Drake Left With What Ifs

Late Run Dooms the Bulldogs

(Omaha, NE) – Drake fought from behind during most of Thursday’s NCAA Tournament game with Washington State, but took its first real lead with under eight minutes left. Then the wheels came off offensively, Darnell Brodie fouled out and now the team is left with what ifs.

What if they had executed at the free throw line, where they made just six of fourteen attempts? What if their three point shooting hadn’t gone awry, making just five of fifteen from distance?

This 28-win team seemed to be ready to do March Madness damage. The opportunity to play in-state rival Iowa State on Saturday was a juicy proposition.

Size and Strength Matter

We watched as a bigger Iowa State team manhandled a smaller, less athletic South Dakota State and their were times when Drake seemed ‘outmanned’. But then, for several stunning minutes, Drake big man Darnell Brodie was the best player on the floor.

While star forward Tucker DeVries’ shot wasn’t falling, he and Brodie played a two-man game where DeVries drew the defenses away and he ‘fed the beast’. Brodie scored eleven second half points and grabbed seven second stanza rebounds. He was unstoppable, until five fouls put him on the Bulldog bench.

DeVries was just six of 18 from the floor but provided six assists. The Cougars outrebounded Drake (40-32) and outscored them in ‘second chance’ points 13-6. During a five-point loss (66-61) those were huge numbers.

What Ifs – The Offense Had Clicked?

Through 34 games, Drake averaged over 80 points per game and with 7:47 remaining had opened up an eight point lead at 54-46. Cougar coach Kyle Smith called a timeout, made defensive adjustments and the game changed in an instant.

Drake’s offense went cold against the WSU zone and missed crucial free-throws in crunch time. Washington State outscored the Bulldogs 19-7 down the stretch. Drake made just two field goals the rest of the game.

Atin Wright was Drake’s most consistent threat, scoring 20 points, but twice, split a pair of free throws in the final 4:51 of the game. Drake made two of its last nine shots during that closing 7:47. DeVries took only two of the nine attempts.

Washington State was more efficient at the line and had more opportunities from the charity stripe. They made 17 of their 22 attempts as the Bulldogs were called for eight more fouls than their Pac-12 opponents.

What Ifs – Is This the End?

Multiple outlets are listing coach Darian DeVries as a leading candidate for the vacant Oklahoma State job. While Valley Hoops Insider doesn’t believe a move is on the way, after six straight 20-win seasons and four-straight of 25 or more, DeVries will be rumored as a candidate for virtually every high major job opening.

His mentor Greg McDermott has succeeded in a power conference and he’s watched former Missouri Valley Conference coaches succeed at that so-called ‘next level’. Another former Creighton Bluejay, Dana Altman is a borderline hall-of-famer at Oregon. Former SIU coaches Bruce Weber and Matt Painter earned national reputations and the list goes on.

Valparaiso’s Scott Drew has been on an amazing ride at Baylor.

While former Loyola Chicago coach Porter Moser hasn’t been met with instant success, his program is headed in the right direction. Former Murray State coach Matt McMahon’s first two years at LSU aren’t what he’d hoped for either.

Stepping up could be risky and that move is full of ‘what ifs’.

What Ifs, like curiosity can kill the cat. When a team’s season ends like Drake’s did, that’s what we are left with.

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