The Madness Begins, with Drake’s Bennett Stirtz — HPP S4-E20

Rich Harris, Drew Barton, Joey Bardack, and Josh Tischler make predictions for the conference tournaments that are tipping off this week, talk about the latest hot topics in a new College Notebook, and sit down with one of the most intriguing stars in college basketball this season, Drake point guard Bennett Stirtz.

Transferring to Drake in the offseason, Stirtz and three other teammates followed Coach Ben McCollum from Northwest Missouri State, where McCollum won four DII national championships.  The four former Northwest Missouri State players are all starting this season for the Bulldogs, who have defeated teams such as Vanderbilt and Kansas State on the way to a 27-3 record.

Heading into Arch Madness (the MVC Tourney), Stirtz is the heavy favorite to win the Missouri Valley Conference POY award this season.  He is leading the MVC in plus-minus (9.8), offensive (131.4) and defensive rating (97.1), points per game (18.9), assists per game (5.9), steals per game (2.2), and minutes per game (39.4).  The 6-foot-4 junior is also averaging 4.4 rebounds per game while shooting 50% from the field, 38% from deep, and 79% from the foul line. Lastly, he leads the nation in both minutes played (1180) and win shares (7.8).

CHAPTERS:

1.  College Notebook (1:12)

• The guys’ observations from recent games attended
• St. John’s wins first Big East Title in 40 Years
• Mike Young will be returning next year for Virginia Tech 
• Jaxson Robinson OUT for the year  — can Kentucky recover?
• Hoosiers back in the Dance?
• Ohio State’s recent struggles
• Gonzaga back on track?

2.  Bennett Stirtz Interview (44:14)

3.  Picks of the Week — Conference Tournament Picks (1:01:19)

• American East 
• Atlantic Sun 
• Big Sky 
• Big South 
• Coastal Athletic 
• Horizon
• Missouri Valley 
• Northeast 
• Ohio Valley 
• Patriot League 
• Southern 
• Southland 
• Summit League 
• Sun Belt