SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – Drury men's basketball will open its 119th season when the Panthers host the four-team 2026-27 Tipoff Challenge this weekend at O'Reilly Family Event Center.
Drury will square off against Harding to kick off the two-day classic Friday afternoon, before the Panthers take on Union Saturday. Both contests are slated for 3 p.m. tipoffs.
The complete Tipoff Challenge schedule is listed below:
Friday, Nov. 13
1 p.m. -- Southwest Baptist vs. Union
3 p.m. -- Drury vs. Harding
Saturday, Nov. 14
1 p.m. -- Harding vs. Southwest Baptist
3 p.m. -- Drury vs. Union
Additionally, Drury women's basketball will host the GLVC-MIAA Crossover concurrently at O'Reilly Family Event Center, Friday and Saturday.
Fans may follow the action through the GLVC Sports Network (subscription required), where games will be streamed live throughout the regular season. For the 2026-27 academic year, viewing access to GLVC regular season and postseason broadcasts will be available via monthly subscription ($32) or annual subscription ($145). Single-event access can also be purchased for $15. Drury students can receive 10 percent off any pass using their university email and code GLVC@EDU27.
Audio broadcasts for all Drury men's and women's basketball games in 2026-27 will be streamed online through the DU All-Access button via DruryPanthers.com. Fans may access the audio streams by visiting the 2026-27 schedule page for the Panthers and selecting the "Listen" link, or via the DU All Access button located on the home page.
SERIES HISTORIES
- Drury brings a 7-4 all-time record against Harding into Friday's game.
- The Panthers and Bisons last met on Dec. 8, 2007 at Weiser Gym, where DU claimed a 73-66 victory.
- Drury has won two straight in the series, with Harding's last win coming in Springfield on Dec. 12, 2003.
- Drury and Union have split their only two previous meetings, including a 91-69 Panthers win in their last matchup on Nov. 26, 2024 in Springfield.
- Union notched a 75-54 win on Nov. 28, 2015 at O'Reilly Family Event Center for its lone win in the series.
OPENING STORYLINES
- In season-opening contests since 2003, Drury has gone 21-2, including five-straight opening day wins under head coach Chris Foster.
- Drury enters the 2026-27 season riding a five-game home win streak, dating back to a Jan. 23 victory over Indianapolis; the streak represents its longest home win streak since December 2024.
- DU is coming off three consecutive winning season for the first time since 2019-21 after going 17-14 a year ago.
- The Panthers will open the new season with five straight home games (Nov. 13-25), including a pair of two-day classics in at The 'O in the month of November.
- DU went 4-2 in November last year, continuing a recent string of success in the season's first month, with the Panthers going a combined 13-5 in November since the start of the 2023-24 season.
- The Panthers have gone 17-6 against non-conference foes over the last three seasons, including 13 wins over non-GLVC foes during the same span.
ABOUT HARDING
- Harding is coming off a 24-8 season and a GAC title in 2025-26.
- Under the direction of fourth-year head coach Weston Jameson, the Bisons are off to a 2-2 start this season.
- Reggie Webster leads a trio of double-figure scorers for Harding with his 15.8 ppg. average; Marko Rangan (14.5 ppg.) and Bradley Land (10.8 ppg.) also help pace the Bisons offense.
ABOUT UNION
- Under the leadership of 18th-year head coach David Niven, the Bulldogs are 1-0 on the year after topping Blue Mountain Christian 84-75 on Monday.
- The Bulldogs are coming off an 11-17 season a year ago.
- Union enjoyed balanced scoring in its season opener, with four different Bulldogs posting double-figure point totals; Jamarcus Powell led Union with 23 points and eight rebounds in the opener, while JP Ricks added 15 points, seven boards and five assists.
ABOUT DRURY
- DU is coming off its third consecutive winning campaign, as the Panthers used a strong stretch run to post a 17-14 season mark a year ago.
- The Panthers won their last three regular-season contests to clinch a berth in the GLVC Tournament, where they ousted top seed Rockhurst (101-92) and Indianapolis (85-83) to earn a spot in the title game for the first time since 2021.
- Drury welcomes back five letterwinners, led by sophomore KeShaun Thomas who turned in a breakout rookie year in which he led all GLVC freshmen in scoring (14.8 ppg.) while pulling down a team-best 7.6 boards per game.
- Fellow sophomores Keion Epps and Kevin Sargeant also enjoyed a strong debut season for the Scarlet and Gray; Epps averaged a team-leading 4.2 assists per game to go along with his 6.6 ppg. average, while Sargeant put up a team-best 25 blocks while chipping in 4.3 points and 3.7 boards per outing.
- Additionally, junior Kanon Gipson is expected back this season after sitting out all of 2025-26 due to injury; the Rogersville, Mo. product averaged 4.2 points and 2.0 rebounds in 2024-25.
PANTHER ROOKIE RECAP
- Drury freshmen made significant contributions to the Panthers' 17-14 campaign last winter, in particular DU's top three returners in Thomas, Epps and Sargeant.
- Thomas put together one of the top all-around rookie seasons in Drury history, with seven 20+ point performances and nine double-doubles in 31 games.
- Thomas ranks fourth on Drury's all-time freshman scoring list with 459 points, just 45 shy of Lonnie Holmes' rookie record of 504 points.
- The Quincy, Ill., product also rates second on DU's rookie rebounding chart with 235 after totaling 20 boards in three games at the GLVC Tournament to lead all rebounders last March.
- Like Thomas, Epps rated among the GLVC's top rookie performers, leading all conference freshmen and ranking fourth overall in the league in assists per game (4.2).
- Epps' 117 total assists represented the most by a Panther since Conley Garrison's 149 in 2019-20, while his 2.09 assist-turnover ratio rated third in the GLVC.
- Finally, Sargeant was a force on the defensive end of the floor for Drury, recording 14 blocked shots and 16 steals over the Panthers' final 10 games of the season.
- For the season, Sargeant's 25 blocks led Drury and all GLVC freshmen while ranking ninth overall in the GLVC.
BLOCK PARTY
- Drury ranked second in the GLVC in team blocks per game (3.48) in 2025-26, thanks in large part to the defensive work of Sargeant.
- Sargeant swatted a DU season-high five shots in the Panthers' Feb. 5 win over Quincy as part of a 10-game stretch to close the season in which he recorded 14 of his 25 blocks on the year.
- Sargeant's five blocked shots not only marked a 2025-26 season best by a Panther, but also the most by a DU player since Victor Nwagbarachoa rejected six shots on Jan. 29, 2022.
- Sargeant's 1.1 blocks per game ranked ninth among all GLVC players in 2025-26.
- As a team, the Panthers recorded 108 blocks on the season for an average of nearly 3.5 per game, which represented an increase of 1.1 per game over their 2024-25 season average.
NO PLACE LIKE HO'ME
- Drury once again enjoyed the advantage of playing its home games in front of one of the most loyal fan bases in the country, as the Panthers led the GLVC in total home attendance in 2025-26.
- The Panthers have led the GLVC in total attendance every year since 2021-22, ranking as high as 11th nationally in total attendance (2021-22).
- Last year, DU welcomed 15,793 fans through the doors of O'Reilly, which was the 15th-best season total among all Division II men's programs.
LOOKING AHEAD
The Panthers will continue their five-game home stand to open the season Tuesday (Nov. 17) with a 6 p.m. non-conference contest against Central Bible at The O'.
For all the latest information on Drury men's basketball, visit DruryPanthers.com. For up-to-the-minute updates, follow the Panthers on X and Instagram.
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