Tucker DeVries repeats as MVC Player of the Year

POWERED BY CARL’S AUTO GROUP. DRAKE’S TUCKER DE VRIES DECIDED TO STAY IN DES MOINES AND HELP HIS DAD TURN DRAKE INTO A POWER ALONG THE WAY, HE DEVELOPED INTO ONE OF THE BEST EVER IN WEDNESDAY NIGHT AT SAINT LOUIS, DE VRIES WON THE LARRY BIRD TROPHY AS THE MISSOURI VALLEY CONFERENCE PLAYER OF THE YEAR. IT’S THE SECOND STRAIGHT YEAR HE’S WON IT IN THE LAST PERSON TO DO THAT, CREIGHTON’S DOUG MCDERMOTT. DE VRIES, A JUNIOR, IS HAVING A CAREER YEAR AVERAGING 22.7 BOARDS AND THREE AND A HALF ASSISTS, A GAME. I KNEW THERE WAS A LOT OF ROOM FOR GROWTH AND JUST CONTINUED TO PUSH MYSELF TO CONTINUE TO BE THE BEST PLAYER I CAN BE AND, UH, YOU KNOW, WHEREVER THAT TAKES ME, I’LL BE HAPPY WITH AND, UH, YOU KNOW, VERY THANKFUL TO BE BACK IN THIS POSITION. BUT, UH, YOU KNOW, UH, JUST SHOWS THE, THE A LOT OF WORK THAT’S GONE INTO TO THIS POINT. HIS TEAMMATE, DARREN DONALD BRODIE, WAS ALSO ON THE MISSOURI VALLEY CONFERENCE FIRST TEAM. DRAKE WILL PLA

Drake junior Tucker DeVries won the Larry Bird MVC Player of the Year Wednesday night, becoming the first repeat winner since Doug McDermott at Creighton (2012 and 20213). AJ Green of UNI was the last person to earn the Larry Bird trophy multiple times (2020 and 2022). Nobody has won the Larry Bird MVC Player of the Year trophy three times. Other Drake Bulldogs to win the league's Larry Bird trophy include Jeff Halliburton (1971), Lloyd (1980 and 1981), Curt Smith (1993) and Adam Emmenecker (2008). DeVries was excellent this year. He averaged 21.9 points, 6.9 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 1.7 steals (all significant increases from last season). He's the only player in NCAA Division I to average 20.0 points and 6.5 rebounds with 100 assists, 50 steals and 50 or more three-point makes.Graduate student forward Darnell Brodie continued to improve and landed a spot on the All-MVC First Team. Brodie put up 11.5 points, 8.1 rebounds and 2.1 assists a night (all career-highs) while making 64.9 percent of his shots. Brodie was a member of the 2020-21 All-Newcomer Team and 2022-23 Most Improved Team. Freshman guard Kevin Overton was runner-up in the MVC Freshman of the Year voting to solidify a place on the MVC All-Freshman squad. Overton averaged 12.0 points and 3.4 rebounds while shooting from the field at a .456 clip. The Bulldogs will open the State Farm MVC Tournament at the Enterprise Center in St. Louis on Friday, March 8 against the winner of No. 7 Illinois State and No. 10 Evansville at 6 p.m. in the quarterfinal round.

ST. LOUIS —

Drake junior Tucker DeVries won the Larry Bird MVC Player of the Year Wednesday night, becoming the first repeat winner since Doug McDermott at Creighton (2012 and 20213). AJ Green of UNI was the last person to earn the Larry Bird trophy multiple times (2020 and 2022). Nobody has won the Larry Bird MVC Player of the Year trophy three times.

Other Drake Bulldogs to win the league's Larry Bird trophy include Jeff Halliburton (1971), Lloyd (1980 and 1981), Curt Smith (1993) and Adam Emmenecker (2008).

DeVries was excellent this year. He averaged 21.9 points, 6.9 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 1.7 steals (all significant increases from last season). He's the only player in NCAA Division I to average 20.0 points and 6.5 rebounds with 100 assists, 50 steals and 50 or more three-point makes.

Graduate student forward Darnell Brodie continued to improve and landed a spot on the All-MVC First Team. Brodie put up 11.5 points, 8.1 rebounds and 2.1 assists a night (all career-highs) while making 64.9 percent of his shots. Brodie was a member of the 2020-21 All-Newcomer Team and 2022-23 Most Improved Team.

Freshman guard Kevin Overton was runner-up in the MVC Freshman of the Year voting to solidify a place on the MVC All-Freshman squad. Overton averaged 12.0 points and 3.4 rebounds while shooting from the field at a .456 clip.

The Bulldogs will open the State Farm MVC Tournament at the Enterprise Center in St. Louis on Friday, March 8 against the winner of No. 7 Illinois State and No. 10 Evansville at 6 p.m. in the quarterfinal round.

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