THE BASICS
Drake men's basketball will play host to Evansville inside the Knapp Center on Saturday, Jan. 20 at 5 p.m. in the middle of Des Moines' Hometown Team Weekend.
DES MOINES' HOMETOWN TEAM WEEKEND
Saturday's game will be included in the third-annual Des Moines' Hometown Team Weekend. The Bulldog men and women will also host their Alumni Weekend festivities on Saturday and Sunday, respectively.
Both Bulldog teams will also be wearing their Des Moines-branded uniforms with the city's skyline featured.
BROADCAST INFORMATION
Saturday's game will be televised live on Mediacom MC22 and ESPN+ with Larry Morgan (play-by-play) and Paul Doerrfeld (analyst). Saturday's game can be heard on 1350/102.1 ESPN Des Moines and the Varsity Network App with Michael Admire (play-by-play) and Reed Timmer (analyst).
SCOUTING EVANSVILLE
The Purple Aces snapped a five-game winning streak with a 78-75 win against Valparaiso on Wednesday night. Senior forward Ben Humrichous returned to the court for Evansville after missing five games. Evansville is 11-2 this season in games that Humrichous has played as he averages 15.6 points and 5.2 rebounds.
Yacine Toumi (10.7 points per game, team-best 6.8 rebounds per game) and Chuck Bailey III (10.1 points per game) both chipped in 13 points in the victory over Valpo.
The Purple Aces enter the weekend 11-7 overall while carrying a 2-5 Missouri Valley Conference record.
David Ragland is in his second season leading the Evansville men's basketball program after assistant coaching stops at Butler, Utah State, Valparaiso, Vincennes, Northern Kentucky, Bowling Green, Indiana State and Frank Phillips College.
Evansville was picked to finish 11th this season in the MVC preseason poll.
SERIES HISTORY VS. EVANSVILLE
Series: Drake leads 31-28
Streak: Drake, W8
Last 10: Drake leads 8-2
Last Meeting: Jan. 21, 2023 | Drake won 97-61
First Meeting: Feb. 20, 1995 | Evansville won 86-72
In Des Moines: Drake leads 19-10
In Evansville: Evansville leads 17-10
A WIN WOULD...
- Extend Drake's home winning streak to 15 games.
- Improve Drake's home record this season to 10-0.
TUCKER TERRIFIC
Tucker DeVries ranks second in the MVC and 17th nationally in points per game (20.6). He has scored at least 22 points and made at least eight field goals in four of his last five games.
DeVries has scored at least 30 points in three games already this season (36 vs. Lipscomb on Nov. 8, 33 vs. Akron on Nov. 21 and 34 at Southern Illinois on Jan. 13). As only a junior, DeVries has already registered five games of scoring 30 points or more, tallying 32 points in back-to-back games last season against Valparaiso and Murray State.
On Wednesday, he surpassed Wayne Kreklow for ninth all-time in scoring in Drake men's basketball history. He is also approaching the Top-5 at Drake for most 3-point baskets made, with 206 treys, only nine 3-pointers away from passing Reed Timmer for sixth all-time.
BIG BRODIE
Darnell Brodie is playing in his sixth season of collegiate basketball. The Newark, N.J., native has grabbed at least six rebounds in 16 of his 17 games played this season. He turned in his ninth career double-double and second this season after an 11 point, 12 rebound performance at Illinois State on Wednesday.
Brodie leads the MVC in rebounds per game (8.3) and field goal percentage (65.3 percent).
PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Tucker DeVries earned his second MVC Player of the Week Award this season and the Lou Henson National Player of the Week Award. In addition, he was named to the 2023-24 Lou Henson Mid-Season Watch List. The award is presented annually to the top mid-major player in Division-I men's college basketball.
IN THE POLLS
Drake checks in at No. 8 in the latest CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top 25 and at No. 3 in the Field of 68 Media Network Cinderella Top 25.
UP NEXT
The Bulldogs head back on the road to face Missouri State on Wednesday, Jan. 24.
