Parkside Wrap-Up

Well, last night wasn't close by any means, which is a good thing. Not a ton you can necessarily take away from it against such an inferior team, but there sure were some good signs. Here's what I posted today on DrakeNation:

Season ticket holder, was there last night. Few thoughts stuck out:

1. The defensive effort, particularly in the first half, was outstanding. We weren't playing a tough opponent, but we were able to absolutely take away literally just about everything they were trying to do on offense in the first half.

2. Team speed is outrageous. Part of it may be that I haven't watched a live D-1 basketball game in 7-8 months, but the speed of Drake seemed much superior to last year. They were really flying around. I hope they can force tempo because it really seems to fit our athleticism and depth.

3. The Good: Tie between Jordan Clarke's tenacity and us only allowing five offensive rebounds. The Bad: Frank struggled with taking care of the basketball in his 15 minutes. The Ugly: The game seemed like it was over after a few media breaks.

Apparently Jordan Clarke was nervous last night. You sure couldn't tell:

http://www.desmoinesregister.com/article/20101106/SPORTS020403/101106026/1097/SPORTS0204/Drake-men-s-basketball-Clarke-s-double-double-helps-calm-his-nerves-in-opener