DES MOINES, Iowa -- — Roman Penn's 22 points helped Drake defeat Belmont 70-56 on Sunday night.

Penn also had six rebounds for the Bulldogs (23-6, 14-4 Missouri Valley Conference). Tucker DeVries was 4-of-12 shooting, including 1 for 5 from distance, and went 4 for 5 from the line to add 13 points. Garrett Sturtz was 3-of-5 shooting and 3 of 3 from the free throw line to finish with nine points. It was the ninth straight win for the Bulldogs.

Ben Sheppard led the way for the Bruins (19-10, 12-6) with 19 points and seven rebounds. Keishawn Davidson added 11 points for Belmont. EJ Bellinger also had eight points.

Drake took the lead with 13:45 left in the first half and never looked back. The score was 42-23 at halftime, with Penn racking up 14 points. Drake was outscored by Belmont in the second half by a five-point margin, but still wound up on top, while Penn led the way with a team-high eight second-half points.

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Both teams play on Wednesday. Drake hosts Illinois State while Belmont hosts Indiana State.

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.