# 2017–18 Drexel Dragons men's basketball team

The 2017–18 Drexel Dragons men's basketball team represented Drexel University during the 2017–18 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Dragons, led by second-year head coach Zach Spiker, played their home games at the Daskalakis Athletic Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania as members of the Colonial Athletic Association. They finished the season 13–20, 6–12 in CAA play to finish in a four-way tie for seventh place. They defeated James Madison in the first round of the CAA tournament before losing in the quarterfinals to College of Charleston.
On February 22, 2018, the Dragons set the record for the greatest comeback in Division I basketball history when they overcame a 34-point defect (trailing 53–19 at one point) to beat Delaware 85–83.

## Previous season

The Dragons finished the 2016–17 season 9–23, 3–15 in CAA play to finish in 10th place. They lost to James Madison in the CAA tournament.

## Offseason
### Departures

| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Notes |
| Kári Jónsson | 12 | G | 6'3" | 170 | Sophomore | Reykjavík, Iceland | Left team; Signed to Haukar |
| Elgin Ford, Jr | 22 | G | 6'1" | 175 | Senior | Lithonia, GA | Graduated |
| Mohamed Bah | 23 | F/C | 6'9" | 240 | Senior | Bamako, Mali | Graduated |
| Rodney Williams | 24 | F | 6'7" | 225 | Senior | Richmond, VA | Graduated; Signed to Maccabi Ra'anana |
| Major Canady | 25 | G | 6'4" | 215 | RS Junior | Wilson, NC | Left team (Injury) |
| John Moran | 30 | G | 6'3" | 185 | RS Senior | Phoenixville, PA | Graduated |
| Jeremy Peck | 34 | F | 6'8" | 245 | Freshman | Houston, TX | Transferred to UNC Asheville |
| Andrew Cartwright | 35 | F | 6'6" | 215 | Junior | Guilford, ME | Left team |

### Incoming transfers

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Alihan Demir PF | Ankara, Turkey | Central Wyoming College | 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) | 215 lb (98 kg) | Apr 15, 2017 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ||||||
| James Butler F | Burke, VA | Navy | 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) | 230 lb (100 kg) | |
| Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ESPN: ESPN grade: 56 ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: ||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "Drexel 2017 Basketball Commitments". Rivals.com. Retrieved July 5, 2017. "Drexel Dragons". ESPN.com. Retrieved July 5, 2017. "2017 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved July 5, 2017. ||||||

### 2017 recruiting class

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Jarvis Doles PF | Baltimore, MD | Mount Zion Preparatory School | 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) | N/A | Nov 16, 2016 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ESPN: ESPN grade: 57 ||||||
| Tim Perry PF | Cherry Hill, NJ | The Phelps School | 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) | 220 lb (100 kg) | Jan 11, 2017 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ESPN: ESPN grade: 58 ||||||
| Tadas Kararinas C | Šilutė, Lithuania | Findlay Prep | 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) | 220 lb (100 kg) | Aug 31, 2017 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: ||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "Drexel 2017 Basketball Commitments". Rivals.com. Retrieved January 13, 2017. "Drexel Dragons". ESPN.com. Retrieved January 13, 2017. "2017 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved January 13, 2017. ||||||

### Class of 2018 early commitments

US college sports recruiting information for 2018 recruits :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Coletrane Washington SG | Leetsdale, PA | Quaker Valley High School | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | N/A | Oct 28, 2017 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A |||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: |||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "Drexel 2018 Basketball Commitments". Rivals.com. Retrieved October 30, 2018. "Drexel Dragons". ESPN.com. Retrieved October 30, 2018. "2018 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved October 30, 2018. |||||||

## Preseason

In a poll of the league coaches, media relations directors, and media members at the CAA's media day, Drexel was picked to finish in ninth place in the CAA. Sophomore guard Kurk Lee was named to the preseason All-CAA second team.

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Exhibition |||||||||
| October 28, 2017* 4:00 pm | | West Chester | W 92–89 | – | 22 – Lee | 7 – Williams | 4 – Tied | Daskalakis Athletic Center Philadelphia, PA |
| November 1, 2017* 9:00 pm | | at No. 6 Villanova Puerto Rico Hurricane Relief Exhibition | L 68–87 | – | 16 – Kararinas | 5 – Mojica | 4 – Lee | Jake Nevin Field House Villanova, PA |
| Non-conference regular season |||||||||
| November 10, 2017* 7:00 pm | | Bowling Green | L 69–78 | 0–1 | 18 – Williams | 12 – Williams | 3 – Lee | Daskalakis Athletic Center (2,504) Philadelphia, PA |
| November 13, 2017* 7:00 pm | | Arcadia | W 95–81 | 1–1 | 22 – Isabell | 8 – Harper | 5 – Tied | Daskalakis Athletic Center (738) Philadelphia, PA |
| November 17, 2017* 2:30 pm | | vs. Houston Paradise Jam quarterfinals | W 84–80 | 2–1 | 21 – Isabell | 16 – Isabell | 3 – Isabell | Vines Center (1,022) Lynchburg, VA |
| November 18, 2017* 6:00 pm | | vs. Mercer Paradise Jam Semifinals | L 59–78 | 2–2 | 14 – Isabell | 7 – Tied | 7 – Lee | Vines Center (534) Lynchburg, VA |
| November 19, 2017* 6:00 pm | | vs. Drake Paradise Jam 3rd Place Game | L 88–90 $^{2OT}$ | 2–3 | 32 – Isabell | 14 – Williams | 5 – Lee | Vines Center (577) Lynchburg, VA |
| November 25, 2017* 4:00 pm, ESPN3 | | at NJIT | L 53–65 | 2–4 | 13 – Lee | 11 – Williams | 3 – Lee | Wellness and Events Center (677) Newark, NJ |
| November 29, 2017* 7:00 pm | | Lafayette | W 68–67 | 3–4 | 19 – Isabell | 10 – Williams | 4 – Tied | Daskalakis Athletic Center (617) Philadelphia, PA |
| December 2, 2017* 4:00 pm | | Rider | W 89–77 | 4–4 | 35 – Isabell | 10 – Isabell | 6 – Lee | Daskalakis Athletic Center (1,010) Philadelphia, PA |
| December 7, 2017* 7:00 pm | | at La Salle | W 72–70 | 5–4 | 23 – Lee | 8 – Tied | 5 – Demir | Tom Gola Arena (1,451) Philadelphia, PA |
| December 10, 2017* 2:00 pm | | at Robert Morris | L 60–74 | 5–5 | 15 – Lee | 11 – Williams | 3 – Lee | PPG Paints Arena (621) Pittsburgh, PA |
| December 16, 2017* 5:00 pm, ESPN3 | | at Temple | L 60–63 | 5–6 | 16 – Demir | 10 – Williams | 5 – Isabell | Liacouras Center (5,324) Philadelphia, PA |
| December 18, 2017* 7:00 pm | | Quinnipiac | W 72–71 | 6–6 | 23 – Isabell | 8 – Tied | 4 – Isabell | Daskalakis Athletic Center (652) Philadelphia, PA |
| December 21, 2017* 7:00 pm | | at Loyola (MD) | L 62–66 | 6–7 | 20 – Lee | 14 – Williams | 4 – Lee | Reitz Arena (504) Baltimore, MD |
| CAA regular season |||||||||
| December 30, 2017 2:00 pm | | at Elon | L 75–90 | 6–8 (0–1) | 18 – Lee | 14 – Williams | 4 – Lee | Alumni Gym (1,607) Elon, NC |
| January 2, 2018 7:00 pm | | at UNC Wilmington | L 87–107 | 6–9 (0–2) | 22 – Lee | 7 – Mojica | 4 – Lee | Trask Coliseum (3,367) Wilmington, NC |
| January 5, 2018 7:00 pm | | College of Charleston | W 87–82 $^{OT}$ | 7–9 (1–2) | 22 – Lee | 13 – Williams | 4 – Demir | Daskalakis Athletic Center (704) Philadelphia, PA |
| January 7, 2018 4:00 pm | | William & Mary | L 63–85 | 7–10 (1–3) | 14 – Tied | 6 – Tied | 5 – Lee | Daskalakis Athletic Center (679) Philadelphia, PA |
| January 11, 2018 7:00 pm | | at Delaware | L 66–72 | 7–11 (1–4) | 14 – Isabell | 15 – Isabell | 4 – Isabell | Bob Carpenter Center (1,948) Newark, DE |
| January 13, 2018 4:00 pm | | Hofstra | L 86–91 | 7–12 (1–5) | 25 – Isabell | 8 – Williams | 5 – Isabell | Daskalakis Athletic Center (833) Philadelphia, PA |
| January 18, 2018 7:00 pm | | at Towson | L 68–90 | 7–13 (1–6) | 14 – Williams | 6 – Isabell | 5 – Lee | SECU Arena (1,333) Towson, MD |
| January 20, 2018 4:00 pm | | at James Madison | L 73–75 | 7–14 (1–7) | 21 – Isabell | 10 – Isabell | 5 – Demir | JMU Convocation Center (2,611) Harrisonburg, VA |
| January 25, 2018 7:00 pm | | Elon | W 83–79 | 8–14 (2–7) | 40 – Isabell | 8 – Williams | 4 – Tied | Daskalakis Athletic Center (843) Philadelphia, PA |
| January 27, 2018 2:00 pm | | Northeastern | W 68–67 | 9–14 (3–7) | 21 – Isabell | 11 – Williams | 4 – Isabell | Daskalakis Athletic Center (1,526) Philadelphia, PA |
| February 1, 2018 7:00 pm | | James Madison | W 76–74 | 10–14 (4–7) | 17 – Harper | 8 – Williams | 4 – Isabell | Daskalakis Athletic Center (705) Philadelphia, PA |
| February 3, 2018 4:00 pm | | at William & Mary | W 91–79 | 11–14 (5–7) | 23 – Isabell | 8 – Tied | 8 – Isabell | Kaplan Arena (3,758) Williamsburg, VA |
| February 8, 2018 7:00 pm | | Towson | L 92–94 $^{OT}$ | 11–15 (5–8) | 32 – Isabell | 8 – Demir | 7 – Isabell | Daskalakis Athletic Center (825) Philadelphia, PA |
| February 10, 2018 4:00 pm | | at College of Charleston | L 67–89 | 11–16 (5–9) | 17 – Isabell | 7 – Demir | 3 – Lee | TD Arena (4,219) Charleston, SC |
| February 15, 2018 7:00 pm | | at Northeastern | L 69–75 | 11–17 (5–10) | 24 – Isabell | 7 – Demir | 4 – Lee | Matthews Arena (990) Boston, MA |
| February 17, 2018 4:00 pm | | at Hofstra | L 76–88 | 11–18 (5–11) | 29 – Isabell | 9 – Demir | 5 – Demir | Mack Sports Complex (2,312) Hempstead, NY |
| February 22, 2018 7:00 pm | | Delaware | W 85–83 | 12–18 (6–11) | 30 – Isabell | 12 – Isabell | 9 – Isabell | Daskalakis Athletic Center (1,116) Philadelphia, PA |
| February 24, 2018 4:00 pm | | UNC Wilmington | L 82–83 | 12–19 (6–12) | 29 – Isabell | 14 – Williams | 6 – Isabell | Daskalakis Athletic Center (1,094) Philadelphia, PA |
| CAA Tournament |||||||||
| March 3, 2018 4:00 pm | (8) | vs. (9) James Madison First round | W 70–62 | 13–19 | 24 – Isabell | 15 – Williams | 5 – Isabell | North Charleston Coliseum (2,659) North Charleston, SC |
| March 4, 2018 12:00 pm | (8) | vs. (1) College of Charleston Quarterfinals | L 59–66 | 13–20 | 15 – Lee | 12 – Isabell | 3 – Lee | North Charleston Coliseum (4,672) North Charleston, SC |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern Time. |||||||||

## Team statistics

As of the end of the season.
 Indicates team leader in each category.
| Player | GP | GS | MPG | PPG | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | TPG | FG% | FT% | 3P% |
| Kris Alford | 3 | 0 | 1.3 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 1.000 | 1.000 | .000 |
| Alihan Demir | 28 | 24 | 31.3 | 10.7 | 5.4 | 1.9 | 0.4 | 0.1 | 1.7 | .480 | .750 | .365 |
| Kevin Doi | 7 | 0 | 1.1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
| Jarvis Doles | 23 | 10 | 12.9 | 3.3 | 2.1 | 0.1 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 0.3 | .431 | .813 | .359 |
| Sam Green | 6 | 1 | 13.5 | 4.7 | 2.5 | 0.8 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 0.5 | .550 | .333 | .400 |
| Troy Harper | 25 | 10 | 23.9 | 10.1 | 2.2 | 1.4 | 0.5 | 0.1 | 1.8 | .383 | .816 | .159 |
| Tramaine Isabell| | 28 | 20 | 34.4 | 21.0 | 7.5 | 3.4 | 1.2 | 0.0 | 2.9 | .474 | .764 | .340 |
| Tadas Kararinas | 32 | 0 | 7.4 | 1.6 | 0.8 | 0.2 | 0.1 | 0.3 | 0.3 | .395 | .900 | .381 |
| Kurk Lee | 33 | 32 | 35.9 | 12.4 | 3.4 | 3.2 | 1.2 | 0.1 | 2.3 | .385 | .759 | .342 |
| Sammy Mojica | 33 | 33 | 35.6 | 11.1 | 4.0 | 1.5 | 1.5 | 0.3 | 1.4 | .378 | .649 | .320 |
| Tyshawn Myles | 22 | 4 | 10.8 | 2.1 | 2.4 | 0.1 | 0.3 | 0.7 | 0.6 | .600 | .680 | .000 |
| Miles Overton | 10 | 1 | 12.6 | 4.2 | 1.1 | 0.5 | 0.2 | 0.1 | 1.0 | .292 | 1.000 | .258 |
| Austin Williams | 31 | 30 | 29.6 | 9.4 | 8.5 | 0.7 | 0.4 | 3.0 | 2.0 | .597 | .459 | .000 |
| Team | 33 | - | - | 74.4 | 36.3 | 11.5 | 5.3 | 4.2 | 12.4 | .441 | .723 | .325 |

## Awards
### Tramaine Isabell

* Team Most Valuable Player
* CAA All-Conference Second Team
* 2017 Paradise Jam All-Tournament Team
* CAA Player of the Week (3)

### Austin Williams

* "Sweep" Award (team leader in blocks)
* Dragon "D" Award (team's top defensive player)
* CAA All-Defensive Team

### Jarvis Doles

* CAA Rookie of the Week

### Kurk Lee

* Assist Award (team leader in assists)
* Preseason CAA All-Conference Second Team

### Tim Perry Jr

* Samuel D. Cozen Award (most improved player)

### Troy Harper

* Donald Shank Spirit & Dedication Award

### Alihan Demir

* Team Academic Award