New Drake assistant Johnson revels in recruiting
Stan Johnson couldn’t have imagined when he sat on the sideline at the Knapp Center four years ago that one day he’d be working in that building. Johnson was an assistant at Cal State-Northridge when...
View ArticleSorting out the big-man situation as Drake takes flight
As the Drake men’s basketball team spends today flying from Des Moines to New Zealand, here are a few odds and ends I gleaned from attending a practice session last week: – Cory Parker was one...
View ArticleEven exhibition losses rankle Drake’s Rice
There’s no excuse for losing in Rayvonte Rice’s world. It doesn’t matter if your team is depleted by injury, playing foreign professional teams on their home courts, and not exactly in midseason shape....
View ArticlePhelps thinks rugged play overseas will pay off for Drake this winter
Mark Phelps is convinced that his Drake basketball team will benefit from the bumps and bruises it absorbed during four exhibition games in New Zealand and Australia this month. Yes, the Bulldogs...
View ArticleDrake’s point-guard race one to watch
At some point in time, a decision will be made. The starting point guard at Drake will be… “Point guard by committee,” Drake coach Mark Phelps said at the school’s annual media day Monday at the Knapp...
View ArticleAlexander, Rice ready to face final punishment for arrests
Kurt Alexander and Rayvonte Rice faced the media Monday for the first time since their Aug. 29 arrests on shoplifting charges. Both were contrite and expressed their willingness to accept whatever...
View ArticleDrake’s Phelps says defensive rebounds are paramount
At the risk of beating the issue of Drake’s rebounding woes into the ground, let’s address a common complaint I hear from Bulldog fans — namely, that the team is too eager to get back on defense after...
View ArticleInjuries nag at Drake, with David Smith latest victim
If you have some college eligibility remaining and have always wanted to play point guard for Drake, the first two Saturdays in November might be your chance. The Bulldogs have had a series of injuries...
View ArticleMadison quickly proves his worth in Drake debut
Karl Madison had to wait a year to make his Drake debut because of some sprained ankles. On Saturday, he broke some ankles of his own. The redshirt freshman point guard scored 13 points in a...
View ArticleClarke leads tough-minded defensive effort for Drake
Drake shot 50 percent from the floor and got key buckets from seven different players in Tuesday’s 74-65 victory over Iowa State. But let’s not overlook the role defense and, yes, rebounding played in...
View ArticleRice and Simons are two valuable building blocks for Drake
So, can we just pencil in Rayvonte Rice and Ben Simons for 34 points a night between them? It sure seems that way, which is a nice luxury for Drake coach Mark Phelps this season. Has he ever had this...
View ArticleEven when shot is off, Rice is worth price of admission for Drake
Rayvonte Rice made just 1-of-7 shots in the first half and finished with his lowest point total of the season tonight (9) in Drake’s victory over Eastern Michigan. Disappointing effort? Hardly. He...
View ArticleDrake needs some road reconstruction
Drake has 10 road games left this season, and that doesn’t bode well if they don’t start giving better efforts in their opponents’ arenas. For the second time this season, the Bulldogs traveled into...
View ArticleMom speaks, Woods responds for Bulldogs (with poll)
Drake center Kraidon Woods says he’s his own worst critic and admitted that his first 10 games this season were not good. His coach, Mark Phelps, said the 6-foot-9 senior “was in a little bit of a lull...
View ArticleDrake’s starters are more than a match for Indiana State
Drake was outscored 38-0 off the bench tonight by a Missouri Valley Conference title contender, and still won by 15 points. Seriously, how amazing is that? I’m not sure when the Bulldog reserves were...
View ArticleSimons offers perspective, Alexander brings energy
There weren’t many bright spots for Drake tonight in its 76-59 bludgeoning at Creighton. The team buried itself early against a very talented opponent, and never made a strong push to get back into the...
View ArticleRice carried Drake, but only so far
Rayvonte Rice is strong, but he can’t carry an entire team. And he’s going to get a lot of attention from opposing defenses from here on out. That’s the primary lesson gleaned from Drake’s 83-68 loss...
View ArticlePanthers knock Rice, Simons off stride to earn win
Northern Iowa got points from 10 different players tonight for the first time this season. But it’s hard to argue that it was defense, as usual, that earned the Panthers a 66-52 victory over Drake. The...
View ArticleBulldogs battle, but Bluejays have been tested, and it shows
What best summarizes Drake’s hard-fought loss to Creighton tonight? Was it the 10-0 run the No. 15 Bluejays reeled off immediately after the Bulldogs took their lone lead of the game (for 10 grand...
View ArticleThe Valley is a jumble, and Drake fits right in
It’s probably no solace to Drake or its fans, but the Bulldogs are hardly alone in the Missouri Valley Conference’s “one-step-forward, one-step-back” club. Drake couldn’t generate any offense tonight...
View ArticleNo Simons means no rest for the embattled Bulldogs
There’s no question that Drake misses Ben Simons. That was apparent in losses to Missouri State on Saturday and at Illinois State tonight. Aaron Hawley has done a fine job of stretching opposing...
View ArticleAlexander shows his parents what he’s meant to Drake
Leroy and Pamela Alexander had never seen their son play a basketball game at Drake until tonight. It was almost Kurt Alexander’s downfall. The senior got the start at point guard in his final home...
View ArticleWichita State has a party while Drake is left to curse parity
It was a surreal scene in the tunnel beneath Koch Arena today. On the court, the Wichita State Shockers and their fans were cutting down the nets and whooping it up while all the usual songs played...
View ArticleIf Drake plays fast and loose, could an upset be looming?
Karl Madison’s lower back isn’t the only thing Drake wants to loosen up today. The Bulldogs have reached the quarterfinal round of the Missouri Valley Conference tournament in St. Louis and will run...
View ArticleClarke was man of steel in Drake’s Iron Five
Could Drake have played any better Friday against Creighton? Certainly, the Bulldogs got all they could have asked for out of the five starters, who played 181 of the 200 minutes and scored 59 of the...
View ArticleVanDeest prepared to shoulder heavier load for Drake
Seth VanDeest isn’t, strictly speaking, one of the nine newcomers on the Drake basketball team this season. But the 6-foot-11 center certainly looks like a new man. VanDeest started his first two...
View ArticlePhysical Ugbede gives Drake fans a glimpse of what may be coming
They called it the “DUPreview,” with the DU in question standing for Drake University, of course. But the initials also could have indicated Daddy Ugbede, perhaps the most heralded freshman in an...
View ArticleVanDeest, Carter bring muscle and speed to eye-opening Drake victory
Drake was, eventually, very impressive tonight in dispatching Southwest Baptist 101-80 at the Knapp Center. Yes, it was just an exhibition win against a Division II opponent that wore down in the...
View ArticleDrake needs freshmen to help Carter shoulder load at point guard
Drake started its all-juco back court in today’s season opener, with mixed results. Point guard Richard Carter was electrifying in his Bulldog debut, scoring 19 points with four assists and four...
View ArticleDrake’s night was long on talk, short on action
The lights in the Knapp Center had long since dimmed when Drake basketball coach Mark Phelps finally exited the locker room to discuss a dispiriting 88-73 loss to St. Mary’s on Wednesday night. Phelps...
View ArticleCarter and Mason are picking up the finer points of their position for Drake
Richard Carter’s game is about getting up and down the court, using his speed to create advantages for the Drake basketball team. He certainly had an up-and-down experience tonight in the Bulldogs’...
View ArticleVanDeest puts together a strong half, but it’s a weak whole for Drake
Lost in the Drake loss today was the best half of play from center Seth VanDeest this season. The junior, coming back from a season lost to two shoulder surgeries, had 16 of his 18 points in the...
View ArticleDrake wins, but still needs a tougher interior
The message from everyone associated with the Drake basketball team tonight was that the North Carolina Central squad they managed to defeat 72-69 is really good. True, the Eagles did dominate Johnson...
View ArticleMason, Carter give Drake two solid options at the 1
Drake won two games this week, and in each its point guard was its best player. And it wasn’t even the same player each game. No, the competition wasn’t the most stellar, but still it’s a good sign for...
View ArticleBradley loss was ugly on many levels for Drake
Ben Simons’ shooting line is the first statistic that jumps out at you when reviewing tonight’s Drake loss. The senior won’t go for 4-of-18 from the field, nor 1-of-8 from 3-point range, very often. At...
View ArticleTurnovers, missed shots, lack of passion: Loss looks familiar for Drake
Drake is a team not operating on the same page right now. Or maybe even in the same playbook. How out of sync were the Bulldogs in tonight’s 75-63 loss to Wichita State? They had seven turnovers before...
View ArticleBulldogs remain confident they can turn fortunes around
The fortune cookie I got after lunch today said: “Don’t give into cynicism.” My first three thoughts were: “That’s not really a fortune, it’s advice your grandmother would give you.” “It should be ‘in...
View ArticleDrake falls hard, but Clarke vows team will pick itself back up
Jordan Clarke seems to always be in pain. Injuries — and the ability to fight through them — have defined his Drake basketball career. But I don’t think I’ve ever seen the senior forward in as much...
View ArticleDrake sticks together, and gets results
Any win is big, of course, especially the way Drake had struggled during four losses to open Missouri Valley Conference play. But I thought tonight’s 83-69 victory over Evansville was especially...
View ArticleDrake keeps falling far behind, and catching up is not a strong suit
Another head-scratching effort from the Drake basketball team today doesn’t leave much to analyze. Northern Iowa seized control midway through the first half and the Bulldogs never responded on either...
View ArticleCarter, Jeffers, Ugbede key a resounding Drake victory
The NHL is back. And Daddy Ugbede may have become a Drake folk hero tonight. Coincidence? I don’t think so. Ugbede was the second player off the Bulldog bench in tonight’s 74-69 upset of Creighton, a...
View ArticleSo much terrific play, and then Drake meekly hands victory away
What a surreal scene inside the Knapp Center tonight. Drake fired out of the gate with some terrific passing and a Ben Simons’ 3-pointer that set the tone for a long stretch of inspired offensive...
View ArticleThe turnover bugaboo bites Bulldogs again
Drake lost its first four games in Missouri Valley Conference play, in part, because of 54 turnovers in that stretch. It has outdone itself in the past four league games, also all losses. The Bulldogs...
View ArticleClarke, VanDeest shine at the line to propel Drake
Say this for the Drake men’s basketball team, they sure do love their degree of difficulty. Tonight, the Bulldogs hosted a Bradley team that had lost its past six road games by an average of 21 points....
View ArticleBulldogs, Panthers take predictable paths into Valley tournament
It will be a familiar opponent for Northern Iowa. It will be a familiar night for Drake. The Missouri Valley Conference tournament this week took shape during a few frenzied minutes Saturday night,...
View ArticleCutting out turnovers was the mission, and Drake carried it out
So many positive statistics for Drake tonight in its 81-66 win against Bradley. The Bulldogs shot it well overall (27-of-54), from 3 (12-20) and from the line (15-18). Drake outrebounded the Braves...
View ArticleFor Drake, it’s farewell to three vital seniors, and a quick look ahead
Today’s blog is about the seniors for Drake basketball, and it should be. I will have quotes from and about Jordan Clarke, Ben Simons and Chris Hines below. And I will look to the future a little bit...
View ArticleVideo clips: Mark Phelps as Drake’s men’s basketball coach
Mark Phelps was fired as Drake men’s basketball coach on Thursday. Here are some various clips.
View ArticleReport: Former Drake men’s basketball coach Mark Phelps lands new job
Andy Katz of ESPN is reporting that former Drake men’s basketball coach Mark Phelps is joining the staff at Missouri. Phelps posted a 77-86 record in the past five seasons with the Bulldogs. Sources:...
View ArticlePhelps on his Drake tenure: I would have liked to win more games
Former Drake men’s basketball coach Mark Phelps has been making the rounds with the local media after landing an assistant’s job at Missouri. No word yet on whether he will consent to an interview with...
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