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Northern Iowa hangs around, but Drake puts things away with emphatic fourth quarter

CEDAR FALLS, Ia. — Drake hasn’t faced much Valley resistance during this run of two-plus years without a conference loss. But Northern Iowa has consistently been the program that can hang with the Bulldogs the longest.

Friday was no different.

Down by as much as 16 in the opening half, the Panthers came storming back with a strong third quarter to make it a game. Drake, though, clamped down the way veteran squads do, emerging with an 88-64 win at the McLeod Center.

Sara Rhine led the Bulldogs (13-4, 5-0 Missouri Valley Conference) with 26 points and got double-digit help from Becca Hittner (19) and Maddy Dean (13).