A college basketball throwback is behind the golden age of Morehead State men’s basketball

In the modern college basketball landscape — one that’s defined by coach and player movement — a throwback story is being authored at Morehead State.

The result of it has left a lasting legacy in the history books.

Morehead State has gone 91-39 over the last four seasons, the most wins of any of Kentucky’s eight NCAA Division I men’s programs over that period.

Senior guard Drew Thelwell has been an Eagle for each of those 91 victories. He now owns the title of all-time wins leader in Morehead State history.

“Consistency. It’s just every day, doing the same things,” Thelwell told the Herald-Leader last week. “I know sometimes it’s tedious and gets boring, but at the end of the day if you want to win, you have to do the little things right all the time.”

Last month, the 6-foot-3 Thelwell passed former Eagle Terrance Hill (87 wins from 2008 to 2012) as the player with the most wins in MSU history.

This accomplishment speaks to many things.

First, longevity. A true four-year player at Morehead State, Thelwell arrived as part of head coach Preston Spradlin’s 2020 recruiting class and has spent all four of his college seasons in Morehead.

Then, consistency: Thelwell joined Morehead State right before a run of generational success. Morehead State has won at least 20 games in each of the last four seasons, the first time in program history that’s occurred.

This includes a trip to the 2021 NCAA Tournament, the most recent of the eight times the Eagles have gone dancing. It also includes last season’s historic win at Clemson in the NIT first round.

Along with that team consistency, Thelwell has displayed impressive individual growth.

He’s gone from a bench player in his first two seasons to a penciled-in starter as an upperclassman: Last season he averaged more than 11 points per game as Morehead State won its first outright Ohio Valley Conference regular season championship in 39 years.

This season, Thelwell is top-10 in the nation in assists as the Eagles finished in a three-way tie atop the league standings.

Morehead State — the No. 3 seed in this week’s OVC Tournament — will have to create more magic to win that event and secure a spot in the NCAA Tournament.

If the Eagles are to do so, then Thelwell will be front and center as an early star of March.

“He’s the outlier in today’s college basketball world,” Spradlin, now in his eighth season as Morehead State’s head coach, told the Herald-Leader. “... It comes down to his character, his humility, those things have allowed him to gradually improve and have an imprint on our program.”

Drew Thelwell learns, then leads, at Morehead State

Thelwell played high school basketball in the suburbs of Orlando, Florida. Naturally, he knew next to nothing about Morehead State when Spradlin and his coaching staff began recruiting him about five years ago.

“There would just be long, genuine conversations,” Thelwell said of the way the Morehead State coaching staff communicated with him and his family. “I think that’s where the bond grew from.”

From Spradlin’s perspective, it was Thelwell’s energy, positivity and response that made him an attractive point guard prospect.

Upon his arrival in Morehead, Thelwell learned from a talented core of Eagles already in place.

His first two seasons in Morehead as a bench player came as a pair of Eagles turned current SEC stars — forward Johni Broome (Auburn) and guard Ta’Lon Cooper (South Carolina) — led the way.

Cooper (fourth in the SEC this season with 4.4 assists per game) imparted specific wisdom on Thelwell: To play at his own pace.

Thelwell is now an anchor for Morehead State: He’s started (and played) in 64 out of a possible 65 games over the last two seasons. He went from 4.3 minutes per game as a freshman on an NCAA Tournament team (2020-21), to 11.6 minutes as a sophomore (2021-22) and now more than 32 minutes per game as a junior and senior.

After averaging double-digit scoring last season, Thelwell has emerged as an elite distributor this season. His 196 total assists rank seventh in the country (as of Monday morning) and Thelwell is nine assists away from setting the Morehead State single-season record.

In December, Thelwell set a single-game program record with 19 assists in a home win over NAIA school Alice Lloyd College.

“He was going to need to be able to keep our team together, to lead us, both ends of the floor, and then kind of set everybody else up, and make them better,” Spradlin said. “That’s certainly what he’s done and that’s a role he’s embraced.”

This strong guard play has been essential to the Eagles’ success, especially alongside OVC Player of the Year Riley Minix (20.5 points and 9.9 rebounds per game) and given that fifth-year guard Mark Freeman — the preseason OVC Player of the Year — is set to miss the entire season because of a wrist injury.

Thelwell is also among the national leaders in a less traditional statistic: Fouls committed per 40 minutes. He only commits 1.02 fouls every 40 minutes of game time, which is the third-best mark in the country, per KenPom.

Thelwell represents old school college basketball approach with Eagles

Winning more than 90 games in a less than four-season span already makes Thelwell a special college basketball story.

But his choice to remain at Morehead State — despite not starting for two seasons and then after displaying his skill at the low-major level — also distinguishes him.

“At the end of the day, it comes down to the heart, it comes down to the character and the humility,” Spradlin said. “He’s at the top of the list when it comes to those characteristics.”

“The trust is there,” Thelwell said of his relationship with Spradlin. “... I know what he wants, when he wants it. I know what he’s thinking already, before sometimes he says it. So it’s just knowing him, and knowing how to get things done.”

In an era of unprecedented player movement in college basketball, Thelwell has chosen to stay put.

What has he learned by doing so?

“I think the biggest thing is just patience,” Thelwell said. “Sometimes, things aren’t going to be given to you quickly or as quick as you want it to happen for you, and that happens in a game sometimes, too. ... The ball’s going to find you. So I feel like I’ve just learned patience throughout the four years.”

Next Game

No. 3 Morehead State vs. No. 6 Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville or No. 7 Eastern Illinois

What: Ohio Valley Conference Tournament quarterfinals

Where: Ford Center in Evansville, Ind.

When: 10 p.m. Thursday

TV: ESPN+

Records: Morehead State 23-8 (14-4 OVC), SIUE 16-15 (9-9) or Eastern Illinois 14-17 (8-10)

Series: Morehead State leads SIUE 15-6. Eastern Illinois leads Morehead State 26-23.

Last meetings: Morehead State beat SIUE 79-68 on Feb. 8 in Morehead. Morehead State beat Eastern Illinois 69-57 on Feb. 10 in Morehead.