The Basics
The Bulldogs's Missouri Valley Conference schedule will continue on the road this
weekend. Drake will visit Missouri State (Jan. 24) and Southern Illinois (Jan. 26) with
hopes of getting back into the win column.
Bulldog Bites
Riding a 9-game winning streak, Drake returned home for a challenging weekend versus Murray State and Belmont last weekend. The Bulldogs dropped both games to slip down the MVC standings but are still in position to make more noise in Valley play. Drake's two losses last weekend marked the first time the Bulldogs have lost two straight home games since 2022 and first 2-game losing spurt in MVC play since 2023.
Katie Dinnebier has been one of the nation's top distributors this season. She ranks second in the NCAA in total assists with 134, third in assists per game with 7.4, and 46th A/TO ratio at 2.23. Dinnebier was recently named to the Becky Hammon Mid-Major Player of the Year Midseason Watch List for the second straight year. She was a finalist for the award in 2023-24. Dinnebier's streak of MVC Player of the Week nods came to an end this week. She won five straight awards and has six on the year.
Guards
Katie Dinnebier and
Abbie Aalsma have been a dynamic duo from deep range this season. Both sharpshooters are ranked in the top six of MVC hoops in 3-point percentage with marks of .403 and .404, respectively.
Anna Miller's stranglehold on the Bulldogs' all-time blocks record has gotten even stronger. The senior forward currently has 255 career rejections. Miller leads The Valley and is 11th in the NCAA with 42 total blocks, and her average of 2.4 blocks per game is also slotted 15th nationally.
Miller and
Courtney Becker have led the Bulldogs rebounding effort to the top of the Missouri Valley Conference stat sheet this year. Those two are among the top six rebounders in the league and pace Drake's MVC-best 720 total boards and 9.3 rebounding margin. Becker is tracking down the 1,000-point mark for her career. The graduate forward currently owns 921 career points and is looking to become the 38th player in program history to reach 1,000 points.
Bulldog Leaders
Katie Dinnebier | 20.4 ppg, 7.4 apg, 4.6 rpg
Anna Miller | 15.0 ppg, 8.6 rpg, 2.7 bpg
Courtney Becker | 10.2 ppg, 8.3 rpg, 1.8 apg
Scouting Missouri State
The Lady Bears of Missouri State are 13-4 overall and 5-1 in conference action. Missouri State is 7-0 at home and currently riding a 5-game winning streak including a home sweep of Belmont and Murray State, the two teams to most recently defeat Drake. Most recently, Missouri State took down Evansville and Indiana State on the road.
Beth Cunningham is 56-26 in three seasons leading the Lady Bears. She moved to Missouri State after nine years at VCU and has amassed a 223-141 all-time record.
Drake narrowly trails Missouri State 51-48 all-time. The Bulldogs have won the last four meetings including a 76-75 buzzer-beating finish in last year's MVC Tournament championship game. The last four wins have taken place in either Des Moines or Moline, Ill. Drake is seeking its first win over the Lady Bears in Springfield since 2019.
Lady Bear Leaders
Lacy Stokes | 13.4 ppg, 4.8 rpg, 4.0 apg
Kyrah Daniels | 11.6 ppg, 5.3 rpg, 2.5 apg
Sarah Linthacum | 11.2 ppg, 5.2 rpg, 1.8 apg
Scouting Southern Illinois
Southern Illinois is currently at the bottom of the Missouri Valley Conference standings with records of 3-12 overall and 1-5 in league play. They most recently beat Evansville on the road after picking up their first MVC win over Indiana State in Terre Haute. That victory snapped a 7-game losing streak dating back to Dec. 7.
SIU is led by third-year head coach Kelly Bond-White. The Salukis have played to a 26-51 record during Bond-White's tenure.
Drake leads 68-30 in its all-time series with Southern Illinois. The Bulldogs have won the last three matchups and are looking to improve upon their 25-21 record in Carbondale.
Saluki Leaders
Gift Uchenna | 15.8 ppg, 13.4 rpg, 2.4 bpg
Kayla Cooper | 8.6 ppg, 2.9 apg, 2.6 rpg
Isabella Palmqvist | 7.1 ppg, 1.7 rpg, 0.9 apg
Up Next
Drake will return home for the first of three straight home games. The Bulldogs are set to renew their annual rivalry with UNI on Feb. 1 at 2 p.m. in the Knapp Center.
