When Drexel lost to VCU in the finals of the CAA tournament last March, it was the first time they were on the wrong end of the box score since January 2nd. Prior to that, Drexel’s last loss was on December 3rd. Crunch a few numbers, and what that gives you is an 18 game winning streaks and victories in 25 of their last 26 games, yet that wasn’t enough to get the Dragons an at-large berth into the NCAA tournament.
Why?
Because they lost four of their first six games, and with a schedule that wasn’t exactly loaded with RPI top 50 teams, Bruiser Flint’s club simply didn’t have the computer profile to warrant a trip to the dance.
I bring this up because Drexel’s 2012-2013 start is beginning to look eerily reminiscent of the way they kicked off the 2011-2012 season. The Dragons dropped to 0-2 on Thursday night after losing to Illinois State 86-84 in overtime.
Now, Illinois State isn’t a bad team; they’ll probably finish somewhere in the top four in the Missouri Valley. Drexel’s first loss wasn’t exactly terrible either, as they dropped a road game to Kent State, which also happened to come in overtime. Drexel shouldn’t have the same kind of schedule issues they did last season, given that many of their non-conference opponents -- Princeton, St. Mary’s, St. Joseph’s, Davidson -- are expected to finish at the top of their leagues, but that doesn’t mean the Dragons can afford to keep losing games like this. That issue is exacerbated by the fact that VCU is no longer in the league.
This is a very good basketball team that Bruiser Flint has put together.
But until they start proving it on the floor, those are nothing other empty words.
Rob Dauster is the editor of the college basketball website Ballin’ is a Habit. You can find him on twitter @robdauster.