Year after NCAA tourney run, Drexel hopes to make it back for ‘full experience’

After a year of unique circumstances and “bubble environments,” 2022 marks a return to normalcy for the NCAA Tournament, and Drexel hopes to recapture some of last year’s magic to play its way back into the bracket.

Drexel earned a berth in the 2021 NCAA Tournament for the first time in 25 years (1996) after winning the Colonial Athletic Association conference tournament.

But with limited fans due to COVID-19 restrictions, the Dragons didn’t get the full experience of March Madness.

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“We all kind of felt that even after making it last year we want to get back so we can actually feel the real environment with fans, and feel that type of energy,” Drexel sophomore guard Xavier Bell said. “So that’s in the back of our minds, but we’re still really focused on our conference tournament right now and trying to get through Delaware.”

Drexel (15-13, 10-8) begins its quest for another NCAA tournament berth against Delaware (19-12, 10-8) in the CAA Tournament at 2:30 p.m. on Sunday in Washington, D.C. Drexel split its season series with the Blue Hens.

“For the most part, they’re a physical team so rebounding has been our main focus this whole week,” Bell said. “This is a team that got a lot of rebounds against us so we gave them a lot of second-chance points that way. We’re focused on that aspect of the game to try to limit that.”

Bell became a key player down the stretch of the 2020-21 season, starting the last seven games, including tournament play.

Bell averaged 8 points per game in last season’s tournament. This season, Bell is averaging 11.1 points and is the Dragons’ second-leading scorer.

“Last tournament gave me a little more confidence knowing that I can still provide,” Bell said. “I think for the most part it’s about being locked in and doing what I need to do to get my team a win.”

This will be the last shot at another NCAA Tournament for senior Camren Wynter.

“Obviously, I’m a senior so I wanna go out on a high note,” Wynter said. “Last year was a little weird considering that the tournament was in a bubble setting. We didn’t get the full experience of what the tournament was actually like.”

Wynter is averaging 15.3 points per game and is fourth in scoring in the CAA.

“We all just wanna go back and be that team that does it twice. And not only just getting there but try to make some noise once we’re there,” Wynter said.

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Due to COVID-19, the 2020 NCAA Tournament was canceled and in 2021 it was held in a “bubble environment” in Indianapolis with limited spectators. Players were isolated in their hotel rooms with each team sharing its own floor.

Drexel learned from the experience despite losing to Illinois in the first round.

“It brought a lot of us closer because the only thing we really had to do was bond with each other,” Wynter said. “This chemistry definitely carries over to the court.”

With an NCAA Tournament appearance looming, the Dragons know they have no margin for error.

“The wins and losses are the biggest game changer,” Bell said. “We know that if we lose one game in our conference tournament we’re done. So with that playing a big role we’re doing everything we can to focus on what we need to do to make sure we win.”