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WICHITA, Kan. — There are very few certainties during March Madness, as the name implies.
From top-seeded teams losing in early rounds to players carrying their squads with displays of individual excellence, expecting the unexpected is the best approach to a month full of unpredictable moments.
But if there is one thread that serves as a common denominator among all the madness, it’s that people love the Cinderella story.
Each year, like clockwork, a handful of teams achieve success beyond what was expected. In the NCAA Tournament, it lends to some interesting storylines. And for fans of college basketball, those teams often serve as a unifier, a rallying point.
And throughout 33 games leading into March Madness, Drake basketball turned into that team.
Look up articles on Cinderella picks from before the start of the tournament, and the Bulldogs were included in breakdowns from the big names in sports journalism. The Athletic, ESPN, Fox Sports, Sports Illustrated, USA TODAY – it was Drake’s world, and seemingly every reporter was happy to be living in it.
But sometimes entering the tournament as a beloved – and hyped-up – underdog puts a team on too high of a pedestal, and that fall from the top hurts.
“I wish it wasn’t over,” Drake guard Mitch Mascari said after Saturday's 77-64 loss to Texas Tech in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. “But that’s the way it goes sometimes. I mean, this team is really special.”
The SparkNotes version of the Bulldogs became this: First-year head coach Ben McCollum rebuilt a depleted roster, mostly with Division II talent, and led Drake (31-4) to its winningest season in program history.
And nothing – regardless of a second-round exit or what could occur after – can take away from what the dozen players and six coaches accomplished.
More: The best college basketball coach you've never heard of is from Storm Lake, Iowa
Saturday marked the end of a roller coaster year for Bulldogs basketball fans.
Less than one year ago, Darian DeVries departed Des Moines for the Appalachian Mountains of West Virginia. It took only a matter of weeks for the Bulldogs to lose all but two players to the transfer portal.
After six seasons of success – 20-plus wins for half a dozen years and three appearances in the NCAA Tournament – Drake basketball was left decimated.
And then, athletic director Brian Hardin hired McCollum.
And that’s when it became all about trusting the process.
“I remember walking into the Knapp Center and looking around, like, 'What in the world did I just do?'” McCollum shared. “Not in a bad way, but kind of in a bad way. You’re away from your family for a lot of time. You move your family.
“Once the summer started and I got to be with these guys again, it made it all better. They kind of got me through some of those things.”
McCollum didn’t finalize his roster until the summer. His schedule wasn’t complete until the program’s annual media day in mid-October. The Bulldogs cruised past York University in the season opener, but that didn’t accurately reflect this team’s potential.
The wins against teams like Kansas State and Vanderbilt did, though.
Those victories rolled into a dominant run against Missouri Valley Conference competition – marred, maybe, by three losses in the regular season. But those losses were old news by the time the Bulldogs hoisted the championship trophy in St. Louis.
The road continued on to the NCAA Tournament in Wichita, to a victory over Missouri, to Drake’s first second-round appearance since 1971.
More: Drake basketball legend Dolph Pulliam sees similarities between Bulldogs in 1969 and 2025
The March Madness run earned the team plenty of fans outside of Des Moines – those wholly unfamiliar with this tiny but mighty mid-major program– who were rooting for the Bulldogs’ success.
“The support’s been unreal,” redshirt senior Nate Ferguson shared. “That’s always something you want to see, especially when we’ve had continuous good years. It’s just fun basketball that we’ve been playing and I hope that it continues.”
Zeros on the clock and the blare of a buzzer.
Saturday's loss marked the end the college basketball careers of Ferguson, Daniel Abreu, Isaiah Jackson and Mascari. Ferguson stuck with the Bulldogs through the coaching change, acting as the symbol of consistency and loyalty in the non-stop world of the transfer portal.
Those latter three players – Abreu, Jackson and Mascari – brought new life to a team surrounded by question marks. Without hesitation, that trio played supporting parts to Bennett Stirtz, who emerged as one of the best point guards in the country.
All the pieces fell together for Drake, and fans grew to love a group of players and coaches who were strangers only a few months ago.
From a pint-sized superfan to an uptick of ticket holders sporting McCollum's signature dress shirt and blue tie look, Bulldogs fans bought in to everything about this team. Their basketball team, in return, gave them a 30-plus-win season and a slightly extended trip to the NCAA Tournament.
None of that would’ve happened without the right coach, the right players, the right people.
More: Drake basketball: Meet the 6-year-old fan who dresses like Bulldogs coach Ben McCollum
“How do you build a culture?” McCollum expressed. “There’s no building it. There’s getting the right people. I’ve been blessed to be around the right people.”
McCollum stood firm in one belief all season: that his team could find success, despite all the asterisks associated with Drake basketball this season. Despite an earlier-than-hoped-for exit from March Madness, this season was a success.
Just look at how people around the country rallied behind the Bulldogs, how Drake became an easy Cinderella pick.
Because this is the type of underdog-to-top-dog story written in fairytales.
Alyssa Hertel is the college sports recruiting reporter for the Des Moines Register. Contact Alyssa at [email protected] or on Twitter @AlyssaHertel.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Drake basketball's season of success ends in March Madness 2nd round
Continue reading...
From top-seeded teams losing in early rounds to players carrying their squads with displays of individual excellence, expecting the unexpected is the best approach to a month full of unpredictable moments.
But if there is one thread that serves as a common denominator among all the madness, it’s that people love the Cinderella story.
Each year, like clockwork, a handful of teams achieve success beyond what was expected. In the NCAA Tournament, it lends to some interesting storylines. And for fans of college basketball, those teams often serve as a unifier, a rallying point.
And throughout 33 games leading into March Madness, Drake basketball turned into that team.
Look up articles on Cinderella picks from before the start of the tournament, and the Bulldogs were included in breakdowns from the big names in sports journalism. The Athletic, ESPN, Fox Sports, Sports Illustrated, USA TODAY – it was Drake’s world, and seemingly every reporter was happy to be living in it.
But sometimes entering the tournament as a beloved – and hyped-up – underdog puts a team on too high of a pedestal, and that fall from the top hurts.
You must be registered for see images attach
“I wish it wasn’t over,” Drake guard Mitch Mascari said after Saturday's 77-64 loss to Texas Tech in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. “But that’s the way it goes sometimes. I mean, this team is really special.”
The SparkNotes version of the Bulldogs became this: First-year head coach Ben McCollum rebuilt a depleted roster, mostly with Division II talent, and led Drake (31-4) to its winningest season in program history.
And nothing – regardless of a second-round exit or what could occur after – can take away from what the dozen players and six coaches accomplished.
More: The best college basketball coach you've never heard of is from Storm Lake, Iowa
Bulldogs cap a whirlwind season with a trip to the NCAA Tournament
Saturday marked the end of a roller coaster year for Bulldogs basketball fans.
Less than one year ago, Darian DeVries departed Des Moines for the Appalachian Mountains of West Virginia. It took only a matter of weeks for the Bulldogs to lose all but two players to the transfer portal.
After six seasons of success – 20-plus wins for half a dozen years and three appearances in the NCAA Tournament – Drake basketball was left decimated.
And then, athletic director Brian Hardin hired McCollum.
And that’s when it became all about trusting the process.
“I remember walking into the Knapp Center and looking around, like, 'What in the world did I just do?'” McCollum shared. “Not in a bad way, but kind of in a bad way. You’re away from your family for a lot of time. You move your family.
“Once the summer started and I got to be with these guys again, it made it all better. They kind of got me through some of those things.”
McCollum didn’t finalize his roster until the summer. His schedule wasn’t complete until the program’s annual media day in mid-October. The Bulldogs cruised past York University in the season opener, but that didn’t accurately reflect this team’s potential.
You must be registered for see images attach
The wins against teams like Kansas State and Vanderbilt did, though.
Those victories rolled into a dominant run against Missouri Valley Conference competition – marred, maybe, by three losses in the regular season. But those losses were old news by the time the Bulldogs hoisted the championship trophy in St. Louis.
The road continued on to the NCAA Tournament in Wichita, to a victory over Missouri, to Drake’s first second-round appearance since 1971.
More: Drake basketball legend Dolph Pulliam sees similarities between Bulldogs in 1969 and 2025
The March Madness run earned the team plenty of fans outside of Des Moines – those wholly unfamiliar with this tiny but mighty mid-major program– who were rooting for the Bulldogs’ success.
“The support’s been unreal,” redshirt senior Nate Ferguson shared. “That’s always something you want to see, especially when we’ve had continuous good years. It’s just fun basketball that we’ve been playing and I hope that it continues.”
From Division II to dancing, Drake wrote its own story this season
Zeros on the clock and the blare of a buzzer.
Saturday's loss marked the end the college basketball careers of Ferguson, Daniel Abreu, Isaiah Jackson and Mascari. Ferguson stuck with the Bulldogs through the coaching change, acting as the symbol of consistency and loyalty in the non-stop world of the transfer portal.
Those latter three players – Abreu, Jackson and Mascari – brought new life to a team surrounded by question marks. Without hesitation, that trio played supporting parts to Bennett Stirtz, who emerged as one of the best point guards in the country.
All the pieces fell together for Drake, and fans grew to love a group of players and coaches who were strangers only a few months ago.
You must be registered for see images
From a pint-sized superfan to an uptick of ticket holders sporting McCollum's signature dress shirt and blue tie look, Bulldogs fans bought in to everything about this team. Their basketball team, in return, gave them a 30-plus-win season and a slightly extended trip to the NCAA Tournament.
None of that would’ve happened without the right coach, the right players, the right people.
More: Drake basketball: Meet the 6-year-old fan who dresses like Bulldogs coach Ben McCollum
“How do you build a culture?” McCollum expressed. “There’s no building it. There’s getting the right people. I’ve been blessed to be around the right people.”
McCollum stood firm in one belief all season: that his team could find success, despite all the asterisks associated with Drake basketball this season. Despite an earlier-than-hoped-for exit from March Madness, this season was a success.
Just look at how people around the country rallied behind the Bulldogs, how Drake became an easy Cinderella pick.
Because this is the type of underdog-to-top-dog story written in fairytales.
Alyssa Hertel is the college sports recruiting reporter for the Des Moines Register. Contact Alyssa at [email protected] or on Twitter @AlyssaHertel.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Drake basketball's season of success ends in March Madness 2nd round
Continue reading...
