2026–27 Drake Bulldogs men's basketball team
American college basketball season
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The 2026–27 Drake Bulldogs men's basketball team will represent Drake University in the 2026–27 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Bulldogs, led by Eric Henderson in his second season as head coach, will play their home games at the Knapp Center in Des Moines, Iowa as members of the Missouri Valley Conference (MVC).
- Eric Henderson (2nd season)
- Rob Klinkefus
- Tramel Barnes
- Billy Brown
- Warren Niles
- Gavin Block
| 2026–27 Drake Bulldogs men's basketball | |
|---|---|
![](#/media/File:Drake_Bulldogs_"D"_logo.svg){kind=logo} | |
| Conference | Missouri Valley Conference |
| Record | 0–0 (0–0 MVC) |
| Head coach |
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| Assistant coaches |
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| Home arena | Knapp Center (Capacity: 6,424) |
| Conf. | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Team | W | L | PCT | W | L | PCT | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Belmont | 0 | – | 0 | – | 0 | – | 0 | – | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bradley | 0 | – | 0 | – | 0 | – | 0 | – | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Drake | 0 | – | 0 | – | 0 | – | 0 | – | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Evansville | 0 | – | 0 | – | 0 | – | 0 | – | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Illinois State | 0 | – | 0 | – | 0 | – | 0 | – | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Indiana State | 0 | – | 0 | – | 0 | – | 0 | – | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Murray State | 0 | – | 0 | – | 0 | – | 0 | – | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Northern Iowa | 0 | – | 0 | – | 0 | – | 0 | – | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Southern Illinois | 0 | – | 0 | – | 0 | – | 0 | – | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| UIC | 0 | – | 0 | – | 0 | – | 0 | – | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Valparaiso | 0 | – | 0 | – | 0 | – | 0 | – | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| † 2027 MVC tournament winner | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Bulldogs will have a returning head coach and several returning players for the first time since the 2023–24 season.
Previous season
The Bulldogs entered the 2025-26 season as the defending Arch Madness champions and were picked to finish sixth in the conference for the upcoming season.[1]
The Bulldogs finished the 2025–26 season 14–20, 6–14 in MVC play to finish in ninth place. In the MVC tournament, they defeated Southern Illinois before upsetting the top-seeded Belmont Bruins in the quarterfinal. However, the Bulldogs would lose in the semifinal to the eventual tournament runner-up UIC Flames.[2][3] Drake's 14-20 record marked the team's lowest win percentage since the 2016-17 season, in which the Bulldogs went 7-24, with head coach Ray Giacoletti resigning after 8 games.[4][5]
Offseason
Departures
| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Reason for departure |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Braden Appelhans | 0 | G | 6'6" | 190 | RS Jr | Blue Springs, MO | Transferred to Xavier |
| Jalen Quinn | 3 | G | 6'3" | 190 | Sr | Tuscola, IL | Graduated |
| Wilguens Jr. Exacte | 7 | F | 6'6" | 230 | Jr | Montreal, QC | Transferred to Mount St. Mary's |
| Okku Federiko | 8 | F | 6'9" | 210 | So | Helsinki, FI | Transferred to Northwestern |
| Jaehshon Thomas | 22 | G | 6'3" | 185 | Sr | Aurora, IL | Graduated |
| Isaiah Carr | 24 | C | 6'11" | 235 | Sr | Las Cruces, NM | Graduated |
| Heri Bukinga | 32 | F/C | 6'11 | 235 | RS Fr | Goma, DRC | Transferred to Omaha |
Incoming transfers
| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Previous School |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Justin Burns | 5 | F | 6'6" | 205 | Jr | Albany, GA | Northwest Florida |
| Jon Carroll | 22 | F | 6'7" | 215 | Sr | Tallahassee, FL | Morehead State |
| Dre Kindell | 3 | G | 6'0" | 175 | Sr | Cincinnati, OH | Wichita State |
| Gabe Oldham | 32 | F | 6'8" | 230 | Sr | Tucson, AZ | Denver |
2026 Recruiting Class
| Name | Hometown | School | Height | Weight | Commit date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gio Quiles SG |
Des Moines, IA | Dowling Catholic HS | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | 195 lb (88 kg) | May 1, 2026 | |
Recruit ratings: 247Sports:  | ||||||
| Dothan Ijadimbola SF |
Brooklyn Park, MN | Totino-Grace HS | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 180 lb (82 kg) | Aug 4, 2025 | |
| Recruit ratings: 247Sports: | ||||||
| Miles Flemons C |
Tulsa, OK | Union HS (OK) | 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) | 255 lb (116 kg) | Sep 15, 2025 | |
| Recruit ratings: 247Sports: | ||||||
| Overall recruit ranking: On3: - ESPN: - | ||||||
Sources:
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Preseason
On April 23, it was announced that Drake would participate in the 2026 Hall of Fame Classic at the T-Mobile Center in Kansas City. The Bulldogs will face off against Wichita State on December 18 as part of a doubleheader which also includes Iowa State taking on Missouri State. The last time the Bulldogs and Shockers faced off was in the 2021 NCAA Tournament First Four, where Drake emerged victorious 53–52 and won their first NCAA Tournament game in 50 years.[6]
Roster
| 2026–27 Drake Bulldogs men's basketball team | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Players | Coaches | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Roster | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Schedule and results
| Date time, TV |
Rank# | Opponent# | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site (attendance) city, state | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Regular Season | |||||||||||
| November 4* TBD, TBD |
Central (IA) | Knapp Center Des Moines, IA | |||||||||
| November 8* TBD, TBD |
Southern | Knapp Center Des Moines, IA | |||||||||
| November 13* TBD, TBD |
South Dakota | Knapp Center Des Moines, IA | |||||||||
| November 16* TBD, TBD |
Tarleton State | Knapp Center Des Moines, IA | |||||||||
| November 19* TBD, TBD |
Charleston | Knapp Center Des Moines, IA | |||||||||
| November 21st* TBD, TBD |
at Missouri State | Great Southern Bank Arena Springfield, MO | |||||||||
| November 27* TBD, TBD |
vs. Boise State Snake River Invitational |
Mountain America Center Idaho Falls, ID | |||||||||
| November 28* TBD |
Snake River Invitational |
Mountain America Center Idaho Falls, ID | |||||||||
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| December 18 TBD, TBD |
vs. Wichita State Hall of Fame Classic |
T-Mobile Center Kansas City, MO | |||||||||
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| Conference Tournament | |||||||||||
| March 2027 TBD |
(#) | vs. (#) TBD Arch Madness Opening Round |
Enterprise Center St. Louis, MO | ||||||||
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Central Time Zone. | |||||||||||
Source
See also
- 2026–27 Drake Bulldogs women's basketball team