4-1 SIU and 4-1 Drake battle for first place on Saturday in Carbondale.
Meet the Bulldogs:
The winners of Arch Madness last year are back again minus Roman Penn and Garrett Sturtz.
The Bulldogs hit the portal hard this offseason and after somewhat of a slow start, they're beginning to roll. Drake had a 22 point loss to #128 KenPom ranked Stephen F Austin in their MTE in the Cayman Islands. They also have losses to #167 UAB in OT on the road and #123 Belmont on the road. They have wins over #36 Nevada at a neutral site, #56 Indiana State at home, and #96 Akron in the Cayman Islands MTE.
Drake is 60th in the country in adjusted offensive efficiency (112.6). The Bulldogs are 12th in the country in 2 point % (57.1%) and 49th in the country in effective field goal % (54.0%). Drake takes really good care of the basketball on the offensive end, they're 37th in the country in steal % on offense (7.7%) and 26th in the country in turnover % (14.5%). If the game comes down to free throws, Drake is 12th in the country in free throw % (77.9%). One area of struggle on offense for the Bulldogs is offensive rebounding, they're 261st in the country in offensive rebounding % (26.9%).
On the defensive end, Drake is 256th in the country in 2 point % against (51.8%) and also 256th in the country in 3 point % against (35.0%). The Bulldogs do a good job creating turnovers on the defensive end, they're 46th in the country in turnover % (20.6%). Drake is also 19th in the country in offensive rebounding % against (24.2%).
The leading scorer on Drake is 6-7 Junior Tucker DeVries averaging 19.5 points per game. The 2023 Larry Bird Trophy winner was 4 star recruit out of Waukee, IA and chose to play for his father over offers from Iowa State and Florida among others. DeVries is the leader in shots and possessions this year for Drake. He's 116th in the country in % of possessions gone through him (28.4%) and 73rd in the country in % of shots gone through him (30.7%). DeVries is 280th in the country in defensive rebounding % (19.3%) and 326th in the country in assist rate (22.0%). He's also 398th in the country in free throw % (46-58, 79.3%).
The leading rebounder for the Bulldogs is 6-10 Senior Darnell Brodie averaging 7.8 rebounds per game. Brodie was a 3 star recruit out of Putnam, CT and started his collegiate career at Seton Hall. After 2 seasons at Seton Hall, Brodie transferred to Drake where he's been a factor inside for the last 3 seasons. After losing 20 pounds in the offseason last year, Brodie had a breakout season leading him to be named to the MVC Most Improved team. This season, Brodie is 124th in the country in 2 point % (69-108, 63.9%), 43rd in the country in effective field goal % (63.9%), and 43rd in the country in true shooting % (65.9%). He's also 95th in the country in offensive rebounding % (12.4%), 50th in the country in defensive rebounding % (25.0%), and 456th in the country in block % (2.9%). Brodie is also 405th in the country in free throw rate (38.0%).
One of the impact transfers this season for Drake is 6-1 Junior Atin Wright. Wright is a transfer from Cal State Northridge and spent 3 seasons there. Wright is 496th in the country in effective field goal % (52.4%) and 408th in the country in true shooting % (57.3%). He's also the team leader in steals with 1.6 per game and he's 252nd in the country in steal % (3.1%).
Others players on Drake to watch out for include 6-5 Freshman Kevin Overton. Overton was a 3 star recruit out of Oklahoma City, OK and chose Drake over offers from Ball State, North Alabama, and North Texas. Overton has already made a big impact on the Bulldogs in his first year. He's 60th in the country in 2 point % (39-58, 67.2%), 234th in the country in effective field goal % (56.8%), and 236th in the country in true shooting % (59.9%). Overton is also 13th in the country in turnover rate (5.2%) and 185th in the country in free throw % (27-32, 84.4%). 6-0 Sophomore Connor Enright was a teammate of Scottie Ebube at Mundelein High School and he's taken over the starting point guard spot with Roman Penn graduated. Enright is 26th in the country in 3 point % this year (20-41, 48.8%). 6-1 Freshman Colby Garland has also made an impact his first season. Garland is 406th in the country in assist rate (20.4%) and 418th in the country in 2 point % (27-47, 57.4%).
Links:
SIU Game Notes
Drake Game Notes
I asked my 84 year old grandfather if he was going to accompany my dad and me to the game and he said, “Son. We’ll be right in their ***** ear all night.” 😎
Go Dawgs!
Dorms open Saturday but can’t imagine we get much of a Dawg Pound with classes starting Tuesday so tell a friend to get to the game.
Kenpom has SIU winning 72-70. I would imagine the line will be -1 to +1. Going to be a tough game either way. I think beating Drake and/or Bradley might really propel this team. Here's hoping............
I think this is going to be a game where X really goes off, but we'll need everyone for sure.
Also found this pretty well reasoned game summary by a Drake fan on the Drake board: https://www.drakenation.com/FindPost174624.aspx
Wonder how Hensley's foot/ankle is after getting hurt in the 2nd half against Valpo and how close to 100% he will be.
I can say one thing for sure. Looking at our schedule over the next week, we could go 3-0, 2-1, 1-2, or 0-3. I guarantee you one of those things happens. lol
Wonder how Hensley's foot/ankle is after getting hurt in the 2nd half against Valpo and how close to 100% he will be.
D’Amico was also gimpy at the end of the game.
Rebound the damn basketball on both offensive and defensive ends of the floor and let’s see some solid ball movement on offense. If it’s X going 1 on 5 all night on offense it’s not going to be good. Play Hensley and play Ebube. Good things happen when those guys get minutes.
@1dawg Agree with you on the rebounding. Ebube has been very good as of late. Hensley did not have a very good game at Valpo, but was strong at ISU. I believe the offense has been much better this season, as far as sharing the basketball. I don't care who gets the points or accolades in this one, just get the W.
GO DAWGS!!!
https://twitter.com/DrakeBulldogsMB/status/1745934787259330694
Drake practicing at John A. Logan. Think they came down early due to weather
Game Day folks! I wish I lived closer so I could make this game. These are the types of games we need to win for this program to turn the corner and really get this fan base engaged like we had in the past. This is a chance to show a national audience what this team is about!
Hoping for a big time crowd despite the weather. Get out and support your team So Ill! Go Dawgs!
Some tricky defensive matchups with Drake, even beyond the obvious challenge of guarding De Vries.
I think Ebube will be very much needed for stretches in dealing with Brodie. I don’t think anyone other than he and Rupert have the size/brawn to bang with him.
Trent is having a helluva year but a little concerned Drake’s athletic guards will be tough covers for him.
Should be an exciting night. It’s the type of MVC measuring stick game SIU has not risen to the occasion for much in the past 15+ years so it would be very refreshing to see that trend reversed. At a minimum SIU needs to split these two home games with Drake and Bradley this week to stay in that upper-tier mix.
