Breaking down Drake men's basketball's NCAA Tournament first-round matchup against Miami

ALBANY, N.Y. – Roman Penn spent the last five years setting program records and becoming one of the top guards to play for Drake men’s basketball.

The Bulldogs' all-time assists leader has started all but two games during his time in Des Moines, and he averages 11.5 points and 4.8 assists over the past four seasons. His on-court success helped Drake to the Midwest Regional of the NCAA Tournament.

But this won’t be the first time Penn plays college basketball in upstate New York.

Penn began his career at Siena College, meaning he played his first 23 games of college ball at MVP Arena – which is where Drake will take on Miami on Friday at 6:25 p.m. CT. It will be a full-circle moment for a player in his last year of eligibility.

“I’m actually happy to be back in the area,” Penn said. “I wanted to go back and visit one day. But being able to go for the tournament is even crazier. To go out there and play in the arena that I played my first year at, I think that’s really cool.”

Penn expects a good turnout by basketball fans in Albany for all the first- and second-round games, describing people from the area as having a great love for not only the Siena basketball program but also for the sport in general.

Here is what else Drake fans should know before the Bulldogs take on Miami:

Key matchup: Isaiah Wong vs. Roman Penn

There are a lot of playmakers on both rosters, but Drake’s success could depend on Penn’s success, much like Miami’s will depend on Wong's.

Let’s start with Wong. The 6-foot-4 junior guard averages 16.2 points, 4.3 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game. Not only is he dangerous on offense, but he is an effective part of Miami’s defense, as well. He has the obvious size advantage over Penn, and most likely won't be guarded by the Drake graduate student, so this isn't exactly a head-to-head matchup.

Penn enters the first-round matchup averaging 12.6 points, 4.6 rebounds and 5.4 assists per game. The reason Penn is a key factor here — and not Tucker DeVries — is that he backs his offensive prowess with some major contributions on defense. Penn could struggle against some much larger opponents, but that’s where his ability to create opportunities comes in handy.

He will most likely be guarded by Nijel Pack, a 6-foot sophomore who transferred to Miami from Kansas State.

“He was actually our leading scorer in the month of February,” Miami coach Jim Larrañaga said. “To be able to do that and still get everybody else involved is terrific. He’s a catalyst on defense. He always guards the opposing team’s point guard and he’s doing a terrific job at that end of the floor, as well.”

Size vs. rest

Miami puts out four guards in its starting lineup: Wong, Pack, Jordan Miller and Wooga Poplar. Miller is the tallest, at 6-foot-7, but the Hurricanes start only one true post player in 6-7 Norchad Omier. And that is if Omier is healthy.

Drake does have one size advantage in Darnell Brodie. He’s 6-10, 275 pounds, and when he can play his style of basketball — and stay out of foul trouble — the Bulldogs are hard to beat. Aside from Brodie and 6-7 Tucker DeVries, though, the remainder of Drake’s starters are 6-3 or shorter.

What Miami lacks in defense, it makes up for in size — and high-scoring size at that. Four of the Hurricanes’ five starters average double digit points per game. Miami comes into this game ready to score at a high clip. Even though Drake has been solid on defense, it could be tough going against an obvious size disadvantage.

“Just playing our standard defense,” D.J. Wilkins said. “They have a lot of guys (who) can get going and really talented guys. Just trying to make them a little bit uncomfortable and just try to keep everything in front of us and make them take tough shots.”

The Bulldogs also had nearly two weeks off since their last game. When Drake takes the floor against Miami, it will have been 12 days since its championship win over Bradley. Rest can be helpful, especially since the Bulldogs have an older roster.

But it can also be difficult to get back into game mode after that amount of time off. Miami comes into the game after a week since an early exit in the ACC Tournament.

Has Miami learned not to overestimate MVC opponents?

The Hurricanes have faced a Missouri Valley Conference team in the first round of the tournament before.

In 2018, Miami (then a six-seed) played 11-seeded Loyola in the first round. The Ramblers beat the Hurricanes, 64-62, and then eliminated three more teams (Tennessee, Nevada, Kansas State) en route to the Final Four.

Without making assumptions, it seemed like Loyola was able to fly under the radar. That could’ve given them an edge against tougher competition.

Drake, though, is not flying under the radar. The Bulldogs have a legitimate chance of upsetting Miami, and the Hurricanes might use that as fuel. While none of the Hurricanes starters were on the 2018 squad, Larrañaga was in charge of that Miami squad, and he hasn't forgotten the last time his team went up against an MVC opponent.

“We faced Wichita State back in 2006,” Larrañaga said. “We played Creighton that same year and they beat us by 22, so I remember that very, very clearly.

“We have the utmost respect for the Missouri Valley Conference. It’s a basketball league ... And Drake right now is really on a roll.”

Will Norchad Omier be healthy for Miami’s first-round matchup?

Omier turned his ankle early on in Miami’s ACC Tournament semifinal loss against Duke, so a little less than a week has passed since that issue arose. It is because of his injury that the Bulldogs became a popular upset pick.

The Hurricanes will need their big man to go up against Drake and Brodie. Omier averages 13.6 points and 9.7 rebounds per game, and he is Miami’s main presence inside. Larrañaga said that Omier would be a decision after the team's shootaround on Thursday.

By all accounts from that session, Omier should play against Drake. He was able to run around, take shots and throw down a couple dunks. But warmup sessions are different than games, and Omier might not be at full-strength.

Alyssa Hertel is the college sports recruiting reporter for the Des Moines Register. Contact Alyssa at ahertel@dmreg.com or on Twitter @AlyssaHertel.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Here's what could impact Drake basketball's matchup against Miami