Drake hires South Dakota State's Eric Henderson to replace Ben McCollum, who left for Iowa

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Eric Henderson, who led South Dakota State to two NCAA Tournament appearances in six seasons, has been hired as Drake's head coach, the school announced Friday.

The 46-year-old Henderson replaces Ben McCollum, who left for Iowa on Monday after leading the Bulldogs to the Missouri Valley Conference regular-season and tournament championships and a first-round win over Missouri in the NCAA Tournament.

“My family and I are elated to join Drake Nation,” Henderson said. “Early on in this process it became evident that values and vision aligned with the incredible path President (Marty) Martin and (athletic director) Brian Hardin have already established. I am extremely grateful for the opportunity they have given me and my family to walk that path with them. The excitement for Drake basketball is at an all-time high, and I’m looking forward to building relationships and representing such a committed university and fan base."

Henderson is a native of Coggon, Iowa, about 140 miles northeast of Drake's campus in Des Moines. He played at Wayne State in Nebraska under current Creighton coach Greg McDermott and worked as a coach at the high school and college levels before he was hired as a South Dakota State assistant in 2014.

He was hired as the Jackrabbits' coach in 2019, after current Iowa State coach T.J. Otzelberger left for UNLV, and was 129-60 overall and 76-20 in Summit League play. Henderson’s squads never finished worse than third in the Summit League and won at least a share of the regular-season title four times. His 2022 and 2024 teams lost first-round games in the NCAA Tournament.

“Eric quickly established himself in a talented pool of candidates as the best person to lead our men’s basketball program,” Hardin said. “He elevated South Dakota State to not only the premier program in the Summit League but also one of the best programs at our level in the country."

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