The Drake Bulldogs are at home tonight in Missouri Valley Conference play to take on Indiana State. The Bulldogs are 1-6 in the Valley and coach Tom Davis has tried a number of different lineups to get things going. Davis says when you lose you change to relieve some pressure on guys who were starting, but not playing well. But Davis says the changes won’t be too extreme.
Indiana State has the edge in terms of preparation. This will be Drake’s third game in six days while the Sycamores have not played since Saturday. Davis says once you get past three or four days that’s not a big deal, but he says when one team has just a few days and the other has several, that’s a "tremendous advantage."
Indiana State coach Royce Waltman says they needed some extra time to prepare for the Bulldogs. Waltman says Drake has a different style than most and it takes time to get ready. Indiana State is 4-2 in the Valley and got a big confidence boost in their first matchup with Drake. The Sycamores erased an 17 point deficit for an 84-73 win back on December 30th.
Indiana State is 11-5 overall. Drake is 10-8.