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Des Moines, IA (SportsNetwork. Wholesale Authentic Jerseys .com) - The weakest team in the Missouri Valley Conference plays host to one of the strongest, as the Drake Bulldogs welcome 16th-ranked Wichita State to town on New Years Eve. Among the programs in the MVC, Drake has the fewest victories with just three, with one of those coming against an opponent outside of the Division I ranks in Simpson College (84-62) the last time out. The victory was the second in the last three outings for a Bulldogs squad that is playing the last of four straight games in the city of Des Moines and is set to take on league foes Missouri State and Illinois State on the road over the next week. Wichita State, which went undefeated all of last season before bowing to Kentucky in the NCAA Tournament, was considered one of the top squads outside of the power conferences heading into the 2014-15 campaign, but already the team has suffered a couple of defeats. The loss at nationally-ranked Utah by a single point in overtime (69-68) is certainly understandable, but then the Shockers had a six-game win streak snapped by George Washington, 60-54, in the title game of the Diamond Head Classic last week. As far as the all-time series is concerned, the Shockers have won five straight over Drake and now own a 97-47 advantage as they enter the 145th meeting. Wichita State is set to host the Bulldogs a little more than three weeks from now. A long, long way from home, the Shockers were taken out by the George Washington Colonials on Christmas by six points in a hotly-contested meeting at the Stan Sheriff Center in Honolulu. Wichita State didnt have a single player make more than just four field goals and only Fred VanVleet scored in double figures for the squad as he tallied 11 on 4-of-15 from the floor. The team as a whole was just 34.4 percent accurate from the field and visited the free-throw line just twice as Zach Brown converted one of his two chances. The effort by the Shockers from the floor versus George Washington was the weakest of the season and marked the second straight outing in which the program was held below 40 percent accuracy. Conversely, the Colonials made good on 51.1 percent from the floor which was the best effort by any WSU opponent through 12 games. VanVleet is one of three players scoring in double figures with his 11.7 ppg, supplemented by his team-best 64 assists and 26 steals, not to mention 4,3 rpg which is also one of the top efforts for the program. Ahead of him in the scoring department are Ron Baker and Darius Carter with 16.6 and 11.9 ppg, respectively, the former shooting 32-of-80 out on the perimeter and the latter pulling down a team-best 6.3 rpg. Knotted at 17-17 with 11 minutes to play in the first half, the Bulldogs rolled out a 29-9 scoring burst in order to take control against Simpson and eventually cruise to the home victory. Drake made good on an impressive 63.8 percent from the field, while limiting the visitors to only 39.6 percent accuracy and also topped Simpson on the glass, 32-18. Jordan Daniels led the attack with 24 points, Reed Timmer produced 19, Jacob Enevold 14 points and Gary Ricks 10 to go along with six rebounds and five assists. The Bulldogs are a team that is scoring only 63.0 ppg, while giving up 70.9 ppg, so it is clear why wins are still hard to come by. Ricks, who has been in the lineup for nine of 12 games, is listed as the top scoring threat with his 11.2 ppg, although Timmer is right there with him at 11.2 ppg, although the former is far more accomplished behind the 3-point line (.405) and is pulling down close to four rebounds per contest as well. Enevold, who has five times as many turnovers (30) as assists (six), is responsible for a team-best 6.0 rpg. Cheap Jerseys 2020 .C. - Goodyear has warned teams that increased speeds at Charlotte Motor Speedway will put a heavy emphasis on the right front tires in Saturday nights race a€” a potentially key development for drivers trying to advance in the Chase for the Sprint Cup Championship. Wholesale Jerseys China . In the days leading up to the draft, TSN.ca and TSN Radio basketball analyst Duane Watson looks at some of the names that will be headlining the event. Tonight, Michigans Nik Stauskas of Mississauga, Ontario. BARCELONA, Spain -- With Cristiano Ronaldo missing his scoring touch, Real Madrid needed defender Pepe to score in the second half to secure a 1-0 victory at Espanyol on Sunday to pull within three points of the Spanish league co-leaders. Pepe was left unmarked to head in Luka Modrics corner kick in the 55th minute, as Cristiano Ronaldo failed to add to his league-leading 20 goals. Ronaldo is favoured to win the FIFAs Ballon dOr on Monday over Lionel Messi and Franck Ribery. The Portugal forward uncharacteristically wasted two clear scoring chances, while goalkeeper Kiko Casilla denied him on another three occasions. "The win is important because winning on the road is key to winning the league," said Pepe, who defended Ronaldo despite his off day. "I would vote for Cristiano because what he did last year is very important and he deserves it." Third-place Madrid took full advantage of Saturdays scoreless draw between Barcelona and Atletico Madrid, which left them level at the top of the table at the leagues halfway mark. "The important thing today was to cut into Barcelona and Atleticos lead," said Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti. "We have to feel satisfied." Also on Sunday, Real Betis remained in last place after slumping to an error-plagued 2-1 loss at home to Osasuna. Rayo Vallecano won 1-0 at Getafes foggy Alfonso Perez Coliseum to end a five-game streak without a win in league play, and Levante edged Malaga 1-0 at home thanks to David Barrals 19th-minute header. Led by striker Jhon Cordoba, Espanyol surged forward at the start and almost took the lead when Christian Stuani steered his point-blank header past the wrong side of the post four minutes in. Madrid weathered Espanyols initial push and turned to Karim Benzema and Ronaldo to provide the attacking threat. Ronaldo scuffed Benzemas pass in the 18th before drawing two awkward saves from Casilla with a powerful strike in the 31st and a dipping free kick in the 37th. Espanyol, which was without suspended forward Sergio Garcia and coach Javier Aguirre, was fortunate to make it to halftime not trailing after Angel Di Maria squandered Madrids four-on-two counterattack seconds before Benzema headed wide in the 42nd. Cheap Jerseys Free Shipping. But Pepe made good on Madrids dominance by thumping Modrics pass under Casilla, who got a hand on the ball but not enough to keep it out of his net. Ronaldo had two more great looks to increase his impressive tally this season, but Casilla bettered him one-on-one in the 82nd before saving Benzemas shot in the 89th and watching Ronaldo fire the rebound wide with the goalmouth beckoning. Nothing went Betis way against Osasuna, a direct relegation rival, in a game both sides finished with 10 men. Betis conceded Roberto Torres header within two minutes, had Jose "Nono" Delgado dismissed with his second yellow card in the 38th, and saw Jordi Figueras score an own goal in the 57th. And when Osasuna goalkeeper Andres Fernandez gave them a sliver of hope in the 62nd when he was red carded for fouling Ruben Castro in the area, Castro deflated the crowd at Benito Villamarin Stadium by sending his penalty kick off the crossbar. Jorge Molina pulled one back in the 80th but Osasuna had two opportunities to widen the margin before the final whistle. The demoralizing loss left Betis winless in its last 12 league matches and seven points from safety. "We took a step backward today," said Betis coach Juan Carlos Garrido. "I wont deny it. It was important to win today, and besides, clearly our first half of the season was very poor. There has to be a radical turnaround in every facet for us to remain in the first division." Osasuna stayed unbeaten in four rounds and edged five points clear of the drop. Rayos win at Getafe still left it in the relegation zone. Forward Alberto Bueno scored what proved to be the winner in the 29th after Alejandro Galvez was quick to cross a rebounded shot. Levante climbed past Malaga into the middle of the standings. ' ' '