The Drake Bulldog men’s and women’s basketball teams have gone 2-0 and 0-2 this past week against four different opponents. Drake men’s basketball faced off on Nov. 10 when the team hosted Stephen F. Austin University Lumberjacks in what would be a close matchup followed by a game against Florida Gulf Coast University on Nov. 16. at home as well. The women’s team took on Creighton University on Nov. 11 with a game against the University of Iowa Hawkeyes on Nov. 17.
Men’s vs. SFA
Drake stayed close in score with the Lumberjacks and was only down by one at halftime with a score of 26-25.
In the second half, though, the Bulldogs managed to pull away, out-scoring the Lumberjacks 41-25 and bringing them to a 66-51 win. Guard Mitch Mascari scored 26 points, with forward Cam Manyawu and guard Bennett Stirtz both clocking in with 13 points each.
“We [are] still learning each game, but SFA was a physical team, and we still did a good job getting the ball up the floor quickly,” Stirtz said. “We learned a lot about our team as well from this game. Even though we had a rough first half and faced some adversity, we still didn’t quit and came out of halftime with a lot of confidence.”
Women’s vs. Creighton
Drake’s women’s team also played this week, but this time the Bulldogs were away in Omaha, Neb. to battle against the Creighton Bluejays. The team had a difficult time getting fired up against the Bluejays, with both teams struggling to find the basket in the first few minutes of the game.
The first quarter score was only 19-17 with Creighton in the lead, leaving both fans on both sides wanting more. Both teams were able to come back from this start though, and unfortunately for the Bulldogs, the team was only able to outscore Creighton 19-17 in the third quarter, leaving them searching for points in the fourth quarter.
It wasn’t enough, and the Bulldogs fell to the Bluejays 80-72. Forward Courtney Becker had 21 points for the night, followed by Anna Miller’s 18 and Katie Dinnebier’s 15. This loss notched the Bulldogs to a 2-1 record before going into their weekend game against the Hawkeyes.
Men’s vs. FGCU
On Nov. 16, the men’s basketball team took on the Florida Gulf Coast University Eagles in a nail-biter contest. Stirtz came out of the gates with 25 points and seven rebounds, while forward Daniel Abreu had 17 points.
FGCU outscored Drake 31-30 in the first half and fell behind in the second, with Drake outshooting the Eagles 33-30. With only 24 seconds left on the clock, Abreu sank a three-point shot that brought the Bulldogs from 60-61 deficit to a 63-61 lead that helped the team advance the season record to 3-0.
This game was an important experience for the team’s next game against the University of Miami Florida Hurricanes on Nov. 21 at 11 a.m. for the Shriners Children Charleston Classic in Charleston, South Carolina. This game will be a rematch of the 2022-23 first round of March Madness, where the Hurricanes beat the Bulldogs 63-56 and made it to the Final Four before losing to the University of Connecticut 72-59.
Women’s vs. Iowa
Last in the week, the women’s team took on the 2023-24 March Madness runner ups: the University of Iowa Hawkeyes. This game had emotions high as Iowa’s coach, Jan Jenson, had previously had her number retired from her time as a Bulldog player and then a Bulldog coach before handing the torch to current head coach Allison Pohlman when the Hawkeyes offered her an assistant coaching job.
The Knapp Center was sold out for the 50th Anniversary Celebration of women’s basketball at Drake, with Iowa fans traveling from Iowa City to watch the game. This game would not disappoint, either. Drake pulled out every stop it could against the Hawkeyes knowing that the program is one of the best in the country and, in doing so, the Bulldogs’ Dinnebier made history.
Dinnebier had the first 40-point game in nine years for a Drake player since forward Lizzy Wendell scored 43 points against Missouri State in 2015. Dinnebier’s 40 points performance was the second highest by a female player in the NCAA this 2024-25 season, trailing Harvard University’s Harmoni Turner 41-point game against Boston College on Nov. 14.
This game was also important for Miller as she had a career high 10 rebounds that marked her 33rd 10+ rebound game of her career and her third this season alone. Although the team lost 86-73, this game was a milestone for the Bulldogs who proved that they can keep up with one of the countries’ top teams. With this strong showing under their belt, despite falling slightly short, this game provided motivation for the growing program.
“I think we had great energy against Iowa and the atmosphere was very cool to be a part of,” sophomore guard Brooklin Dailey said. “We have already improved so much and to think it’s just November makes me so excited to see our growth [through] March.”
The team will play the No. 8 team in the nation, the Iowa State University Cyclones, in Ames, Iowa, on Nov. 24 at 2 p.m., when the team plans to take home a win for the second year in a row against its state-school rivals.
