2021–22 Drake Bulldogs men's basketball team
American college basketball season
The 2021–22 Drake Bulldogs men's basketball team represented Drake University during the 2021–22 NCAA Division I men's basketball season . The Bulldogs were led by fourth-year head coach Darian DeVries . They played their home games at the Knapp Center in Des Moines , Iowa as members of the Missouri Valley Conference (MVC). They finished the regular season 22–9, 13–5 in MVC play to finish in a tie for second place. As the No. 3 seed in the MVC tournament , they defeated Southern Illinois in the quarterfinals and Missouri State in the semifinals before losing to Loyola in the championship.
The Bulldogs accepted an invitation to the College Basketball Invitational and earned the No. 1 overall seed. They defeated Purdue Fort Wayne in the first round before being upset by UNC Wilmington in the quarterfinals.
Previous season
In a season limited due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic , the Bulldogs finished the 2020–21 season 26–5, 15–3 in MVC play to finish in second place. The team set a school record by winning their first 18 games, representing the fourth-best start by an MVC school and equaling the sixth-longest winning streak in MVC history.[1] They also earned a ranking in the AP Poll for the first time since 2008 at No. 25 prior to suffering their first loss of the season to Valparaiso on February 7, 2021.[2]
In the MVC tournament , the Bulldogs advanced to the semifinals via forfeit due to COVID-19 issues at Northern Iowa . They defeated Missouri State in the semifinals before falling to Loyola in the championship game.[3] Drake received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament as a No. 11 seed in the West region.[4] They defeated Wichita State in the First Four, which was Drake's first tournament win in 50 years.[5] They then lost to USC in the first round.[6]
Prior to the NCAA tournament, DeVries signed an eight-year contract extension through the 2028–29 season.[7]
Offseason
Departures
Name
Number
Pos.
Height
Weight
Year
Hometown
Reason for departure
Joseph Yesufu
1
G
6'0"
180
Sophomore
Bolingbrook, IL
Transferred to Kansas
Noah Thomas
14
G
6'2"
163
Senior
Sydney, Australia
Graduated
Andrew Barrett
22
G/F
6'5"
183
Junior
Rock Island, IL
Walk-on; did not return to team
Connor Gholson
25
G
6'3"
192
RS Junior
Newton, IA
In transfer portal
Incoming transfers
Name
Number
Pos.
Height
Weight
Year
Hometown
Previous School
Ayo Akinwole
14
G
5'11"
180
Senior
Papillion, NE
Transferred from Omaha
2021 recruiting class
Roster
2021–22 Drake Bulldogs men's basketball team
Players
Coaches
Pos.
#
Name
Height
Weight
Year
Previous school
Hometown
G
0
D. J. Wilkins
6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
188 lb (85 kg)
RS Sr
Florida Southwestern State Merrillville
Merrillville, IN
G
1
Roman Penn
6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
185 lb (84 kg)
RS Sr
Siena Bishop Noll
Calumet City, IL
F
2
Tremell Murphy
6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)
210 lb (95 kg)
RS Sr
Florida Southwestern State Griffith
Griffith, IN
G
3
Garrett Sturtz (W)
6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
180 lb (82 kg)
Sr
Newton
Newton, IA
F
4
ShanQuan Hemphill
6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)
200 lb (91 kg)
Sr
Green Bay Michigan City
Gary, IN
G
10
Okay Djamgouz
6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
190 lb (86 kg)
RS So
London Basketball Academy
Toronto, Canada
G/F
11
Bryceson Burns
6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
195 lb (88 kg)
So
Westfield
Houston, TX
G/F
12
Tucker DeVries
6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)
210 lb (95 kg)
Fr
Waukee
Waukee, IA
F
13
Issa Samake
6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)
225 lb (102 kg)
RS So
Grand View Christian
Des Moines, IA
G
14
Ayo Akinwole
5 ft 11 in (1.8 m)
180 lb (82 kg)
Sr
Omaha Papillion-La Vista Senior
Papillion, NE
G
20
Jonah Jackson
6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
205 lb (93 kg)
Sr
John A. Logan College Merrillville
Merrillville, IN
F
21
Jordan Kwiecinski
6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)
205 lb (93 kg)
So
Loyola Academy
Chicago, IL
F
24
Nate Ferguson
6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)
220 lb (100 kg)
RS So
Lemont
Lemont, IL
G
41
Deven Dahlke (W)
6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
188 lb (85 kg)
So
St. Mary's
Phoenix, AZ
F
51
Darnell Brodie
6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)
275 lb (125 kg)
Sr
Seton Hall Newark East Side
Newark, NJ
G
55
Conor Enright
6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
170 lb (77 kg)
Fr
Mundelein
Mundelein, IL
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible
(W) Walk-on
Roster
Schedule and results
Date time, TV
Rank#
Opponent#
Result
Record
High points
High rebounds
High assists
Site (attendance) city, state
Exhibition
November 4, 2021 *7:00 pm
Drury
W 96–49
16 – Djamgouz
9 – Hemphill
4 – Tied
Knapp Center (2,257)Des Moines, IA
Regular season
November 9, 2021 *7:00 pm, ESPN3
Coe
W 87–61
1–0
14 – Tied
8 – Murphy
5 – Wilkins
Knapp Center (2,591)Des Moines, IA
November 14, 2021 *2:00 pm, MC22 /ESPN+
South Dakota
W 99–50
2–0
14 – Hemphill
8 – Tied
4 – Tied
Knapp Center (2,827)Des Moines, IA
November 20, 2021 *12:00 pm, MC22/ESPN+
Richmond
W 73–70
3–0
18 – Murphy
9 – Sturtz
4 – Penn
Knapp Center (3,347)Des Moines, IA
November 25, 2021 *6:00 p.m., ESPNU
vs. Belmont ESPN Events Invitational First Round
L 69–74
3–1
18 – Murphy
11 – Sturtz
5 – Penn
HP Field House (3,008)Kissimmee, FL
November 26, 2021 *3:30 p.m., ESPNU
vs. No. 10 Alabama ESPN Events Invitational Consolation round
L 71–80
3–2
17 – Wilkins
7 – Murphy
6 – Penn
HP Field House (3,020)Kissimmee, FL
November 28, 2021 *9:30 a.m., ESPNU
vs. North Texas ESPN Events Invitational 7th Place Game
L 54–57
3–3
13 – Murphy
6 – Sturtz
1 – Penn
HP Field House (3,252)Kissimmee, FL
December 2, 2021 8:00 pm, ESPNU
Valparaiso
W 73–66
4–3 (1–0)
14 – Brodie
7 – Hemphill
5 – Penn
Knapp Center (2,560)Des Moines, IA
December 5, 2021 *2:00 pm, ESPN3
St. Thomas
W 74–64
5–3
21 – DeVries
8 – DeVries
2 – Tied
Knapp Center (2,674)Des Moines, IA
December 8, 2021 *8:00 pm
at Omaha
W 78–70
6–3
24 – DeVries
6 – Sturtz
4 – Wilkins
Baxter Arena Omaha, NE
December 11, 2021 *2:00 pm, ACCN
vs. Clemson Holiday Hoopsgiving
L 80–90 OT
6–4
19 – DeVries
8 – Hemphill
4 – Wilkins
State Farm Arena (8,557)Atlanta, GA
December 16, 2021 *7:00 pm, MC22/ESPN+
Jackson State
W 70–65 OT
7–4
17 – Hemphill
12 – Hemphill
5 – Wilkins
Knapp Center (2,660)Des Moines, IA
December 19, 2021 *2:00 pm, MC22/ESPN3
UT Martin
W 80–54
8–4
15 – Tied
9 – Sturtz
7 – DeVries
Knapp Center (2,673)Des Moines, IA
December 22, 2021 *2:00 pm
vs. Saint Louis Las Vegas Showcase
Canceled due to COVID-19[8]
South Point Arena Enterprise, NV
December 22, 2021 *5:00 pm
Chicago State Rescheduled from December 19, originally canceled
W 87–50
9–4
14 – Tied
8 – DeVries
4 – Akinwole
Knapp Center (1,943)Des Moines, IA
December 28, 2021 *7:00 pm, ESPN+
Mount Marty
W 82–53
10–4
16 – Wilkins
7 – Murphy
3 – Tied
Knapp Center (3,146)Des Moines, IA
January 2, 2022 7:00 pm, MVC TV
at Missouri State
L 56–61
10–5 (1–1)
16 – Sturtz
11 – Sturtz
3 – Brodie
JQH Arena (3,242)Springfield, MO
January 8, 2022 4:00 pm, ESPN+
at Evansville
W 60–59
11–5 (2–1)
15 – DeVries
9 – Sturtz
5 – Penn
Ford Center (3,134)Evansville, IN
January 12, 2022 7:00 pm, MVC TV
Illinois State
W 86–75
12–5 (3–1)
16 – Tied
6 – Brodie
6 – Penn
Knapp Center (2,702)Des Moines, IA
January 17, 2022 7:00 pm, ESPN+
at Southern Illinois Rescheduled from January 5
W 60–59
13–5 (4–1)
16 – Sturtz
8 – Sturtz
4 – DeVries
Banterra Center (4,112)Carbondale, IL
January 19, 2022 7:00 pm, MC22/ESPN+
Bradley
L 71–83
13–6 (4–2)
17 – DeVries
8 – Sturtz
3 – Penn
Knapp Center (2,724)Des Moines, IA
January 22, 2022 5:00 pm, ESPNU
at Northern Iowa
W 82–74 OT
14–6 (5–2)
18 – Penn
11 – DeVries
4 – Sturtz
McLeod Center (4,361)Cedar Falls, IA
January 26, 2022 7:00 pm, ESPN+
at Illinois State
W 89–88 OT
15–6 (6–2)
18 – Tied
11 – Sturtz
6 – DeVries
Redbird Arena (3,515)Normal, IL
January 30, 2022 1:00 pm, ESPN2
Loyola–Chicago
W 77–68
16–6 (7–2)
20 – Wilkins
10 – Brodie
3 – DeVries
Knapp Center (3,994)Des Moines, IA
February 2, 2022 6:00 pm, ESPN+
at Indiana State
W 85–67
17–6 (8–2)
15 – Tied
9 – Sturtz
6 – Penn
Hulman Center (2,811)Terre Haute, IN
February 5, 2022 5:00 pm, ESPNU
Northern Iowa
L 69–74 OT
17–7 (8–3)
15 – DeVries
11 – Sturtz
3 – Penn
Knapp Center (5,984)Des Moines, IA
February 9, 2022 7:00 pm, MVC TV
Missouri State
L 62–66
17–8 (8–4)
12 – Tied
8 – Sturtz
6 – Penn
Knapp Center (3,305)Des Moines, IA
February 12, 2022 7:00 pm, ESPN+
at Bradley
L 59–68
17–9 (8–5)
20 – DeVries
8 – Murphy
3 – Murphy
Carver Arena (5,109)Peoria, IL
February 16, 2022 7:00 pm, ESPN+
Evansville
W 73–51
18–9 (9–5)
16 – DeVries
7 – Hemphill
6 – Penn
Knapp Center (3,569)Des Moines, IA
February 19, 2022 5:00 pm, ESPN2
at Loyola–Chicago
W 83–76
19–9 (10–5)
24 – DeVries
7 – Sturtz
4 – Sturtz
Joseph J. Gentile Arena (4,557)Chicago, IL
February 21, 2022 7:00 pm, ESPN+
Indiana State
W 74–58
20–9 (11–5)
15 – Tied
7 – Murphy
5 – Penn
Knapp Center (3,352)Des Moines, IA
February 23, 2022 6:00 pm, ESPN+
at Valparaiso
W 71–65
21–9 (12–5)
17 – Wilkins
9 – Murphy
9 – Penn
Athletics–Recreation Center (2,530)Valparaiso, IN
February 26, 2022 3:00 pm, CBSSN
Southern Illinois
W 62–60
22–9 (13–5)
14 – Murphy
10 – Sturtz
3 – Tied
Knapp Center (4,417)Des Moines, IA
MVC tournament
March 4, 2022 8:30 pm, MVC TV
(3)
vs. (6) Southern Illinois Quarterfinals
W 65–52
23–9
19 – Hemphill
10 – Hemphill
3 – Penn
Enterprise Center (5,503)St. Louis, MO
March 5, 2022 5:00 pm, CBSSN
(3)
vs. (2) Missouri State Semifinals
W 79–78 OT
24–9
23 – DeVries
8 – Sturtz
6 – Penn
Enterprise Center (6,371)St. Louis, MO
March 6, 2022 1:00 pm, CBS
(3)
vs. (4) Loyola–Chicago Championship
L 58–64
24–10
18 – Penn
10 – Hemphill
4 – Penn
Enterprise Center (5,164)St. Louis, MO
CBI
March 19, 2022 11:00 am, FloHoops
(1)
vs. (16) Purdue Fort Wayne First Round
W 87–65
25–10
20 – Djamgouz
7 – Brodie
6 – DeVries
Ocean Center (367)Daytona Beach, FL
March 21, 2022 12:00 pm, FloHoops
(1)
vs. (9) UNC Wilmington Quarterfinals
L 75–76
25–11
15 – Hemphill
7 – Hemphill
3 – Penn
Ocean Center (706)Daytona Beach, FL
*Non-conference game.
# Rankings from
AP Poll . (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in
Central Time .
Source[10]
Rankings
Ranking movementsLegend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking — = Not ranked RV = Received votes Week Poll Pre 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 Final AP RV RV RV — — — — — — — — — — — — — — Not released Coaches RV RV^ RV — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —
^Coaches did not release a Week 1 poll.
References
^ Marrow, Blake (February 21, 2021). "Valparaiso hands Drake Men's Basketball first loss of the season" . The Times-Delphic. Retrieved October 30, 2021 .
^ Bain, Matthew (February 1, 2021). "Drake men's basketball ranked in the top 25 for first time since 2008" . Des Moines Register. Retrieved October 30, 2021 .
^ "Drake falls to No. 20 Loyola in MVC Championship" . Radio Iowa . March 7, 2021. Retrieved April 7, 2021 .
^ Bain, Matthew (March 14, 2021). "Drake basketball makes first men's NCAA Tournament since 2008, will play Wichita State" . Des Moines Register. Retrieved October 30, 2021 .
^ Rittenberg, Adam (March 18, 2021). "Drake edges Wichita State for first NCAA tournament win in 50 years" . ESPN.com . Retrieved October 30, 2021 .
^ Emmert, Mark (March 20, 2021). "NCAA Tournament: Drake basketball falters in second half, USC gradually pulls away for victory" . Des Moines Register. Retrieved October 30, 2021 .
^ "Drake Announces Contract Extension For Head Men's Basketball Coach Darian DeVries" . godrakebulldogs.com . March 17, 2021. Retrieved October 30, 2021 .
^ "Men's Basketball Game Versus Saint Louis in Las Vegas Canceled" . December 20, 2021. Retrieved December 20, 2021 .
^ "Men's Basketball to Play UT Martin on Dec. 19 at 2 p.m. in Knapp Center" . godrakebulldogs.com . December 18, 2021. Retrieved December 20, 2021 .
^ "2021–22 Men's Basketball Schedule" . Drake University Athletics.
Venues Rivalries Culture & lore People Seasons NCAA Final Four appearances in italics