Third-year Drake University men's basketball head coach Darian DeVries has been named to the 2021 Werner Ladder Naismith Men's Coach of the Year watchlist, the Atlanta Tipoff Club announced Friday, Feb. 20.
 
DeVries is one of 15 coaches on the watch list.
 
In his third year with at the helm of the Bulldogs, DeVries has led the team to a 21-2 record for its third-straight 20-win season, a feat that had only previously been accomplished once in school history. The Bulldogs rolled off a school-record 18-straight wins to open the season and earn a spot in the Associated Press Top-25.
 
The Bulldogs' 21 wins this season are the fifth-most in program history and DeVries has now guided the Bulldogs to three of the eight 20-win season in program history while winning 65 games in less than three full seasons.
 
This season's record includes a 5-1 record against Quad 1 and Quad 2 teams in the NCAA NET rankings and an unblemished non-conference record. The Bulldogs have outscored opponents by an average of 15.2 points per game, the 13^th biggest margin in the nation.
 
DeVries and the Bulldogs begin the final week of league play starting with the upcoming home series against Evansville before closing the regular season at Bradley.
 
2021 Werner Ladder
Naismith Men's Coach of the Year Watchlist
Casey Alexander - Belmont
Darian DeVries - Drake
Scott Drew - Baylor
Andy Enfield - USC
Mark Few - Gonzaga
Leonard Hamilton - Florida State
Chris Holtmann - Ohio State
Juwan Howard - Michigan
Bob Huggins - West Virginia
Lon Kruger - Oklahoma
Porter Moser - Loyola
Nate Oats - Alabama
Kelvin Sampson -Houston
Shaka Smart - Texas
Mike Young - Virginia Tech