Four Things To Know: Mizzou Faces Drake in Round One of March Madness

A deep dive into the Tigers' first-round opponent in the NCAA tournament.

Mar 9, 2025; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; Drake Bulldogs forward Nate Ferguson (24) guard Isaiah Jackson (4) guard Mitch Mascari (22) and forward Daniel Abreu (54) hold the trophy after defeating the Bradley Braves to win the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament Championship at Enterprise Center. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-Imagn Images / Jeff Curry-Imagn Images

Nothing about the upcoming matchup for the Missouri Tigers will be easy. In round one of the NCAA tournament, the No. 6 Tigers will challenge the No. 11 Drake Bulldogs, the champions out of the Missouri Valley who finished the season with a 30-3 overall record.

Simply put, Drake is a scary round-one matchup that most Tiger fans probably didn't think they would see that early on. Landing a six-seed came as a bit of a surprise to many, but it also changed the outlook of their first-round opponent.

Two of this year's 11 seeds, including Drake, were low-loss conference champions. Those aren't teams you want to play early on, even if they came from a less competitive league. The others on the 11-seed line are teams that barely squeaked into March Madness. The point being, Drake is not a team you want to face in the first round. At all.

It doesn't matter if new head coach Ben McCollum brought along a brand new roster with him, because they played like a veteran group all year. The Bulldogs probably even played good enough to earn an at-large bid into the tournament if they stumbled in the Missouri Valley Championship.

With the game just days away, here are four things to know about the Drake Bulldogs ahead of the looming matchup in Wichita.

A brand new team

With the transfer portal and the constant changing of the guard at the head coaching spot for mid-major universities, it's not uncommon that non-power conference squads have to completely rebuild once every few years. That was the case for the Bulldogs, who brought in a new head coach and only retained one rotational player from the year before.

McCollum, who previously dominated the Division 2 level at Northwest Missouri State, was quickly called upon to be the head coach of the Bulldogs after Darian DeVries accepted the position at West Virginia. When DeVries left, so did most of the team, forcing McCollum to construct a brand-new roster of his own.

McCollum did the easiest thing to do when hunting in the transfer portal by bringing guys along from his prior team. He added four former Bearcats to his team in Bennett Stirtz, Daniel Abreu, Mitch Mascari and Isaiah Jackson. Despite being Division 2 players, that decision worked out well. Abreu and Mascari are very high-impact players and Stirtz is flirting with All-American status after an impressive season.

Mar 9, 2025; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; Drake Bulldogs guard Mitch Mascari (22) reacts during the second half of the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament Championship against the Bradley Braves at Enterprise Center. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-Imagn Images / Jeff Curry-Imagn Images

The other additions include Tavion Banks, who previously played for Northwest Florida State College, a junior college in Niceville, Florida. Forward Cam Manyawu was another impact player, who played his freshman season last year for the Wyoming Cowboys. Teammate Kael Combs also came from the Cowboys but held a smaller role for the Bulldogs this season.

Freshman Isaia Howard was the only true freshman to earn significant minutes this season, playing 15.4 per game. He's another example of the underdog story that is playing for McCollum and the Bulldogs, holding only two Division 1 offers out of high school.

McCollum had all of his success with only one returning rotation player from last season, senior forward Nate Ferguson. It was his fifth year with the program and despite having a small role, his leadership and experience in the conference are evident.

Bringing along a completely new roster is not only risky but scary as well. It lowers the expectations for a team, especially when the majority of it comes from the junior college or Division 2 ranks. That makes Drake's success that much more impressive.

You have to stop Stirtz

The Bennett Stirtz that exploded onto the scene for Drake was not the same Bennett Stirtz that played two years at Northwest Missouri State. He was solid and certainly a reason for their success, but he was nowhere close to the 19.1 point-per-game, potential All-American player he is now.

Where that leap came from doesn't matter. What does is that he's leading one of the scariest teams in the country at his own pace. Despite being listed at 6-foot-4, 180 pounds, Stirtz is the true commander of Drake's offense. His team-leading 5.7 assists per game is proof of that, as is his tenacity and clear knowledge of the game.

Mar 9, 2025; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; Drake Bulldogs guard Bennett Stirtz (14) reacts during the second half of the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament Championship against the Bradley Braves at Enterprise Center. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-Imagn Images / Jeff Curry-Imagn Images

Stirtz's shooting numbers also back up him being one of the best players in the country. He's shooting 49.3% from the field, 79.5% from the free throw line and 38.6% from the perimeter. As a college basketball player, it seems like there isn't much he can do.

He will undoubtedly be the main defensive priority for Missouri. Giving guards Anthony Robinson II or Tony Perkins likely makes the most sense for Stirtz, especially since they both defend with the physicality needed to shut down a player of his caliber. He is crafty when it comes to drawing fouls, however, which is an area that Robinson has faced issues in this season.

People may not have known about him beforehand, but after a series of impressive games and his team's success this season, Stirtz is now widely regarded as one of the best guards in the country. If it weren't for his consistency as a point guard and a leader, that might not be the case. Eliminating him from the game will be a challenge for Missouri, so minimizing him in some way has to be the main goal.

Moving in slow-motion

Regardless of your metric system of choice, it will probably tell you that the Drake Bulldogs are the slowest playing team in all of college basketball. They don't like to get out and run in transition or kill teams on fast breaks. McCollum prides himself on getting into half-court sets and executing them to perfection.

KenPom has the Bulldogs ranked last in adjusted tempo and Evan Miyakawa has them ranked last in true tempo. Even if the numbers don't make sense, there is a common theme surrounding the speed at which Drake's offense operates.

Stirtz is the main proprietor of that pace. He is slow and methodical and knows exactly how to operate half-court offense. That speed also bleeds into the points per game area, where the Bulldogs average only 70.1 per game. That being said, Drake is also great at getting opponents to lean into the style and speed that they want.

Dec 17, 2024; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Drake Bulldogs guard Isaiah Jackson (4) drives against Kansas State Wildcats guard David N'Guessan (1) during the second half at T-Mobile Center. Mandatory Credit: Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images / Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images

This is where things get tricky for Missouri. The Tigers are a much faster playing team than their 11-seed opponent and they also score much more. Missouri thrives on a fast-paced game and against SEC teams that played slower, like Tennessee and Texas A&M, they struggled. Whichever team can establish their desired game speed first will have an immediate advantage in round one.

Drake's efficient duo

According to Evan Miyakawa's analytic rankings, the best duo on the court for the Bulldogs at any moment is Abreu and Mascari. The chemistry they play with seeps back into their Northwest Missouri State days and it's clear when they share playing time.

That same analytic measurement lists the duo with the best raw offensive and defensive efficiency ratings. Abreu is a forward and Mascari is a guard and they play off of each other with their positions in mind. Whether it's a two-man game or sharper passing, the duo is efficient in everything they do.

Drake's Daniel Abreu (54) takes a three-point shot from the corner on Monday, Nov. 4, 2024, at the Knapp Center. / Cody Scanlan/The Register / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

There are a lot of players the Tigers need to stop, but Abreu and Mascari need to be toward the top of the list. That doesn't just mean preventing them from scoring, as well. They're all good passers, screeners and defenders, so finding ways to minimize their impact on both sides of the ball will be important.

Most of the offensive attention (justifiably) will be on Stirtz. That's where these two come in, with both shooting above 35% from three and nearly above 40% from the field. Mascari is a 41% outside shooter, which is the highest mark on the team. The best perimeter threat on Drake also averages 1.4 steals per game as well.

There are impact players everywhere on the roster, many of which bring their unique skills to the table. That player-to-player versatility is what makes Drake such a challenge to play against. Missouri will have a lot to deal with when it comes to preparing for and playing against the Drake Bulldogs and they very well could be on upset watch.

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