Drake Basketball: 3 reasons why Bulldogs can advance in 2023 NCAA Tournament

3. A ton of experience in the rotation

There is no more experienced team in America. Kenpom.com calls the Bulldogs the 28th most experienced team, but statistics only tell a small part of the story. Drake’s veterans have been together and been through so much together that they intrinsically know what to do and when to do it.

Roman Penn is the best point guard you’ve never heard of. The grad student is playing in his fourth season at Drake and fifth overall. He is Drake’s all-time leader in assists (613) and recorded 69 more at Siena. Penn is a four-time all-MVC player (2 first-team and two third-team mentions) and is widely regarded as the Valley’s gold standard at the point.

His 118 Drake starts seem like a lot until you compare him to some of his teammates.

D.J. Wilkins made use of his covid eligibility and has started 160! Wilkins is the program leader in career three-point baskets with 305. He is a lockdown defender and remarkable (.842 for his career) from the free throw line. The 6’2 Wilkins missed last year’s conference tournament and postseason play with a knee injury.

Penn has scored 1,638 Division 1 points, with 1,415 of them coming at Drake. Wilkins has scored 1,559. The Merrillville, Indiana native has also handed out over 300 assists and grabbed over 300 rebounds.

Former walk-on Garrett Sturtz has played in more games (166-161) than Wilkins but has started just 73. As a member of the Valley’s ‘all-bench’ team for two straight years, he became a fixture in the starting lineup last season. Sturtz is playing his fifth season in Des Moines and is the program record holder for rebounds with 916. The 6’3, 180-pound Sturtz is the master of getting to where the ball will be once someone misses a shot.

While scoring is not Sturtz’s main job, he has accumulated 1,392 points and he too, rarely misses a free throw.

Senior center Darnell Brodie has played just 101 games with Drake.

This team will not beat itself and it plays cohesive basketball on both ends of the floor. They are not tall, nor physical, but led the Valley in defensive rebounds. The Bulldogs were last in steals, but third in overall defense. These veterans led the conference with the best turnover margin.

This Drake team will win at least one game during March Madness and don’t be surprised if you see them the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament.