TICKETS:  Tickets are available for the Drake-Iowa State game by contacting the Drake Athletic Ticket Office at 515-271-DOGS (3647) or going to the Drake athletic website at www.godrakebulldogs.com

TELEVISION: The Drake-Iowa State game will be televised  on Mediacom with Larry Morgan and Al Lorenzen describing the action.

DRAKE RADIO: KRNT Radio (1350 AM) is the flagship station of Drake basketball with Larry Cotlar and Dolph Pulliam handling the broadcasting. The pregame show begins 30 minutes before tipoff.

THE SETTING: The Drake-Iowa State series is the oldest NCAA Division I basketball rivalry in the state of Iowa with the teams meeting for the 169th time on the hardwood floor. No other Big Four schools have faced each other that many times in basketball.

BIG FOUR COUNTDOWN: Tuesday's game will be the first of seven games involving Iowa's Big Four NCAA Division I basketball programs this season. Iowa State hosts Northern Iowa Dec. 2 and Iowa Dec. 11. Iowa travels to Northern Iowa Dec. 8 and hosts Drake Dec. 19. The Bulldogs  travel to Northern Iowa Jan. 27 before hosting the Panthers Feb. 10.

Drake has won 13 of its last 14  games against schools from Iowa dating back to 2006, beating Iowa and Iowa State three times apiece, Northern Iowa five times, along with wins against Waldorf and Cornell.

THE SERIES: Iowa State owns a 104-64 lead in the series which began Feb. 29, 1909 when the Cyclones claimed a 38-16 victory in Ames. Drake has won the last three games, including its last two trips to Hilton Coliseum in 2006 and 2008. Drake earned a 79-44 victory in Des Moines in 2007 to mark the first time the Bulldogs had won back-to-back games against Iowa State since 1978 and 1979.

THE LAST TIME: Drake 66, Iowa State 63 (Dec. 9, 2008, Ames, Iowa) — Craig Stanley's three-point basket gave Drake its only lead of the game when it counted the most, propelling the Bulldogs to a come-from-behind victory.

Stanley hit only his second three-point basket of the season when he took a feed from Josh Young and connected from the right baseline with 3:04 left to give Drake a 64-62 lead.The basket capped a 14-2 run by Drake during a 4-minute 54-second span that erased a 60-50 Iowa State lead.

Junior guard Josh Young paced a balanced scoring attack for Drake with 19 points. Senior forward Jonathan Cox recorded his 14th career double-double and second of the season with 14 points and 14 rebounds for Drake.

Adam Templeton collected his first career double-double with 13 points and a career-high 10 rebounds.

Drake held Iowa State to just one basket in the final 7:58 of the game. A free throw by Craig Brackins brought Iowa State to within 64-63 but Stanley and Templeton each made a free throw in the final 28 seconds to account for the final margin.

It marked the first time Drake has beaten Iowa State three straight times since the Bulldogs beat the Cyclones in four consecutive years from 1973-76. It also marked the first time Drake has ever beat Iowa State in two consecutive trips to Hilton Coliseum.

Cox and Templeton combined for 24 of Drake's 40 rebounds as the Bulldogs won the battle of the boards, 40-32. Drake also outscored Iowa State, 16-2, on second-chance points.

Iowa State went on an 11-0 run to break a 6-6 tie as Drake missed four shots and committed two turnovers during stretch. The Cyclones erected a 24-11 cushion before Drake went on a 13-3 run to pull within 27-24 following a three-point basket by Adam Templeton .

However, Iowa State responded with consecutive three-point baskets from Diante Garrett and Lucca Staiger to push its advantage to 33-24.

Drake scored the last five points of the first half to close the gap to 33-29 on three free throws by Young and two by Cox. Drake held Iowa State to just 36.7 percent shooting from the floor in the second half.

LAST MEETING IN DES MOINES: Drake 79, Iowa State 44 (Nov. 30, 2007, Des Moines, Iowa) — Guards Josh Young and Leonard Houston combined for 39 points for Drake.
        Young scored 13 of his game-high 23 points in the second half as the Bulldogs fired a sizzling 65.2 percent from the field to break away from a 35-20 halftime lead.
        Houston, who entered the game leading the Missouri Valley Conference in scoring, added 16 points for Drake. Houston scored five straight points during a 10-3 run that gave Drake an 18-8 lead. Iowa State missed seven shots during a 7-minute 35-second scoring drought (10:41 to 3:07) as Drake turned an 18-10 lead into a 33-12 advantage.
        The Bulldogs missed their last five shots to close out the first half but came out firing in the second half. Drake made four straight three-point baskets, including two by Young and one apiece from Houston and Klayton Korver to enjoy a 49-22 cushion.
        A basket from the left baseline by guard Adam Emmenecker expanded the lead to 52-22 with 15:51 left.
        Drake  hit 11 of 21 shots from beyond the three-point arc with Young making four of five three-point shots. Houston made all three of his three-point shots.
        Drake also collected a season-high 15 steals for the third time this season. It also marked the fifth time in seven games Drake had collected at least 10 steals in a game. The Bulldogs scored 29 points off Cyclone turnovers.
        Drake outrebounded the taller Cyclones, 30-27, while scoring 16 second-chance points. Drake shot 50 percent from the field, hitting 27 of 54 attempts. Iowa State struggled, hitting just 37.8 percent, making 17 of 45 shots. It was the widest margin of victory by Drake in the 167 meetings between the schools dating back to 1908.

DRAKE-IOWA STATE CONNECTIONS: Drake guard Frank Wiseler was a teammate of Iowa State guard Lucca Staiger on a club team in Germany.

YOUNG TEAM, EARLY CURFEW?: Drake entered the 2009-10 campaign with 10 players on its roster having never played a college game.So is it a coincidence that three of Drake's first four games this season are being played in the afternoon? In addition to the season opener against IUPU last Saturday, Drake's next three games after the Iowa State contest will be afternoon affairs against Georgia State, Akron and Central Florida.

YOUNG QUESTIONABLE: The Bulldogs played against IUPUI without the services of senior guard Josh Young, a preseason first-team All-Missouri Valley Conference performer who was nursing a hip pointer. Young has led Drake in scoring the past two seasons.

HOT SHOOTING SPOILS OPENER: IUPUI shot a sizzling 76.2 percent from the floor in the second half to rally from an 11-point deficit, spoiling Drake's season opener, 88-82, in the opening round of the Glenn Wilkes Classic last Saturday.

Alex Young hit back-to-back three-point baskets giving IUPUI a 83-80 lead it never relinquished. Drake closed out the game making just one of its last eight shots from the floor.

A layup by freshman center Seth VanDeest pulled Drake within 85-82 with 13 seconds left, but IUPUI made three of four free throws down the stretch to seal the win.

Junior Ryan Wedel, a transfer from Arkansas State, moved from point guard to off guard replacing Josh Young and responded with 23 points. Forward Robert Glenn scored a game-high 37 points for IUPUI, hitting 15 of 17 shots from the floor. Glenn netted 23 in the second half.

The Bulldogs shot 50.9 percent from the floor, while making 13 of 26 three-point shots.Freshman forward Ben Simons scored 12 points for Drake -- hitting four three-point baskets all in the second half. He also collected a game-high four steals.

VanDeest finished with 10 points and a team-high six rebounds for Drake. Sophomore Frank Wiseler, who started at point guard for Drake, added nine points and seven assists.

HE SHOOTS, HE SCORES: Drake junior transfer guard Ryan Wedel had a conspicuous debut for Drake by opening his first game on fire, making his first five shots including four from three-point range in the opening 3 minutes 29 seconds of the game. The four consecutive three-point baskets made rank third on the Drake single-game list.

Wedel's 15 points in the opening minutes of the game weren't really any surprise. As a high school senior in Minneapolis, Kan., Wedel was featured on ESPN SportsCenter after scoring 25 of his school-record 46 points during a 2:02 span against Southeast-Salin, knocking down six straight three-point baskets. The video is on www.youtube.com

GLENN WILKES CLASSIC: Drake will resume action in the third annual Glenn Wilkes Classic this weekend. First-round games were played on on-campus sites.

Ten teams will play three games in three days in Daytona Beach, Fla., starting Friday. Drake will face Georgia State at 12:15 p.m. Friday, Akron at 12:15 p.m. Saturday and Central Florida at 2:30 p.m. Sunday. Akron has four starters back from last year's team which advanced to the NCAA Tournament where it dropped a first-round game to Gonzaga.

Drake is among five teams that played in 2009 post-season tournaments that are competing in the Glen Wilkes Classic. Central Florida, North Carolina State, Auburn and Akron also are in the field.

DRAKE IN KNAPP CENTER: The Bulldogs have posted a 37-13 home record in the Drake Knapp Center during the past three seasons, including a 14-1 mark in 2007-08. Drake has won eight of its last 10 nonconference home games.

A 16-game home winning streak from 2007-09 was the longest in the 16-year history of the Knapp Center. Drake owns a 139-101 home record in the Drake Knapp Center. Drake is the only private school in the Missouri Valley Conference which plays its home games at an on-campus     site.

SIZING UP THE BULLDOGS: One word can easily describe the fortunes of the 2009-10 Drake basketball team. CHEMISTRY.

How quickly a trio of returning veterans can mesh with a highly touted incoming recruiting class will determine the success the Bulldogs enjoy on the basketball court this winter.

Drake will rely on one of the strongest backcourts in the Missouri Valley Conference to aid in the development of one of the youngest teams in recent program history.

Drake returns three starters from last year's squad which posted a 17-16 record, highlighted by an appearance in the 2009 CollegeInsider.com Tournament, marking the first time the Bulldogs had played in back-to-back post-season tournaments since making the NCAA Tournament from 1969-71.

Two-time All-MVC guard Josh Young enters his senior campaign on the verge of becoming the school's career scoring and three-point basket leader Young, who led the MVC in scoring as a sophomore, hopes to bounce back from an injury riddled junior campaign. He ranks seventh on the school career scoring list at 1,328 points, needing 330 points to becoming Drake's scoring king.

Young averaged 15.4 points last year, while leading the league in free throws made at 168. Despite his 6-foot 1-inch frame, Young also enjoyed one of the best rebounding averages of any MVC guard at 3.8, grabbing a career-high 10 rebounds in a home victory against Indiana State.

"Josh is fully embracing his role as the leader on our team," said Phelps. "We've seen some terrific things out of Josh in the preseason. He has made significant improvement in his explosiveness and I feel like he is back to where he was as a sophomore before he suffered an ankle injury."

Senior point guard Craig Stanley looks for continued improvement after ranking fourth in the MVC in assists (3.8 avg.) last year, while averaging 7.9 points.

Six-foot 6-inch senior Adam Templeton is the lone returning starter on a young frontline. He averaged 5.8 points and 3.3 rebounds last year. Senior two-year letterwinner Bill Eaddy also returns at forward.

Phelps is counting on the senior leadership provided by Eaddy, Stanley, Templeton and Young to aid in the development of a young team.

"We will rely heavily on our seniors because they have an understanding of what it takes to win in the MVC," said Phelps. "The returning veterans are going to be motivated about the chance to improve on last year.

Graduation claimed forward Jonathan Cox who departed ranking second on Drake's career rebounding charts, while leading the MVC in rebounding (8.5 avg.).

Phelps admits there are big shoes to fill in the void left by Cox.

"It will be a challenge," Phelps added. "We will have to rebound by committee. Everyone in the frontcourt will certainly have to have a major focus in rebounding."

NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK: Drake fans have to go back to the 1990-91 campaign to find a Bulldog team as young as the 2009-10 edition.

During that 1990-91 season then first-year coach Rudy Washington had the youngest team in the NCAA with eight freshmen on the roster.

This year the Bulldogs  have 10 new faces eligible on their roster. In its lone exhibition game against Upper Iowa Drake played at least two freshmen on the floor at the same time.

Junior guard Ryan Wedel becomes eligible after transferring from Arkansas State where he was a two-year starter, leading the Sun Belt Conference in three-point baskets (90) in 2007-08.

Wedel, who is versatile enough to play both point and off guard, averaged 15.1 points, earning All-Sun Belt Conference honors in 2007-08.

If that's not enough sophomore point guard Frank Wiseler, who was a member of the Luxembourg National Team the last two years, becomes eligible. Freshman guard David Smith, who was one of the top prep guards in Chicago, Ill., also is expected to see action.

"Certainly we know that we will be an extremely young team with six freshmen, along with three redshirt freshmen and two transfers becoming eligible," Phelps added. "It is important for them to have some early success and for us to keep things simple."

Several freshmen are expected to play key roles in the frontline, headed by 6-8 Ben Simons, who was runner-up for Mr. Basketball in the state of Michigan. Six-foot 8-inch Aaron Hawley, named the most valuable player of the Arkansas All-Star Game, along with 6-8 Reece Uhlenhopp and 6-10 Seth VanDeest, are expected to contribute right away.

"I foresee our freshmen getting lots of playing time," said Phelps. "They will have to be ready to hit the ground running. They have a lot of self pride and have been high achievers across the board."

Simons averaged 29.4 points and 8.1 rebounds as a senior at Cadillac (Mich.) High School and should aid a Drake perimeter attack.Hawley averaged 17.8 points and 7.4 rebounds at Rogers (Ark.) High School, while Uhlenhopp and VanDeest were first team Iowa Class 4A all-state choices.

YOUNG NEARS RECORDS: Two-time All-MVC guard Josh Young enters his senior campaign on the verge of becoming the school's career scoring and three-point basket leader. He ranks seventh on the school career scoring list at 1,328 points, needing 330 points to becoming Drake's scoring king.

Young also needs 39 three-point baskets to become Drake's career three-point leader, surpassing current co-record holders Luke McDonald (2001-03) and Klayton Korver (2003-08) who both made 241 treys.

YOUNG HONORED: Drake senior guard Josh Young is one of 30 NCAA men's basketball student-athletes, who excel both on and off the court, who are candidates for the 2009-10 Lowe's Senior CLASS Award. To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence - classroom, character, community and competition.

An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in SchoolTM, the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities.

This year's candidate class includes 25 players on the preseason watch lists for the men's and women's John R. Wooden Award, eight men's playerswho are candidates for the AT&T Naismith Trophy, 11 women's players who are preseason favorites for the State Farm Wade Trophy and three men's and women's players who finished their junior seasons as All-Americans. There are four players recognized last year as ESPN The Magazine Academic All-Americans. Eleven men's players are from teams ranked in the preseason top 25 poll; while 11 women represent teams ranked in the top 25 women's preseason poll. Of the 60 candidates, 13 have cumulative grade point averages of 3.5 or higher and three have maintained perfect 4.0 GPAs during their collegiate academic careers.

Lowe's, an official Corporate Partner of the NCAA, will announce the Senior CLASS Award winner for men's basketball at the 2010 NCAA Men's Final Four in Indianapolis, Ind., in April.

The list of 30 candidates will be narrowed to 10 finalists each midway through the regular season, and those 10 names will be placed on the official ballot. Ballots will be distributed through a nationwide voting system to media, coaches and fans, who will select one finalist who best exemplifies excellence in the four Cs of classroom, character, community and competition.

THREE PREPS JOIN PROGRAM: High school basketball standouts Karl Madison, a 5-foot 10-inch guard from Springfield, Ill.; Rayvonte Rice, a 6-3 guard from Champaign, Ill., and Jeremy Jeffers, a 6-6 guard from Wilson, N.C., signed national letters of intent Wednesday at Drake, indicating they will join the Drake men's basketball program.

A point guard, Madison earned first-team all-league honors after averaging 21.9 points, 5.0 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 2.4 steals as a junior at Lamphier High School. He shot 42.7 percent from the floor, including 30.6 percent from three-point range. He collected season highs of 32 points and six rebounds against Chatham Glenwood Jan. 9, 2009, and Jacksonville Feb. 27, 2009.

Madison became his high school's first Division I player since Richard McBride signed with Illinois in 2003. Madison played for the St. Louis Eagles AAU team.

Rice was named most valuable player of the 2009 Illinois Class 3A State Tournament after leading Centennial High School to the 2009 Illinois Class 3A state championship. He earned third team all-state honors as a junior by the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association after leading the team to a 32-1 record in 2008-09, including the Big 12 Conference title with a 13-0 record.

He was a two-time first team Champaign News-Gazette All-Area selection as well as a two-time All-Big 12 Conference performer. Rice averaged 16.8 points, 7.3 rebounds, 3.0 steals and 2.4 assists in 2008-09, while shooting 53 percent from floor. He also started as sophomore, averaging 15.3 points, 7.6 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.5 steals. During the summer he played for the Illinois Stars AAU team.

Jeffers averaged 16.0 points, 6.1 rebounds, 4.9 assists and 2.1 steals while leading Greenfield High School to a 31-6 record in 2008-09, en route to advancing to the semifinal round of the North Carolina Independent Schools Athletic Association 1-A Tournament. He scored a career-high 25 points against Cresset Christian in the quarterfinal round of the 2009 state tournament. He earned first team all-area hhonors by the Wilson Times and also was a first-team all-conference choice.

Jeffers played for the North Carolina Flight AAU team which finished eighth out of 184 teams at the 2009 AAU National Tournament. He also was named to the all-tournament team at the Big Shots AAU Tournament this past July in Myrtle Beach, S.C.

CHALLENGING SCHEDULE: Sixteen games against teams which advanced to 2009 post-season play highlight a 31-game schedule for Drake.

The Bulldogs will play Akron, which advanced to the NCAA Tournament where it dropped a first-round game to Gonzaga, in the Glenn Wilkes Classic. Drake has a Dec. 12 home game against Binghamton which played in the 2009 NCAA Tournament and a Dec. 22 home date against San Diego State that advanced to the semifinal round of the 2009 NIT.

Drake also has a stern nonconference road test at Austin Peay Nov. 28. Austin Peay has three starters back from a team that went 19-14 in 2008-09 while playing in the CollegeInsider.com Tournament.

The MVC schedule features 12 games against Bradley, Creighton, Evansville, Illinois State, Northern Iowa and Wichita State which competed in either the 2009 NCAA, NIT, College Basketball Invitational or CollegeInsider.com Tournaments.

TOURNAMENT TESTS: For the fourth straight year, Drake will play in a school-record tying three regular-season tournaments. The Bulldogs will play in the third annual Glenn Wilkes Classic with three games in the 10-team field scheduled in Daytona Beach, Fla., Nov. 20-22. The second annual Drake Hy-Vee Classic will be held Dec. 4-5 in the Drake Knapp Center with the Bulldogs facing SIU-Edwardsville in the opening round before meeting either North Dakota or Texas-Arlington the following night. The second annual Drake Invitational is scheduled for Dec. 11-13 at the Drake Knapp Center, featuring Binghamton and South Dakota. Binghamton has two starters back from last year's squad which posted a 23-9 record while falling to Duke in the NCAA Tournament.

CHALLENGE SERIES: The Dec. 22 home game against San Diego State is part of the inaugural Challenge Series between the MVC and the Mountain West Conference. The agreement between the Mountain West and Missouri Valley Conferences is for a four-year term.

PREP STANDOUTS JOIN PROGRAM: High school basketball standouts Karl Madison, a 5-foot 10-inch guard from Springfield, Ill.; Rayvonte Rice, a 6-3 guard from Champaign, Ill., and Jeremy Jeffers, a 6-6 guard from Wilson, N.C., signed national letters of intent Wednesday at Drake, indicating they will join the Drake men's basketball program.

A point guard, Madison earned first-team all-league honors after averaging 21.9 points, 5.0 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 2.4 steals as a junior at Lamphier High School. He shot 42.7 percent from the floor, including 30.6 percent from three-point range. He collected season highs of 32 points and six rebounds against Chatham Glenwood Jan. 9, 2009, and Jacksonville Feb. 27, 2009.

Madison became his high school's first Division I player since Richard McBride signed with Illinois in 2003. Madison played for the St. Louis Eagles AAU team.

Rice was named most valuable player of the 2009 Illinois Class 3A State Tournament after leading Centennial High School to the 2009 Illinois Class 3A state championship. He earned third team all-state honors as a junior by the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association after leading the team to a 32-1 record in 2008-09, including the Big 12 Conference title with a 13-0 record.

He was a two-time first team Champaign News-Gazette All-Area selection as well as a two-time All-Big 12 Conference performer. Rice averaged 16.8 points, 7.3 rebounds, 3.0 steals and 2.4 assists in 2008-09, while shooting 53 percent from floor. He also started as sophomore, averaging 15.3 points, 7.6 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.5 steals. During the summer he played for the Illinois Stars AAU team.

Jeffers is believed to be the first Drake basketball recruit ever from the state of North Carolina. He played for the North Carolina Flight AAU team which finished eighth out of 184 teams at the 2009 AAU National Tournament. He also was named to the all-tournament team at the Big Shots AAU Tournament this past July in Myrtle Beach, S.C.

Jeffers averaged 16.0 points, 6.1 rebounds, 4.9 assists and 2.1 steals while leading Greenfield High School to a 31-6 record in 2008-09, en route to advancing to the semifinal round of the North Carolina Independent Schools Athletic Association 1-A Tournament.

He scored a career-high 25 points against Cresset Christian in the quarterfinal round of the 2009 state tournament. He earned first team all-area honors by the Wilson Times and also was a first-team all-conference choice.