Drake Nation / Specific Sports Topic Forums / Bulldog Men's Basketball

Season Tickets

mid-major fan — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 13:46:46 GMT

Information about next year's MBB season tickets is about to be mailed.

Basically, there will be a $250.00 per seat license fee for all prime seats - middle three sections - in the lower bowl in addition to the cost of the ticket. The price of these tickets will be just under $250.00 each. So a person with four prime seats will pay $2000.00 this coming year compared to around $1250.00 last year.

Lindy's MVC preview

DU_53 — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 19:54:43 GMT

Bought the Lindy's college basketball preview magazine last week. I didnt see this posted, and Im not sure its available on the internet, so I thought it was worth a thread.

1.Creighton- ranked #35
2. Ill St Osiris POY #40
3.SIU
4.Drake
5.Bradley
6.Ind St.
7.UNI
8.WSU
9.Evansville
10.MSU

Nothing shocking with the Drake article, but does mention the addition of Adam Templeton in the small write up.

CollegeHoopsNet Preview - Drake #56

Mecha_Bulldog — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 10:57:49 GMT

http://www.collegehoopsnet.com/200809-drake-basketball-preview-56-102206

Final Projection: Last year it was basically four guards and Jonathan Cox. That worked with the 6-8 Korver playing at the four spot, but can the 6-5 Templeton play there? He is a better rebounder than Korver, but his size might make the team a little too small. Either way, Cox will be on the floor after averaging 12.3 points and 8.5 rebounds last season. Brent Heemskerk could start beside Cox. The 6-8 senior is a good scorer in the paint and will grab plenty of rebounds and block plenty of shots. His minutes were limited last year and some of that is due to his knack for picking up fouls. If Heemskerk does play 25 or 30 minutes per game, he will have to learn to stay out of foul trouble. No matter who starts and at what position, Drake has talent and options. The most important position is at point guard. Nobody will be like Emmenecker, but somebody needs to at least be a consistent ball handler or the magic of Drake will end as quickly as it began.

Adam Emmenecker in Germany

Mecha_Bulldog — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 09:26:16 GMT

http://www.skyliners-tv.eu/2008/08/adam-emmenecker-zum-try-out/

Anybody speak German?

Nice Keno Article

Keita44 — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 00:07:47 GMT

Talks about the magical year and the tough decision Keno had to make.

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/columns/story?columnist=katz_andy&id=3599328&lpos=spotlight&lid=tab5pos2

"minor setback"

cgdcreek — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 18:26:35 GMT

is Jim Les' phrase.

Warren

Vanderbilt's VandySports.com Drake breakdown ...

Mc Bulldog — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 11:03:41 GMT

Jesse Johnson, VandySports.com, has an article on Rivals where he breaks down each of Vanderbilt's non conf. opponents. Check ho he spells Beano's name.

Link-o-la - http://rivalshoops.rivals.com/content.asp?highlight=drake&CID=849289

"The Drake Bulldogs
Conference: Missouri Valley
Game Date: November 29th

Rundown: The Drake basketball program enjoyed a cinderella season last year. A program that had been at the bottom of the MVC for years, shocked many by winning 28 games, capturing both the league's regular season and tournament championships and received a high-seed in the NCAA Tournament. The magical season put the Bulldogs on the map and now the program will attempt to stay on the map with a new head coach and a number of key players departed.

First year head coach Mark Phelps comes to the program after serving as an assistant coach to Herb Sendek at both Arizona State and North Carolina State. Phelps will bring with him the motion offense that has been a staple with Sendek's teams while also maintaining the Bulldogs desire to shot a ton of three-pointers.

Josh Young returns to lead the Bulldogs under new coach Mark Phelps.
Gone however is conference player of the year Adam Emmenecker and the athletic Leonard Houston, so the Bulldogs will rely heavily on junior Josh Young and senior forward Jonathan Cox. Young, who was all-conference last season, averaged 43.4-percent from behind the arc as a sophomore and scored nearly 16 points per game. Cox was second in the conference in rebounding with 8.6 boards per game and also proved to be a weapon from behind the arc, shooting at a 44-percent clip.

Others that Phelps will depend on will likely be sophomore guard Josh Parker, Cal-Irvine transfer Adam Templeton and junior college signee Craig Stanley. Parker played sparingly last season but has a solid stroke from long range while Templeton also has a reputation for shooting effectively from behind the arc. The 5-foot-11 Stanley will likely compete for the starting point guard spot.

Outlook: Phelps will be challenged with not only replacing some very effective, even near heroic players but he will also be challenged to replace a family in legendary coach Tom Davis and his son Keanu Davis, who built the Bulldogs into a respectable program over the past couple of years. Phelps does have talent returning that should work into his desired approach of shooting threes. Vanderbilt's game with Drake will take place in Cancun, Mexico as part of the Cancun Challenge. The Bulldogs may not have an answer for Ogilvy but Vanderbilt may be pressed to answer the challenge of Drake's outside attack. In a completely foreign setting and with not many experienced shooters on the team, the Commodores will need to play solid defense at the perimeter and not let the game become a game of 3s."[/i]

He also has this picutre of Velvet in the middle of the article -

The Difference

bigturk — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 15:37:11 GMT

So I am curious. Who different is Phelps' motion offense compared to what Keno ran last year? Is Phelps the type of coach who will stick with his system no matter what, or is his open enough to make adjustments based on the talent at hand? Someone with more basketball knowledge than me has to know.

Also, Jon Miller of KXNO stated a few days ago that without the Davis family around Drake will not be able to beat Iowa at the Knapp this year. Just another I-am-a-huge-Hawkeye-fan-but-I-went-to-another-school loser. In fact, he went to S. Ill.

Athlon Preview

Mecha_Bulldog — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 15:04:24 GMT

http://blogs.kansas.com/shockwaves/2008/09/16/start-the-hypin-and-hatin/

Wichita Eagle writer Paul Sullentrop wrote this year's Athlon MVC preview. He doesn't give any analysis on his blog ("you will have to buy the magazine to get the whys." Prack) but he gives his predicted ranking:

1. Creighton
2. SIU
3. Illinois State
4. Drake
5. Northern Iowa
6. Bradley
7. Wichita State
8. Indiana State
9. Evansville
10. Missouri State

What player is the biggest loss from '07-'08?

Mc Bulldog — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 14:43:18 GMT

Let's straighten this topic out ... and now.

I wish all three were back but .. if I had to choose one ....

Cancun tournament

Darth Vader — Mon, 15 Sep 2008 21:50:11 GMT

Is anyone going to Mexico over T-giving for the Cancun Tournament? I'm looking at the rather steep prices and trying to figure out if worth the effort, whether there will be many D fans there, etc.

State of Iowa Ranking

Mecha_Bulldog — Mon, 15 Sep 2008 13:12:39 GMT

http://www.collegehoopsnet.com/state-03908-iowa-91031

This site is going state-by-state, and ranking all the teams in each state. The rankings are "based mostly on recent success (the last five years) mixed in with subjective factors such as conference prestige, historical success, and overall program direction." They rank the state of Iowa as Iowa, UNI, ISU, and Drake. About Drake they say:

The Bulldogs pulled off one of the all-time great turnaround seasons last year. In his first season, Keno Davis (is he a coaching genius or just lucky?) led Drake to a 28-5 record, the NCAA Tournament, a Top 10 RPI, and an MVC title. But this is a program that hadn't made the Big Dance since 1971, and hadn't finished above .500 in MVC play in the prior 22 seasons. Until the program proves last year wasn't just a fluke, they remain in the cellar.

What really will be missed from last year

CharlesW — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 14:13:48 GMT

IMO, the thing that really made last years team so great was the team chemistry and unselfishness.
Players played their part and did whatever it took to win. If it meant downplaying their overall skills and showmanship, they did it.
Leading scorers in various games included, Cox, Emmenecker, Heemskirk, Houston, Korver, and Young. Great example of the unselfishness displayed by these young men.
Whoever/whatever allowed them to come together like they did is what is needed again for the upcoming season.
Believe!

Roster down to 12 ...

Mc Bulldog — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 11:00:14 GMT

Striker's name has been removed.

Danielson signs with team in Hungary

Don4Drake — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 19:42:02 GMT

From Eurobasket.com

Greg Danielson (206-C-81, college: Drake) sign a 1-year deal with Hungarian team Kecskemeti Univer KSE. Greg brings with him experiance from FIBA cup with CSKA Sofia where he almost had duble duble in every game in that competition and was among best newcomers. Danielson played so far in Austria, Cyprus, Kosovo, Lebanon, Bulgarian and Arabic Emirats and was always among best rebounders and scorers in teams he has played for.

DVD?

scrove — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 00:32:42 GMT

Did anyone get the end of year DVD that was being offered? How is it, worth the money?

Rivals Article

Mecha_Bulldog — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 15:21:44 GMT

http://westvirginia.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=845652

This is from a mailbag column on Rivals:

[quote]Q: I noticed you ranked the top 10 conferences for this season and left out the Missouri Valley. How can that be? The MVC has ranked in the top eight of the RPI in each of the past four seasons. What do you want to bet it will make it five years in a row?

A: Conferences go through cycles, and the Missouri Valley is no different. The MVC has had some great seasons recently, but it's starting to slide.

Four years ago, the MVC sent four teams to the NCAA Tournament. Last year, it was just one; Drake shocked everyone by rolling to the regular-season and tournament titles.

Drake would be ecstatic to reach even the NIT this season. Five of the Bulldogs' top six scorers are gone, and so is the coach (Keno Davis left for Providence).

Many of the other top teams are going to take a step back. Illinois State and Southern Illinois, which finished second and third, respectively, last season, are losing a number of their top players.

The MVC undoubtedly will be back, but this certainly isn't the season to put money on it. [/quote]

I don't care so much about his opinion, although I'm confident the MVC will be a top 10 conference again. His fact about Drake is very wrong, though. Drake only lost three scholarship players last year, so I don't know how they could've lost five of their top six scorers. Drake lost three of their top six scorers, or three of their top five scorers if you want to make it sound worse, or Drake returns two of their top three scorers if you want to make it sound better.

Schedule

DUBulldog — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 08:40:03 GMT

Nothing much in the article, just that DU opens with Butler on November 15 and then plays in a tournament in Cancun.

link

Jacob Bayrenbruch ...

Mc Bulldog — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 09:46:03 GMT

I know how most felt about Adam a year ago. I could see Jacob playing a huge role this year. I've been told he has worked hard in the off season, put on some meat and improved his game. KILL, MAIM, DESTROY!!!

Phelps Plan

cgdcreek — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 23:54:23 GMT

Some other coach said about last year .....

"We made a deal with them," said xxxxx xxxxx. "We would not get on them about shot selection or the quickness of a shot. We'd get on them about not playing defense because defense is effort, and we'd get on them about not rebounding. Other than that, we let them play."

Darn good plan, if you have a decent bunch of players willing to put in the effort. Will Phelps be the same way? I want to know; it's only 3 months away.
Of course, it's easy if you have a couple guys who shoot as well as Bucky and Josh Young.

Scholarship grid help

nextyear — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 14:54:30 GMT

I created a site that projects teams for the next three years and was wondering if you guys could make sure I've got everything correct for Drake.

Here's the Drake team page: Next Year's Team Drake page

I know Cory Parker is on academic scholarship this year, but didn't know for future years.

I also rank the MVC for the next three years and that can be accessed from Drake team page.

Any help is greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

Christopher Bonjean

Creator/Editor

Next Year's Team

Interview with Mark Phelps ...

Mc Bulldog — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 09:49:11 GMT

I think everyone can read this.

link - http://virginiapreps.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=841059

Illinois State Loses Sampay for 4-5 Months

PiPhi1997 — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 15:51:41 GMT

http://www.mvc-sports.com/ViewArticle.dbml?SPSID=36371&SPID=2901&DB_OEM_ID=7600&ATCLID=1550704

NORMAL, Ill. – Illinois State senior forward Brandon Sampay underwent surgery Monday to repair a congenital condition in his left hip, and as a result, will be sidelined for four-to-five months. Sampay’s surgery went well, and he has already begun the rehabilitation process.

“We feel very badly for Brandon, as he finished last season so strongly and has had a tremendous attitude, work ethic and desire to have a great senior season,” said head basketball coach Tim Jankovich. “This will definitely set him back, but we’re hopeful and optimistic that he will have a full recovery and still be able to maintain the momentum that he was enjoying.”

Sampay averaged 4.1 points and 2.6 rebounds per game last season, while seeing action in 31 contests. In addition to losing the 6-foot-8 Sampay for the early part of the season, the Redbirds’ Bobby Hill, another forward, is currently rehabbing following his knee surgery.

“Obviously this surgery, along with Bobby’s ACL surgery, is a big blow and setback to our team, particularly in the early part of the season,” said Jankovich. “We will have many more challenges than normal because of this, and yet, I’m still optimistic that in the long run, we could become an outstanding team.”

Iowa Energy Signing

Keita44 — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 20:22:18 GMT

The Energy are getting ready to announce a signing that will make us Drake fans happy....

I know who it is, you guys want to guess?

MVC Schedule

mufan000 — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 12:12:13 GMT

Hey everyone,

Is the MVC schedule not out yet for Drake? It seems that most other conferences have released their schedules, when will the MVC do so?

I am asking because I'm a Missouri fan that is hoping to make a trip to Ames, Iowa in Feb. to see the Tigers take on ISU. My father is a Drake alum and we were also hoping to see Drake in Des Moines on the same day if the schedule cooporates.

Hopefully Drake plays at home on Feb. 7!

Phelps Phan

Mecha_Bulldog — Sun, 27 Jul 2008 22:58:30 GMT

Maybe I'm a little slow, but I just saw this commercial. I figure there has to be something Drake can do with this phrase:

J. Young

Loco Bulldog — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 08:59:01 GMT

Saw Josh Young at the Fair. Still on crutches. Says he gets them off this week and should be practicing full speed in Sept.

Corn Feed

Mc Bulldog — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 21:51:37 GMT

Phelps has to be thinking ... "What the He(( is a corn feed?!?"

Bulldog Corn Feed
Monday, Aug 25
Knapp Center
$25 per person
RSVP by Tuesday, Aug. 19
To bulldog.rsvp@drake.edu

"Join the Bulldogs to kickoff the 2008-2009 athletic season at the annual corn feed. Hear coaches discuss the upcoming season and enjoy a night of Bulldog fun."

For more information call 515-271-2889.

I heard hot babes will be serving jello shots shaped like Bulldogs this year. Who is going this year?

Ebay item of interest

melvin01 — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 14:33:30 GMT

Some of you may be interested in ebay item #170250640208.

Drake Basketball Fan Package including Tickets to Men's Game, T-Shirt and Entry in June 2009 Bulldog Basketball Camp
* 2 Tickets to a Regular Season Non-Conference Men's Basketball Game
* *excludes Iowa, Butler and Bracketbuster
* Large Signed Drake T-Shirt
* Certificate for enrollment to the June 2009 Bulldog Basketball Camp for boys ages 6-9

Since I'm hundreds of miles from Iowa and I really didn't want the tickets nor the Certificate for enrollment to the camp, I just thought some of you out there may be interested.

The shirt is pretty cool.
For those interested...Good Luck.

Houston signs in Hungary

Don4Drake — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 21:08:02 GMT

Leonard Houston (191-G-85, agency: Warren Sports International, college: Drake) (191-G-85, agency: Warren Sports International, college: Drake) (191-G-85, the super athletic combo guard signed with Szolnoki Olajbanyasz of Hungary.
This summer in the ESL Leonard was one of the standout performers of the Chicago and Las Vegas events.
He received several offers and interest from a variety of European teams due to his enormous talent level.
In the Eurobasket Summer League (ESL) in Chicago Leonard Houston was the Co-MVP of the Tourney and his London team won the championship
In the 2007-08 Leonard played for Drake who lost a heartbreaker game in the NCAA Tourney against Western Kentucky.
Drake had an outstanding year and Leonard was featured on ESPN Plays of the Week with a unbelivable dunk against Bultler University.
Leonard Houston is an outstanding prospect and should have a great year in the Hungarian league.

Vote for the Missouri Valley

u1 — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 16:33:37 GMT

Vote on your favorite conference and show the folks out east who rules!

Vote for MVC
http://www.collegehoopsnet.com/poll-what-will-be-best-highmajor-conference-2009-60811

ESPN article on Drake/MVC

DUBulldog — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 12:56:36 GMT

Nice read.

link

Early Bird Deadline - Season Tickets

mid-major fan — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 18:53:26 GMT

Today is the deadline for "early bird" pricing. I don't know how its going overall but I do know from talking to a few people that there will be at least nine center section seats available this year that were sold last year. The people I talked to all renewed but reduced their number of seats. So, either existing ticket holders will have a chance to "move up" so to speak or new season ticket holders are going to get some very good seats. We may have some new people sitting around us. Should be interesting.

The Power of a Positive Year

Really Big Bulldog — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 18:00:38 GMT

I just returned Saturday from a little over a week's worth of vacation in Las Vegas. As I wore my various Drake apparel over the course of my stay...I was approached 3-4 times by people who just had to comment on: Drake's success this year, their affiliation now or in the past with Drake (or Iowa), their well-wishes for the future.

This happened at the pool. It happened in the casino. It happened on the Strip.

Not that this is necessarily newsworthy...but...it was cool. It speaks to the power that athletic success has in bringing a school to "top of mind." It pumped me up about keeping this momentum going.

As I was having one discussion, and the guy said, "Too bad you had to lose your coach," I replied "We're gonna be just fine. We found another good one."

Can't wait until we get to witness that!

(Sorry I've been gone...and just feel like randomly commenting...)

Props on Van Deest

FarmerClone — Sun, 03 Aug 2008 16:59:57 GMT

Uhlenhopp and Van Deest provide Drake some MUCH needed bulk inside and give Phelps a great start for 2009.

Phelps on the radio

DUBulldog — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 17:22:09 GMT

Coach Phelps was briefly interviewed by Marty & Miller earlier this afternoon. He really didn't say much, other than he was hopeful that a couple of guys could improve their game the way Leonard Houston did between his junior and senior seasons. He hinted that he thought Josh Parker and Brent Heemskerk were two of the prime candidates to do so.

A little thin?

DSMBulldog — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 20:14:47 GMT

We only have 13 roster players listed right now for this season. I heard Daniels left and I know Jared Vlastuin (or w/e) opted out. Does anyone know what Alex Weldon's status is? By my count it looks like we only have probably 11 scholarships filled on the roster. Unless Brett Spiker and Kit Avery are on Scholarship. (Alex White has pretty weak moves and should not be on Scholarship, himself), even though he is. He is pretty much a cave man personality wise, too, as far as I have seen of him on the former Keno Davis Show.

ESPY's

MediaOne — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 16:46:02 GMT

I was lucky enough to attend the ESPYs taping last night (wed), one of the awards they gave out was for best finish. Western Kentury won for the finish of the Drake game, they even showed the last second 3 on the screen. It killed me.

I do not this that award will actually be seen during the broadcast as it was one of the minor ones.

Summer League

DUhoops — Thu, 29 May 2008 01:15:48 GMT

Maybe somebody posted about this already, but I have been a little out of the loop...

when does it start?

is everybody playing in it?

Dontay Harris article ...

Mc Bulldog — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 12:05:17 GMT

-

http://www.tacomaweekly.com/article/2002/