Drury Panthers (12-11, 7-8 GLVC) at William Jewell Cardinals (14-8, 10-4 GLVC)
Opponent	William Jewell
Date | Tip	Thursday, Feb. 12 | 7:30 p.m.
Location  | Site	Liberty, Mo. | Mabee Center (2,400)
Game Links	Drury Game Notes | Listen | Watch | Live Stats
Follow	X: @DruryMBB | IG: @DruryMBB

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – Drury men's basketball hits the road this weekend looking to extend its recent hot streak, beginning with a Thursday (Feb. 12) evening contest against William Jewell in a 7:30 p.m. tip-off at Mabee Center in Liberty, Mo.

Drury (12-11, 7-8 GLVC) brings a two-game win streak into the matchup following home wins over Quincy (Feb. 5) and Truman State (Feb. 7), as well as victories in four of its last five games overall. William Jewell (14-8, 10-4 GLVC) has been red-hot as well since the Panthers and Cardinals met in early January; Jewell won eight straight contests prior to a loss to rival Rockhurst last Thursday, but bounced back with a 77-66 road win over SBU on Saturday.

DU enters the game one game behind UMSL for eighth place in the GLVC standings, while Jewell sits in fifth with its 10-4 GLVC mark.

Fans may follow the action through the GLVC Sports Network (subscription required), where games will be streamed live throughout the regular season. New for the 2025-26 academic year, viewing access to live broadcasts from GLVC regular season and postseason contests will be available via monthly subscription ($30) or annual subscription ($140). Single-event access can also be purchased for $15. 

Audio broadcasts for all Drury men's basketball games in 2025-26 will be streamed online through the DU All-Access button via DruryPanthers.com. Fans may access the audio streams by visiting the 2025-26 schedule page for the Panthers and selecting the "Listen" link, or via the DU All Access button located on the home page.

SERIES HISTORY

• The Panthers bring a 41-40 series edge over the Cardinals into Thursday's contest.
• William Jewell has claimed the last four matchups in the series, including a 73-69 win over the Panthers in Springfield on Jan. 4.
• Jewell swept DU last season, notching a 78-72 home victory in the most recent meeting of the two programs in Liberty on Jan. 3, 2025; the Cardinals have won four straight at home vs. Drury dating back to the 2020-21 season.
• Drury is 2-5 against Jewell under head coach Chris Foster, who has gone 11-5 overall against the Cardinals during his 12-year career.

ABOUT WILLIAM JEWELL

• The Cardinals enter Thursday's game with wins in nine of their last 10 GLVC contests, dating back to their win over the Panthers in Springfield on Jan. 4.
• Seventh-year head coach Chris McCabe's lineup features four players averaging double figures, paced by Justice Sutton's 18.7 ppg. average.
• Bradley Lightbourne brings a 14.4 ppg average into Thursday's game and leads the Cardinals with his 3.7 assists per outing.
• As a team, the Cardinals are shooting .451 from the field and .364 from beyond the arc.
• William Jewell ranks fourth overall in the GLVC in steals per game (8.5), led by Lightbourne's 1.9 spg. average.

ABOUT DRURY

• Under fifth-year head coach Chris Foster, Drury is coming off back-to-back winning seasons for the first time since 2019-21 after going 14-13 a year ago and 15-13 in 2023-24. 
• As a team, the Panthers are scoring at an 82.5 ppg clip, while allowing an average of 78.5 points per outing.
• Drury is paced by an offense that features three double-figure scorers, led by junior guard Zach Howell (18.2 ppg) and sophomore guard Colin Hardrick (15.4). 
• Howell is DU's leading returning scorer, while Hardrick earned GLVC All-Freshman and All-Defensive team honors last winter after averaging 10.2 points, 6.7 boards and 2.0 steals per outing.
• Junior guard Luke Stubbs has returned from an injury that sidelined him for the majority of the 2024-25 season, making 20 starts and averaging 9.1 points per outing to date.
• Several talented newcomers have contributed significantly in their first 12 weeks as Panthers: freshman KeShaun Thomas (15.3 ppg) has been a dominant force in the paint, scoring in double-figures in 19 of the Panthers' 23 games, including four double-doubles; fellow rookie Keion Epps is averaging 5.7 points, in addition to his 5.0 assist-per-game average, which ranks second in the GLVC; redshirt freshman Isaiah Otyaluk has provided a lift in his first season at Drury as well, including four 20-point performances.
  

LAST TIME OUT

• A quick offensive start and a strong finish behind 29 combined second-half points from Colin Hardrick and Zach Howell propelled the Panthers to an 80-70 decision over Truman State last Saturday afternoon at O'Reilly Family Event Center.
• Drury scored the game's first nine points and held the Bulldogs without a field goal for the first five-and-a-half minutes of the afternoon to build an early double-digit lead. 
• The Panthers, who shot .577 from the floor in the first half, never trailed and led by as many as 13 points in the early stages.
• Held to just two points in the opening half, Hardrick responded with a 17-point second stanza, while Howell scored 12 of his 18 points after intermission to help Drury extend its lead to as many as 18 points.
• Four Panthers scored in double figures, with Hardrick and KeShaun Thomas sharing high-scoring honors with 19 apiece.

A FINE HOW-ELL DO YOU DO

• Junior guard/forward  Zach Howell's three 30+ point efforts this season are the most by a Panther in a season since Alex Hall's eight in 2012-13. 
• Howell's GLVC-best .473 three-point percentage ranks as the best single-season mark by a Panther since Jason Montgomery's .477 in 2020-21.
• Howell's 79 three-pointers this season puts him on pace for 96 makes from beyond the arc during the regular season, which would rank fifth on DU's single-season list; it would also mark the most by a Panther since Conley Garrison's 105 makes in 2018-19.
• His 79 three-pointers rank 10th on DU's single-season chart, just one behind Kameron Bundy (80) at No. 9 and three shy of Dennon Mitchell in the No. 8 position.
• Howell ranks third in the GLVC in total scoring (418) and fifth in free-throw percentage (.862). 

PANTHERS IN THE RANKINGS

• The Panthers rank among the GLVC's top clubs in a number of categories entering the weekend, including the No. 2 blocked shot (3.7), steal (8.7) and assist (15.7) per game averages in the conference.
• Drury also rated among the conference's best teams in scoring (82.5) and turnovers forced (14.1) per game, ranking third in those categories.
• The Panthers lead the GLVC and rank 10th nationally in total home attendance of 13,212 fans over their first 14 home contests this season at O'Reilly Family Event Center.
• Individually, Keion Epps' 5.0 assists per game ranks second in the GLVC and 33rd nationally, while his 1.5 steals per game ranks 10th in the league.
• Zach Howell leads the GLVC and fourth nationally in three-point field goal percentage (.473); he also ranks third nationally in three-point field goals made (79), while his free-throw percentage (.862) ranks fifth in the GLVC and his 1.5 steals per contest rank ninth in the conference.
• KeShaun Thomas is 13th in the GLVC in free throw percentage (.785) and fourth in free throws made (106).
• Colin Hardrick ranks seventh in the GLVC in total steals (35) and 10th in total rebounds (152).

BLOCK PARTY

• Drury freshman Kevin Sargeant has turned in a defensive performance to remember over the Panthers' last two games; in Thursday's win over Quincy, he swatted a Panther season-high five shots against the Hawks.
• 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 also recorded a pair of blocks in Saturday's victory over Truman.
• Sargeant's 18 blocks are the eighth-most among all GLVC players, while his average of 1.1 per game is tied for fourth in the conference.
• As a team, the Panthers have recorded 86 blocks on the season for an average of 3.7 per game, which ranks second in the GLVC and represents an increase of 1.3 per game from last year's average.

LOOKING AHEAD
Drury makes the short trek from Liberty to Rockhurst for a 2 p.m., Saturday (Feb. 14) matchup with the Hawks at Mason-Halpin Field House.

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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