Darnell Brodie's hot streak to end the season offers hope for Drake basketball's future
ALBANY, N.Y. — For the second time in three years, Drake men’s basketball made it to the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
But for the second time in three years, the Bulldogs lost in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Miami forced Drake out of the field with a 63-56 win, and the Bulldogs joined Iowa and Iowa State, with all three of the state's men's teams making an early exit.
Drake was hurt most by the limitations of Tucker DeVries. He played over 34 minutes but only managed one 3-pointer on 13 field goal attempts. He did pull down eight rebounds and added a block and two steals, but the offensive dominance Drake fans are accustomed to just wasn’t there.
For Miami, though, that was by design.
“There were several guys responsible for guarding him,” said Miami coach Jim Larrañaga. “The one most responsible was Wooga Poplar. So not only did he play a great offensive game, he played a great defensive game.”
Poplar — along with Harlond Beverly, Jordan Miller and Nijel Pack — held off the Bulldogs’ star 6-foot-7 sophomore when Drake needed him most.
DeVries' scoring prowess is a huge advantage for the Bulldogs. Against Miami, they also needed him for his size. But in his first-ever NCAA Tournament, DeVries just wasn’t able to put all the pieces together.
But it wasn’t all bad for the Bulldogs.
DeVries' limitations left the brunt of the work on Darnell Brodie’s shoulders, and he stepped up big time. He scored 20 points and kept things interesting down low. The Bulldogs outscored Miami, 26-10, in the paint.
Drake’s defense was also as good as it has been all year. Holding Miami to 63 points is impressive, and the Bulldogs made it difficult all night — with Miami shooting 30.4% from the field and 33.3% from beyond the arc.
That isn’t an easy feat against a starting lineup featuring four players who average double digits. Drake limited ACC Player of the Year Isaiah Wong to just five points, and Jordan Miller only managed seven.
More:Drake men's basketball can't hold off Miami in opening round of NCAA Tournament
"I was so impressed by Drake's defense," Larrañaga said. "We read about it. We saw it on tape. But not until you play against it. ...We did not play a very strong first half. A lot of credit has to go to Drake."
Brodie’s performance against the Hurricanes and the youth that Drake has in the pipeline offer hope for next season, even as Roman Penn, D.J. Wilkins and Garrett Sturtz move on after five years with the program.
It won’t be an easy transition — especially because that hope relies heavily on Brodie and DeVries both returning, Drake digging into the transfer portal and Darian DeVries sticking around as Drake’s head coach.
But there have been glimpses of success all season, and Darian DeVries has built up a program from scratch before.
“Coach has built a great program here at Drake,” Penn said. “Us coming here, we just kind of wanted to lay the blueprint down for future Bulldogs and just hope to continue the tradition and keep on winning and playing hard.
“The ceiling is super high for these guys, and with coach in the hands of the program, the sky’s the limit.”
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: Darnell Brodie offers hope as Drake men's basketball looks to rebuild
