who outscored the Bulldogs 30-16 in the paint.
