2023-2024 NWMSU Bearcats

[Alfred33]

Is his kid good enough to play D1? Maybe that's an incentive for Dad to move on?

He’s good, but I don’t know that he’s D1 good. I think he’s listed at 6’2”, but thats probably generous. I think he's more of a 2 guard than a point guard from what I’ve seen. He can shoot it, but I wasn’t sure if Ben would even recruit him to play at NW. IMO, at this stage (albeit, he's got another year), I feel Maryville has had better talent that Ben hasn’t pursued. Or if he did, I never knew about it nor questioned it, because he seems to know what he’s doing.

Since I said all of that, watch him be the Mo Valley CPOY in a few years. You heard it here first! 🤣

[Alfred33]

If Ben does leave, will this be the first time Andy Peterson has to make a hire? I don’t actually know what kind of control he has over hiring and firing or if other powers pull the strings. Anyway, that’d be an unenviable first to have to have next to your name.

[Alfred33]

Not trying to rub salt in the wounds, but the. Central Region Final was a great test for the Mavs in the National Championship.
Again, GG NWMSU

It’s the way it goes. We have had a couple of championship years where the hardest games we had were without question, getting out of the region. I watched the Mavs the rest of the way and would like to think we would’ve came home with the hardware too, but who knows. I do know the championship game would’ve looked a lot different. I didn’t think their pressure bothered the Mavs much once they settled in, and I think NW would’ve handled it too… the biggest difference is that when ‘Kato broke the pressure, they’d shoot the first open look. They were hitting those quick 3s for quite a stretch while they built that 10 point lead. It’s fun style to watch. NW will take a layup, but otherwise they’ll normally take the air out of the ball and run clock. The game would’ve probably been in the 50’s. It’s just interesting to think about how completely different two teams can be, but end with similar results.

Mavs fans have to be on cloud 9 to pull off the double!

[zimmy21]

It’s the way it goes. We have had a couple of championship years where the hardest games we had were without question, getting out of the region. I watched the Mavs the rest of the way and would like to think we would’ve came home with the hardware too, but who knows. I do know the championship game would’ve looked a lot different. I didn’t think their pressure bothered the Mavs much once they settled in, and I think NW would’ve handled it too… the biggest difference is that when ‘Kato broke the pressure, they’d shoot the first open look. They were hitting those quick 3s for quite a stretch while they built that 10 point lead. It’s fun style to watch. NW will take a layup, but otherwise they’ll normally take the air out of the ball and run clock. The game would’ve probably been in the 50’s. It’s just interesting to think about how completely different two teams can be, but end with similar results.

Mavs fans have to be on cloud 9 to pull off the double!

Ecstatic to say the least. Margenthaler finally got his ring. That man deserves it

NWMSU sets the tempo of every game, so I have no doubt that the score would have been low throughout the Elite Eight. It would have been Northwest tourney to lose if they got past MSU

[ZubCat81]

Welp ... there you go Bearcat fans!

Drake Basketball Tabs Ben McCollum, Northwest Missouri State Coach, To Lead Program

Alyssa Hertel
Des Moines Register




Drake men’s basketball named its new head coach on Monday.

Ben McCollum – an Iowa native who spent more than a decade as head coach at NCAA Division II powerhouse Northwest Missouri State – will take over the Bulldogs as Darian DeVries’ successor.

The Storm Lake native played college basketball for the Bearcats and then returned to his alma mater after a four-year assistant coaching stint at Emporia State.

In 15 seasons as the Bearcats head coach, McCollum compiled a career record of 394-91 – with a 241-63 record in conference play.

McCollum put together a 32-7 record in the NCAA Division II Tournament, including four national championships (2017, 2019, 2021, 2022).

The Bearcats might have won four straight national titles had the tournament not been cancelled in 2020 due to COVID-19.

Under McCollum, Northwest won 25 or more games in 12 straight seasons − the longest active streak among all NCAA men's programs. The Bearcats posted records of 30-plus wins in five seasons, including a perfect 38-0 season in 2018-19.

More:The best college basketball coach you've never heard of is from Storm Lake, Iowa

He is a five-time NABC Division II National Coach of the Year, the 2019 John McLendon National Coach of the Year (all divisions), and two-time Clarence “Big House” Gaines National Coach of the Year.

McCollum led Northwest Missouri State to 12 Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association regular-season titles, eight MIAA Tournament titles, and was named the conference’s coach of the year nine times.




His success garnered accolades from across the nation.

“When somebody’s doing something unique in coaching, I tend to pay attention,” Fran Fraschilla, a college basketball analyst for ESPN, told the Register in 2022. “To watch what Northwest Missouri State has done in the last 10 or so years is remarkable, so I’ve definitely paid attention to coach McCollum.”

So, what will McCollum bring to Drake?

Fundamentals.

“There’s nothing fancy,” Fraschilla said in that 2022 interview. “No fancy trick plays, no fancy Xs and Os. What they do is very subtle. They’re a very intelligent team and it’s really about smart players playing fundamentally sound basketball.”





Alyssa Hertel is the college sports recruiting reporter for the Des Moines Register. Contact Alyssa at [email protected] or on Twitter @AlyssaHertel.

[NWFanatic]

Ben’s a Bulldog…sorry to lose him but at the same time I’m happy for him too. He’s much too good and too young to stay at a little D2 school like NW forever.

Sounds like a good fit for an Iowa guy and closer to his roots.

Drake is now my D1 team.

Andy & Dr T have a tough job ahead finding someone ballsy enough to replace a legend.

Who does he take with him??
Who hits the portal??

[Alfred33]

Good for Ben. Obviously he deserves it and he held out for a long time waiting for the right opportunity for he and his family.

It’s a precarious spot for a new coach. On one hand, it’s an attractive established program. On the other hand, if a coach doesn’t come in an win the MIAA for the 12th consecutive season, the comparisons and grumblings will most certainly happen. It’s hard to replace a legend and Ben has earned that status here.

[hudsoncat]

I'm going to be super happy for Ben. Tomorrow.

I too am interested to see if anyone hits the portal. Whether to try to follow coach to Drake or move on elsewhere. I think it will be interesting to see if the players bought into the overall Northwest culture or bought into the coaching. No judgement either way. Gotta do what is best for them.

[NWFanatic]

He was a D2 Legend not just a Bearcat Legend and nationally the most well known of any D2 Coaches

[ZubCat81]

Would love to see Zach Schneider back at NW. Moved with his family to Des Moines after the 2022-23 season. Love our Bearcats, but I've been following the Drake Bulldogs (along with my Hawkeyes) since their Final Four game vs UCLA and Lew Alcindor (Kareem Abdul-Jabbar). With that, I would get a kick out of seeing McCollum reach out to Zach and ask him if he's interested in being one of his assistant coaches at Drake.

[Bearcat97]

After the season MU had, I don’t mind becoming a Drake fan. Congrats to Ben and a sincere thank you for the work and legacy created at NW.

[Alfred33]

Would love to see Zach Schneider back at NW. Moved with his family to Des Moines after the 2022-23 season. Love our Bearcats, but I've been following the Drake Bulldogs (along with my Hawkeyes) since their Final Four game vs UCLA and Lew Alcindor (Kareem Abdul-Jabbar). With that, I would get a kick out of seeing McCollum reach out to Zach and ask him if he's interested in being one of his assistant coaches at Drake.

Although his record at Maryville U isn't too exciting, Jesse Shaw has NW ties and head coaching experience... wouldn't be surprised to see him get an interview. He had some good years at UMSL. Bryston Williams is an assistant at Wyoming and has spent some time as an assistant in the NBA... I believe he's married to the AD's wife's sister, so that might be too tangled of a web. I could see either Schneider, if he has the itch, or Willaims ending up at Drake too. That said though, after watching the trajectory of the football program, I wonder if they'll move away from trying to "keep it in the family".

[Stanger86]

It’s a precarious spot for a new coach. On one hand, it’s an attractive established program. On the other hand, if a coach doesn’t come in an win the MIAA for the 12th consecutive season, the comparisons and grumblings will most certainly happen. It’s hard to replace a legend and Ben has earned that status here.

Best way to solve that is to go the Augie route and hire a local legend, whether that's Austin switching over or someone else. Gives them a little bit more of a grace period.

[southside]

Good for him. I agree with all the nw posters. He gave a lot more than almost anyone else would. I would say he stayed 5/6 years when he could have bolted. Obviously he wanted the right fit for his family. Gotta respect that too.

best of luck to BM!

[NWFanatic]

Scratch Austin from the list of possible replacements for Ben. He’s already said he’s not interested in leaving his girls team.
Wonder if Xavier will apply?

Looks like Ben’s ready to change with the times and embrace transfers(he was one), portals & NIL. Maybe he’ll get another shot at Duke someday😎