2014-2015 schedule

[rink]

Add me to the list of those who should be in attendance in Nashville.  Wife's family is in the Music City and this is our year to be down there for Thanksgiving.  No doubt the universe is unfolding as it should...

It would be awesome if the tournament was held in Vandy's Memorial Gym.  I was just remarking last year that I needed to see that place and the unique baseline team benches one of these days.  I assume the tourney will be far too small for the Bridgestone area, which is fine since I've seen that place half a dozen times now for Preds games.  Maybe the Municipal Auditorium where the OVC conference tourney was held?

[valpopal]

Schedule for 2014 Challenge in Music City:

Friday Nov. 28
5 p.m. – Drake vs Valparaiso
7:30 p.m. – Murray State vs Portland
 
Saturday Nov. 29
5 p.m. – Portland vs Drake
7:30 p.m. – Murray State vs Valparaiso
 
Sunday  Nov. 30
1 p.m. – Portland vs Valparaiso
3:30 p.m. – Murray State vs Drake

[LaPorteAveApostle]

Revised by last year's RPI:

Schedule for 2014 Challenge in Music City:

Friday Nov. 28
5 p.m. – 174 vs 184
7:30 p.m. – 142 vs 178
 
Saturday Nov. 29
5 p.m. – 178 vs 174
7:30 p.m. – 142 vs 184
 
Sunday  Nov. 30
1 p.m. – 178 vs 184
3:30 p.m. – 142 vs 174

That's...that's not easy to do. 

Either to schedule a tournament that seemingly well-matched OR to run that gauntlet.  No Cincinnati Christian to rest the starters here...

[valpotx]

We must absolutely love playing Murray State.  No complaints here

[vu84v2]

Portland as a third team of the three games in Nashville is pretty darn good competition.  They play in a good mid-major conference and beat Gonzaga and BYU last year.  That will not be an easy game.

[Pathfinder]

New Mexico on December 6 http://www.koat.com/blob/view/-/27234526/data/2/-/xv64l8/-/unm-men-s-schedule.pdf

[wh]

New Mexico on December 6 http://www.koat.com/blob/view/-/27234526/data/2/-/xv64l8/-/unm-men-s-schedule.pdf

Pathfinder - last season I calculated OOC scores for HL teams using the A-10's scoring system. If I recall correctly, I thought I came up with some and you calculated some, as well. Would you be willing to do the calculation and ranking chores this year. If not, it's fine. I'm just super tied up right now and will be for a while. Thanks.

[ValpoRollerHockey]

Coming to Valpo as a first year law student. From Tucson, Arizona and have only known PAC12 basketball, University of Arizona. I just hope Valpo can make the ncaa tournament, anything less is a failed season if you ask me.

What is the expectation for this years basketball team?

Can't believe New Mexico is coming to play here. The last two seasons they have gone out in the first round of the NCAA tournament. This game will be a defining moment for Valpo this season. Beat New Mexico and you have a chance to make the NCAA tournament.

[vu72]

Coming to Valpo as a first year law student. From Tucson, Arizona and have only known PAC12 basketball, University of Arizona. I just hope Valpo can make the ncaa tournament, anything less is a failed season if you ask me.

What is the expectation for this years basketball team?

Can't believe New Mexico is coming to play here. The last two seasons they have gone out in the first round of the NCAA tournament. This game will be a defining moment for Valpo this season. Beat New Mexico and you have a chance to make the NCAA tournament.

Welcome to the Midwest!  Although I'm currently in the heart of Texas!  The team was  VERY young last year with three freshman starting.  We will rely on those three plus a 6'11" center who has improved each year and now will be a senior. We've added some players with large conference experience but are unknown to us.  We have Coach Drew and that is always a plus.  I'm looking for a possible NCAA bid but with the youth etc it may be another year before it happens.  Still, anytime you can get to the ARC it will be a fun experience.  Good luck with your studies!

[a3uge]

Coming to Valpo as a first year law student. From Tucson, Arizona and have only known PAC12 basketball, University of Arizona. I just hope Valpo can make the ncaa tournament, anything less is a failed season if you ask me.

What is the expectation for this years basketball team?

Can't believe New Mexico is coming to play here. The last two seasons they have gone out in the first round of the NCAA tournament. This game will be a defining moment for Valpo this season. Beat New Mexico and you have a chance to make the NCAA tournament.

Expecting a berth is pretty lofty. This team is still a year away from breaking into top 100 RPI. If they make the tourney this year, I think the seed would be really low.

The HL looks weak this year with Brown going pro (god he has to be sunburnt) and both Perry and Bader  gone. I'm expecting Valpo to finish 3 or 4 games above .500. We're losing our most productive player and the frontcourt looks weak, but the core is definitely there and more experienced (Carter and Peters, and then Lexus and Jubril). I think next year the team should be at the top of the Horizon, but there's definitely going to be some growing pains.

[humbleopinion]

The Horizon League is not the PAC 12.  It is not a multiple berth conference.  Historically, only the winner of the end-of-the-season tournament earns a berth.  That means that a team that dominates the conference in the regular season is always just one loss away from not going to the dance.  The good news that a young team that struggles through the season can pull it together for a week, win the tournament, and end up in the NCAA tournament (with a very low seed).

[Pathfinder]

Pathfinder - last season I calculated OOC scores for HL teams using the A-10's scoring system. If I recall correctly, I thought I came up with some and you calculated some, as well. Would you be willing to do the calculation and ranking chores this year. If not, it's fine. I'm just super tied up right now and will be for a while. Thanks.

Question: does the A10 still use this system? Seems pretty old. Can't imagine CUSA still gets an automatic point. And looking at St. Bonaventure and Duquesne schedules announced for this coming season, just eyeballing them they don't seem close to the 1.8

[wh]

Pathfinder - last season I calculated OOC scores for HL teams using the A-10's scoring system. If I recall correctly, I thought I came up with some and you calculated some, as well. Would you be willing to do the calculation and ranking chores this year. If not, it's fine. I'm just super tied up right now and will be for a while. Thanks.

Question: does the A10 still use this system? Seems pretty old. Can't imagine CUSA still gets an automatic point. And looking at St. Bonaventure and Duquesne schedules announced for this coming season, just eyeballing them they don't seem close to the 1.8

I don't know if the A-10 still uses it, although I don't know why they wouldn't other than tweaking it to reflect the current configuration of higher profile conferences.  You're right that scheduling a current CUSA team is no longer worthy of receiving a 1-point minimum.  At the same time, logic would seem to say that if CUSA "pre-realignment" was considered worthy of a 1-point minimum, current Big East and AAC teams would be at least as worthy.  For our purposes I don't think it matters if we exactly match what the A-10 currently has in place as much as just having a sensible mechanism to show which HL teams are doing a good job scheduling and which aren't. 

[valpo64]

When will the 2014-15 schedule be published?

[LaPorteAveApostle]

Last year's wasn't released until Sept 10. (!)

2012-13 was August 24th.

Before that the earliest the last 4 years was August 18...

[valpopal]

Unless I missed it, nobody has mentioned that Valpo will play at Missouri November 16.

[LaPorteAveApostle]

[historyman]

Unless I missed it, nobody has mentioned that Valpo will play at Missouri November 16.

http://www.mutigers.com/sports/m-baskbl/sched/miss-m-baskbl-sched.html

Looks to be a doable road trip. No set starting time yet but will be most likely in the afternoon.

UMKC--Valpo--ORU all in a row at the Mizzou Arena

If you remember correctly Frank Haith took his trail of Mizz-ery to Tulsa and the new coach is a MO guy and former Central Missouri head coach, Kim Anderson. The Tigers could be ripe for the taking.

[vu72]

Only two seniors on the Mizzou roster.

[valpotx]

We need to play ORU again.  I hate them so much, but they were fun games.

[a3uge]

We need to play ORU again.  I hate them so much, but they were fun games.

I'm sure they'd love to play us. We are to them as Butler is to us.

[oklahomamick]

As long as we don't play them at the maybee center. 

[valpopal]

Valpo at IPFW on Saturday, Dec. 20.

[bbtds]

Valpo at IPFW on Saturday, Dec. 20.

Hope we don't screw this one up. We have taken Ft Wayne for granted in the past.

[wh]

A good beginning toward a quality OOC schedule...

  18 New Mexico
  50 Missouri
101 Murray State
116 IPFW
178 Portland
179 Drake
208 ETSU

120 avg.

1 Top 25 opponent, 2 Top 50 opponents, 3 Top 100 opponents (almost), no opponents >250, and 1 potentially winnable Power-5 opponent (rather than multiple guaranteed losses against top tier Power 5's - aka "the Oakland way")