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Don't fall in love with size.  Basketball is a game of quickness.  Rare indeed is the big with quicks.

I wouldn't be surprised with any NAIA team having a D1 level player.  Most good programs do.  These young men are often pushed out by the D1 programs early and develop, are an inch or two small but are still players, or develop late.  Recruiting at the D1 level is basically done when young men are 15 -16 years old.  There are plenty of players who do not develop until late teens/early 20s.

lowposter

Outstanding...Chris Artis is one of the "good guys" in the game.  Minor correction.  He was Assistant coach at Calumet College in Whiting, not Calumet High School.

Regarding Zoran Talley...this is one talented young man.  I wouldn't be surprised if he ends up in the 6'8" range.  The young man can flat out shoot the ball.  This is a great opportunity for him...let's hope he gets those grades up, puts on 20 pounds, grows 2 inches and has the opportunity to play at the next level.  He will certainly have a great mentor in Coach Artis.

Zoran's sister is quite a player at MHS and only a sophomore.

lowposter

Congradulations to Jake.  He was an outstanding Crusader, both on the floor and as a staff member.  This is a great move for him.

Greg Tonagel as assistant coach?  Why?  He is already head coach at IWU.  BTW, he is loaded this coming year and should compete for NAIA National crown.

One VHS already has D1.

Valpo89....

Dan Palambizio also left the game with 3 minutes to go when his son was removed from the game.  My comment about VU recruiting his son was tongue in cheek.  Gotta disagree with your assessment of CHS having more talent than VHS as VHS won all three games this year.  The game in February was a 2 point game, but VHS had that in hand (8 point lead with 90 seconds before throwing the ball away). 

My assessment of the CHS situation isnt the kids on the floor, but the people watching the game, particularly a few parents, but that is just from what I hear and observe.  The talent at CHS was far over-rated.  Perhaps these four young men (including Teal) will be very good players by their senior years, but as of last year they ran hot and cold.  Sometimes parents should just sit back and enjoy the fact their kids are playing (it is called "playing").

lowposter

Mack Mercer is the real deal.  This would be an outstanding recruit for the program.

lowposter

Why not add Chris Palambizio to that list?

6'5" wing player with three point range.

Here is another Chesterton product who is also leaving his high school for greener pastures, transfering to Traders Point Prep School.  Let's see, bring in Fazikous, Holba, and Palambizio to duplicate that great undefeated Chesterton Middle School team of a couple years ago.  Should be able to draw that north Porter County crowd and fill the ARC!

Minor corrections here...

Bryce had his own free throw style which differed from the then Valpo method.  Bob Punter was the VHS coach at the time and Bryce was allowed to use his own style.  Other players in that era used the Valpo style.  The previous VHS coach was Skip Collins.  Skip was absolutely brilliant at teaching kids how to shoot FTs.  I saw him work with a group of Valpo 7th/8th graders and transform a 7th grader from a 40% shooter to 75% within one hour of team instruction and perhaps 5 minutes of one on one time.

Free throws are muscle memory with considerable mental skills attached.  By minimizing the movements, there are fewer things to go wrong with the shot.  By standardizing the shot, it is easy to coach/instruct with fewer "moveable parts" so to speak.

I am surprized Skip Collins isnt used as a consultant, but most basketball coaches have an ego thing about bringing in "outside help."  By the time players are in college, most are unwilling to tinker or adjust their shooting styles.

lowposter

Boyd is making progress.  I respect him, but have some issues with the physical nature of the game he encourages.  At times, his teams resemble a Big East team with hard fouls and chippiness.  Not just my opinion but others also.

Volovic is simply a winner.  He is undersized at 5'9" but has abilities on the floor which cannot be disputed.  Carmel won state two years in a row with him in command and with NO D1 talent (other than himself) on the floor.  McRoberts probably will be a mid-major (he is only a junior) but their leading players from last year went D3.

If I were voting for Mr. Basketball serious consideration would have been given to Volovic.  He is that good. 

Davidson did in fact attend Top 60 and played well.  One must realize that for the most part the Top 60 degenerates very quickly into a "one on one" fest with tons of poor shots and quite a few airballs.   Nick made a couple of nice drives to the hoop and finished strongly on one play. 

Schlottman is a better fit for the Indiana All Stars and it is doubtful two from the weak conference were going to make All Stars.

Davidson can be another Matt Kenney if he improves quickness/jumping.

lowposter

So, it appears that Greg Tonnagel is the last DAC player at VU.  If you are going to include Ali Berdiel of Andrean (that is REALLY a stretch BTW) then you must include the Hawkins from LaLamiere from about 5 years ago. 

I understand VU recruited Martin and Hummel about 6 years ago, but since then they have pretty much avoided the area.  Coach Powell will be able to open doors (and sign recruits) in Illinois, but do not expect him to remain here very much longer unless there is a compelling reason to stay.

Kimmel and Albretch were/are both Greg Tonnagel type players...coaches on the floor that while they look as if they should be singing in the church choirs, in reality are stone cold assassins on the floor. 

I agree recruiting is quite an art.  The Simmons kid from City is an amazing athlete and would fit in academically here.  If you get a chance review his game, if you think Yeo is athletic, Simmons raw abilities will be eye opening.

lowposter

The biggest miss VU had recently was Brad Karp, but then again so did 350 other D1s.  Already 2000 career points in three years at NAIA St. Xaiver including 28 against Notre Dame his sophomore season. 

If you want to see how good he is, take a look at him at VU open gym this summer. 

VU absolutely refuses to recruit the DAC.  Here is another outstanding player that wasnt even looked at by the Crusaders.  His older brother just finished up at Brown and was quite a player.

Let's look back at recent "misses"...Jared Jones from Michigan City - 6'8" four year starter at Ball State, the complete mishandling of Novak (four year contributor/starter at Michigan who averaged 29 ppg as a senior at Chesterton and had his offer pulled from VU), no interest in Hayden Humes from VHS, no interest in Brad Karp (2000 career points at NAIA level in 3 years) and others.

Are they even looking at the Simmons kid from Michigan City (6'6" junior all DAC with 40" vertical who was referred to as a "high major sleeper" this past weekend at Milwaukee)?

These kids are all outstanding players who play in the toughest conference north of Indianapolis...a complete meat grinder physical in your face double round robin brawl.

What is missed with these young men, in addition to their talents is the ability to bring people into the ARC.  Twenty years ago VU heavily recruited the DAC and at one time their entire starting lineup consisted of players from within 25 miles.  Today...name the most recent player from the conference...

How is it Michigan can find the talent in NW Indiana?  They are already recruiting a 6'5" freshman from VHS...

lowposter

This is probably a crazy idea....but how about adding VU, Loyola, and Detroit (as previously recommended) and then having 2 divisions.  One would be the "Private Universities" with VU, LU, UDM, Bradley, Evansville, and Drake.  That works out pretty well geographically also. 

An opportunity to move up to the Valley would be an excellent opportunity.  The HL is on borrowed time since Butler left.  It would take awhile for VU to move up to the upper level in basketball, but there is no reason why the recruiting wouldnt ramp up. 

lowposter

Schlotman is a point guard, Davidson is not.  Davidson was placed at PG position as a freshman at Andrean but rotated to more of a 2/3.  There were much more quicker guards on Andrean.  Comments a year ago from Andrean fans were that Nick couldnt keep up with the quicker elite PGs like Jackson of Mishawaka Marion (of course not too many people can). 

Schlotman will fit in very well running a team.  He is a Mike Hackett PG...well schooled and a coach on the floor.  He has very good bloodlines.  I believe his mother played at Purdue.  He is one of my favorite players in the Region.  He statistically had a very good game against Merrillville but the overall quickness and pressure of Merrillville's uber quick guards was the difference in 4Q.  The Jenkins kid is a load. 

Dominique Hawkins was named Mr. Basketball in KY.  He is showing offers from Western Ky, South Carolina, Morehead St, Tennessee Tech, and VU.  He is waiting for an offer from UK.  This kid is a load.  He is a 6'1" guard.  If you believe your current recruiting class is athletic...take a look at him.  If he comes here, it will completely push the guard position into a sprint for playing time.

lowposter

Howard was recruited by Xaiver and Purdue (who chose Scott Martin over him) and Hayward was recruited by Purdue.  Butler is well placed for a continued significant run.  BTW the Butler system was well in place well before Howard and Hayward showed up.  Check out all the big time NCAA wins earlier this century.

lowposter

I would be concerned about Roger Powell moving on.  His recruiting ability in the Illinois is already very good and will only improve.  He is bringing in some serious talent next season....and might have had a hand in Dority transfering in. 

This spring will be an interesting one for VU.  If Bryce is going to leave, it will be this year or it will be down the road a few years.  He maximized this year's talent for a HL championship and while VU didnt advance in the NCAA, he carries a great reputation and would be considered at higher levels.  If he is still here May 15th, count on him being here a few years.

Greg Tonagel has accomplished quite a bit at IWU.  At some point NAIA coaches must decide to roll the dice and advance to the rough and tumble world of D1 with all it's problems or settle in for a 35 year career and 800 career wins.  He has an outstanding recruiting class incoming including 6'6" Nate Bubash of Munster and 6'7" Lane Mahouran of Rockville and despite losing some talented seniors...his cupboard is seldom unstocked.  The Crossroads is probably the best NAIA conference in the country...dont sell him short for only being "NAIA D2", the man can coach.  VU would be very fortunate to have him at the helm.  He is a true gentleman and outstanding coach.

lowposter

A quick scan showed there are at this time at least 35 Indiana players who have either committed to or will be going D1.  One local coach was told there will be close to 45-50 by the time everything is said and done.  While there are no truly outstanding jaw dropping top 20 talents (nationally) this year (Glen Robinson III) worked his way to top 20 in the spring last year), the talent pool is very, very deep as has been the case the past few years. 

Why?  Indiana high school basketball is at a very high level.  The players are well coached and are fundamentally sound.  Indianapolis area produces great talent which is well coached and plays at a high level of competition.

There will probably be no NW Indiana players on the Indiana All Star Team.  Outside chance to Nick Davidson or Mike Schlotman of Munster...possibly a long shot to BJ Jenkins of Merrillville, but a very long shot.  Jenkins was the best player on the best team in the DAC and advanced to the final 4 of Class 4, but the DAC meat grinder schedule does not lend itself to high scoring stats.  He will be a D1 player in either football or basketball.  Merrillville also has Raspopovich going D1, plus the 6'6" Talley will eventually end up there once he stops growing and gains a little weight.  Lake Central has 3 D1 players and finished 3rd in the DAC behind Merrillville and Valpo (who has a D1 committed forward).  So, lots of talent in NW but nothing that jumps out and grabs you. 

Munster and Andrean were done in by their weak conference.  Had they played in a tougher conference they possibly could have advanced to the state finals, although it would have been tough for Munster to beat Carmel.  Andrean should have been there.  I watched them lose to Chesterton by 14 and Chesterton finished 4th in the DAC. 

I am not sure if there are any immediate impact freshmen coming in, but this is a very good class.  To make the transition from HS to HL is a tough one.  The two forwards from Illinois both could make immediate contributions.  Yeo is a fascinating prospect.  Good athlete and great young man.  He needs to get stronger (they all do) and adjust to the quicker game....and learn to go to his left.  No doubt he will do all these things.

Not sure if Davidson will play PG.  In fact it would be a surprize if he does.  There are two incoming PGs next year, both from Chicago area (one a St Louis transfer who was runner up Mr Basketball).  These kids are quick on quick.  Davidson is not quick, but should be able to translate to a 2/3 in the HL if he developes quickness and hops.  He was head and shoulders the best player in NW from 5th grade thru sophomore year in his grade, then players started catching up.  If you want to see a true 6'4" PG, look at Munster's Mike Schlotman....and even he was proved to be human against the ultra quickness of Merrillville's Jenkins in the Regionals.

This incoming group should be very good, but give them at least a year.  Plus there is some talent still in place.

Did they actually charge $20 for upper deck seats yesterday?  I certainly am glad my boys and I stayed home (tried to talk them into going).

How in the world does VU charge $20 for a poor seat?  What kind of "sports marketing" was that?

It was a good performance (watched it on TV).

Very good freshmen usually make contributions but it is difficult to expect big things from them.  Consistency is a key factor. They are playing against more more physically mature players.  If a freshman is physically ready to play in this conference, quite often they are recruited to a higher conference....

Look at Ryan's freshman year for example.  Not bad, but he exploded on the scene his junior season.  Of course part of that was the pecking order at the time.   

I agree, Peters seems to be the one freshman that will be ready to make an impact with Adekoya being in the rotation. 

lowposter

This might have been the "hardest foul" for VU since Tony Vilcincias. 

I have looked at the video and agree that this was not a flagrant foul.  Hard?  Yes.   

It was brought on by the type of shot (windmill dunk) taken.

Watched the last 4 minutes with the great comeback from 9 down.  Outstanding win.  Detroit just didnt take care of the ball during their possessions and Matt Kenney...nicely done.

Great road win.

Holba is a very good basketball player who will only improve.  More upside than Robbie Hummel?  Not sure about that, time will tell.  He must develop more face the basket skills and ballhandling plus defense to be considered with Robbie.  He has time to do so.

He is very athletic and will be heavily recruited not only for basketball but also football, as a wide receiver.  I had him for 16pt/14r and 5 blocks last night against Andrean and was clearly the best player on the court IMHO.

And remember...only a sophomore.
lowposter

Porter Moser is an excellent coach and he and his staff have done a great job in bringing in 9 new players and melding them into a TEAM...on short notice.  His staff has deep roots to the state of Indiana and they are actively recruiting talent in this state (Osborn and O'Leary are freshmen and Jordan Pickett is a senior point guard on Pike, currently the best team in the state).   Jason Gardner played at Arizona and is quite a recruiter.

Recall last year that Loyola with one victory took VU to overtime here at home and possibly would have won had Averkamp been called for a phantom foul with 8 minutes to go.

Let's see, how does UIC look on the schedule?  Another easy win? 

This is a great wake up call, lets see if VU hits the snooze button or jumps up and gets going.

lowposter

Matt Kenney gives this team another dimension.  He can attack the basket, he can defend, rebound, and distribute the ball.  Perhaps the coaching staff was hoping he would be a Howard Little type player off the bench, just put him on the floor and let him play.

Decent crowd last night all things considered.  It was great to see a 7'0" Billy Van Senus (VHS and IUPUI center) in attendance.  Ditto Brooke McAfee (also VHS and IUPUI center).

Anyone know why Elijah Ray is not suiting up this year for IUPUI?  They need interior help.

lowposter