The Drake basketball program has taken a number of steps this season and now the Bulldogs hope for a strong finish as they get set to open the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament tonight in St. Louis against Evansville.
At 16-14 overall the Bulldogs have clinched the program’s first winning season in two decades and this season has also included a sweep of the in-state games and a pair of tournament titles. Drake coach Tom Davis says they can’t take away what they’ve already accomplished, you can only improve on it. Davis says some things you can’t control, but you can control how hard you play.
Davis says despite all that has been accomplished he does not want his team to be satisfied. He says they set high goals and have hit some of them along the way, but the ultimate goal is to play in the post season.
Drake and Evansville split their two regular season matchups. Davis says this time of year it comes down to one or two players stepping up.
It has been a banner year for the Valley and Davis says the tournament will be a great way to cap it off. Evansville finished the regular season 14-16.