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).
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.
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.https://timesdelphic.com/84405/sports/drake-basketball-teams-fall-short-in-mvc-tournaments/ 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.
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 5 F 6'6" 205 Jr Albany, GA Northwest Florida 22 F 6'7" 215 Sr Tallahassee, FL Morehead State 3 G 6'0" 175 Sr Cincinnati, OH Wichita State 32 F 6'8" 230 Sr Tucson, AZ Denver
2026 Recruiting Class
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.
Roster
Schedule and results
!colspan=9 style=""|Regular Season
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Source
See also 2026–27 Drake Bulldogs women's basketball team
References