Game #15 - Oakland Friday Jan 6, 8pm (CT) ESPN2 @ the ARC

[talksalot]

any one with a student ID to any school... FREE for all 4 games this weekend!  just posted on the Valpo Athletics FB page.   All you have to do is sit in the Student Section ~~

Women Thursday and Saturday; and both Men's games Friday and Sunday.

[covufan]

any one with a student ID to any school... FREE for all 4 games this weekend!  just posted on the Valpo Athletics FB page.   All you have to do is sit in the Student Section ~~

Women Thursday and Saturday; and both Men's games Friday and Sunday.

Try to wear something brown or gold, vice green or any other colors!

[VUOR63]

Does the ID need to be current?  I could see alumni digging out their old id cards and trying to get in for free.

[talksalot]

here's the full quote on the posting... it does say "Valid"

Hey Crusader Fans! We have a ticket special running for our four games in four days. Anyone with a valid School ID can get into the games for FREE and sit in the student section. Help us cheer on our teams as they open conference play at home, starting this Thursday, Jan. 5 at 7 p.m. for VALPO Women's Basketball and Friday, Jan. 6 at 8 p.m. for Valpo Men's Basketball, being televised on ESPN. #GoValpo

and I wanted to be the first to post this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=82u5zmT8GIw

[wh]

Peters ready for Oakland's game plan

http://www.nwitimes.com/sports/college/valparaiso-university/peters-ready-for-oakland-s-game-plan/article_336b54d5-7f60-511f-88a8-0106b9583435.html

There will be no shortage of mutual respect when Valparaiso and Oakland meet at the Athletcs-Recreation Center during a nationally televised Horizon League contest tonight.

On one side will be longtime Oakland coach Greg Kampe. On the other will be the player that he has been trying to stop for the last three seasons, Valparaiso star Alec Peters.

Kampe has long devised game plans to try shutting down Peters, and the coach has often been successful, holding the Valparaiso senior to just 12.3 points per game in six career meetings with the Grizzlies. On the flip side, the Crusaders are 4-2 in those contests with Valparaiso going on to win the last two regular-season titles.

"Oakland and Valpo games are always important," Kampe said. "We put a little more time into preparing for them, and they probably put a little more time in preparing for us. Coaches aren't supposed to say that, but it's true."

Much of Kampe's preparation over the years has been looking for ways to shut down Peters. As a freshman, Peters averaged 12.5 points per game in two meetings, while the teams each held serve on their home court.

As a sophomore, Peters was hounded by defensive stalwart Dante Williams and was limited to 9.0 points in two games that were also won by the home team. Last season, Peters scored 15.5 points per game in two Valparaiso victories. The two teams have yet to meet in the Horizon League tournament.

"We've game planned for Peters in each of his three years," Kampe said. "His freshman year, he was a role player and we knew it was imperative to stop him. As a sophomore and junior, he's been the man and we felt to win the game that we needed to stop him. We do some game planning and we have some special little things. Valpo knows us and we know them about as well as someone can know each other."

Whatever Kampe and the Grizzlies have in store for Peters tonight, the preseason Horizon League Player of the Year is looking forward to battling against a team that has held him to just 8.3 shots per game in six meetings. Peters has averaged more than 12 shots per game during the rest of his career.

"I invite it," Peters said. "(Kampe) is going to have a good game plan. He's going to try to shut me down. Shut a lot of the things we do down. It's a good challenge for us. Every time we play them it's like a fight. It's almost like a brawl."

While Oakland has held Peters to his least amount of points against a conference opponent, Tevonn Walker has shined against the Grizzlies, averaging 17 points in four meetings. Walker scored 24 points in a blowout win at Oakland last season and scored 22 points against the Grizzlies as a freshman.

"On the flip side of Peters is Walker, and he always has his best games against us," Kampe said. "He's a big-game guy. He's a guy that can go 10 minutes without doing anything and then he says 'It's time to win' and he flips that switch. I have tremendous respect for Walker."

"It's flattering," Walker said when told of Kampe's comments. "It's just a matter of all the work that I've been putting in. It's a team sport and the rest of my guys make it easy for me to do well on the court."

Oakland won its first two conference games over Wright State and Northern Kentucky last weekend, while Valparaiso opened up Horizon League play with a road victory over Illinois-Chicago. The two teams finished at the top of the conference and appear set for another season-long collision course. The winner of tonight's game will stay undefeated and take the early advantage in the race for the top overall seed in the conference tournament.

"It's not just one of 18 games, because history shows it's going to be a great game and that one of us, if not both of us will be fighting for the league championship," Kampe said. "Neither team has to talk about the rivalry, because we've both got veteran teams that have been through it before. This game will be one of the most physical games we play all year. Every possession will have an importance to it."

[wh]

Chesterton's Chris Palombizio eager for Oakland's game against Valparaiso

Michael Osipoff
Post-Tribune

http://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/post-tribune/sports/ct-ptb-mens-basketball-valparaiso-oakland-chris-palombizio-st-0106-20170105-story.html

Chris Palombizio possesses a high level of self-awareness.

When Oakland plays Valparaiso on Friday night at the Athletics-Recreation Center, he knows he will have to keep his emotions in check.

It will be a homecoming for the former Chesterton star, a 2015 graduate who's now a freshman for the Grizzlies.

Add the fact that Oakland is considered the top challenger to Horizon League favorite Valparaiso, and he's going to be particularly amped for the ESPN2 game.

"I'm really excited," Palombizio said. "I've always looked forward to playing at home. The main thing, I just have to play my role and not try to do anything spectacular. I just have to do what I can to help us come out with a 'W' and not force anything.

"I'll want to be a lot more aggressive, looking for my shot more. But I have to stay composed and listen to my coach, just do what I do best and that's rebound and shoot."

Palombizio has played every game for the Grizzlies (12-3, 2-0), coming off the bench for a team he describes as 11 deep. Going into the game against the Crusaders (11-3, 1-0), the 6-foot-6 swingman is averaging 3.2 points and 1.8 rebounds in 9.8 minutes.

He's shooting 33.0 percent (15-for-45) from the floor, including 8-for-26 from 3-point range, and 10-for-13 from the foul line.

"Early in the season, I wasn't making my shots, and that's understandable as a freshman," Palombizio said. "I just come into the game, try to rebound and play defense, whatever I can to contribute."

After graduating from Chesterton, Palombizio went to Don Bosco Prep. He enrolled at Oakland for the second semester last year, taking a redshirt.

"The biggest adjustment is just the athleticism and doing the little things," Palombizio said. "In high school, you can get away with staying straight up and you can't in college. If you're chillin' on defense, you're going to get yanked."

Palombizio committed to Western Michigan before his junior year, reopening his recruitment before his senior year. He chose Oakland last fall, signing in the early period.

Valparaiso entered the picture toward the end.

"They stepped in really late, a couple weeks before the signing period," Palombizio said. "They were getting ready to offer me, but I already had my eyes on the schools that were recruiting me.

"I didn't hear from them in high school, so I wasn't going to go out of my way to leave my recruiting process. I was around the whole time in high school and they didn't show interest. I love Oakland. It fits my style."

Crusaders coach Matt Lottich is well aware of Palombizio's ability.

"You have to guard him — he can really shoot," Lottich said. "I'm sure he's going to be looking forward to this opportunity to play here. But he can really, really shoot. Keep a hand in his face and make it tough for him."

Palombizio expects to have a large contingent of family members and friends at the ARC supporting him and the Grizzlies. His father, Dan, the 1981 Indiana Mr. Basketball at Michigan City Rogers who went on to play at Purdue and Ball State, bought 40 tickets. And Chris was trying to gather as many tickets as possible from teammates.

The only limiting factor might be that Chesterton plays Merrillville on Friday and Ky Palombizio, his cousin, is a junior for the Trojans.

"That's a big game for them and I hope they get the win," Chris Palombizio said. "But pretty much everyone in town who's around is coming to our game."

[NativeCheesehead]

Great. Another Don Bosco "Prep" connection. Wonder if Ivan will have the gall to show his face tonight.

[valpo84]

Peters ready for Oakland's game plan

http://www.nwitimes.com/sports/college/valparaiso-university/peters-ready-for-oakland-s-game-plan/article_336b54d5-7f60-511f-88a8-0106b9583435.html

"I invite it," Peters said. "(Kampe) is going to have a good game plan. He's going to try to shut me down. Shut a lot of the things we do down. It's a good challenge for us. Every time we play them it's like a fight. It's almost like a brawl."

Phil Wille approves of this quote! 

[crusadermoe]

Yep. Phil made his mark that day.

Which of the Champagne brothers did he hit?   He got thrown out, right?  And I think several players got a "5-minute major."

Now that was a rumble!   

[wh]

Yep. Phil made his mark that day.

Which of the Champagne brothers did he hit?   He got thrown out, right?  And I think several players got a "5-minute major."

Now that was a rumble!   

For anyone who wasn't there, both Kampe and Grizz tell a revisionist history account of that night - one that has the Champagne knucklehead as getting the better of Phil. I was there and had a perfect sight line. The knucklehead had been pushing, shoving, kneeing, even pulling jerseys all game. Wille came in and started giving KH a taste of his own medicine. Eventually the 2 locked horns and started falling to the ground. On the way down KH threw a sucker punch punch that landed. As they crashed to the floor in a clutch, Wille landed a sharp upper cut that landed flush on the jaw and clearly took the fight out of KH. A big scrum followed. Other players pulled them apart. You could clearly see that both players had been punched. Subsequently, both players were ejected. As Phil took his leave, the crowd gave him a standing ovation to which he responded by pumping both fists in the air. It was clearly a triumph of good over evil and one of my best memories as a Crusader fan.

[valpotx]

I second wh's version of the events, and was also one of those giving him a standing ovation, as well as a few choice words/profanities towards Champagne.

[ValpoFan1000]

Atmosphere here in the arc was great tonight!!

[NativeCheesehead]

I'll leave the XOs analysis of this one to people smarter than I but I will say this. Regardless of the final score...one team took the floor ready to play tonight, one did not. 

[valpolaw]

Just ugly and on national TV

[valpotx]

Every time we needed to get the defensive rebound, our guys were not in position, or let them jump over us to steal it away.  There were way too many lackadaisical passes, jumping before we knew what to do with the ball, and just plain stupid drives that were not going to work out (Joseph and Hammink).  This was not a good loss, regardless of Oakland being picked second.  We will still win the league, but this is our Wright State loss from last season. 

[a3uge]

One of the worst efforts I've seen from Valpo in a long time. Credit to Oakland. This is their most meaningful win in several years for them. Unfortunately, it still doesn't mean all that much with Horizon's tournament format. But they voted for it...

[NativeCheesehead]

So I thought I'd share this while I'm waiting for my uber. 
Originally thought I was going to be out of town this weekend and so I gave away my tickets. When my meeting was canceled I hit up some friends and got a seat in section I, which is right across the gym from where I usually sit. After halftime the seats in front of us ended up filled by a couple of gentlemen about 50. Didn't think much of it at the time until I overheard bits and pieces of their conversation, which included "F$&! This school. " "Valpo is a bunch of hypocrites." " I hope they lose every F$&@ing game" etc.  I was getting a little pissed off and noticed they were both wearing Don Bosco Prep  windbreakers. 
What a classy "Christian" Academy. 

[vu72]

Well that was ugly.  Clearly our young coach was schooled by Kampe.  We clearly are not in the same league athleticly with Oakland.  What happened to Lexus?  He disappeared in the second half?  Oakland is the team to beat.  Hats off to Oakland.  Clearly the favorite for the NCAAs.

[valpolaw]

We will still win the league

I wish I was as optimistic about that as you are.  I'm not yet convinced we will win the league though.

[valpotx]

The guy that they came to watch played like absolute crap, so congrats to them on being Don Bosco.  Maybe they can get Ivan Vujic to coach on Oakland's team.

[VULB#62]

One thing was clear to me.  Take Alec out of the game (sometimes 3 defenders were crowding him) and no one else was capable of stepping up.  On the other side, seems like more than one OU player could drain a three when left open.  And, man, some of those misses seemed to be destined  to ricochet to an OU player. 

But it's a long season and much can happen.   Not unreasonable to believe that after this hyper adrenaline shot OU comes out flat at UIC. S%$# like that happens  in the HL.

[a3uge]

It's really all about getting hot at the right time (and setting yourself up for a decent seed for a winable tournament game). Last year Valpo ended the regular season with two poor games vs UWGB and Milwaukee (which they still won), and Tevonn had completely lost confidence. UWGB obviously had momentum going into that Valpo game. Without a home court advantage anymore, winning the regular season isn't as important as going into the tournament with good health and the whole team playing well.

Valpo is clearly still adjusting to life without Jubril. When he was playing the offense looked a lot more fluent and a bit different than the typical Bryce Drew system. He was really opening up the lane for a 1 on 1 from Peters or easy Hammink layups by stretching the floor.

[M]

Luckily these games mean next to nothing other then to serve as a scouting tool and maybe a confidence booster.

I am disappointed that Hammink continues to make the same bonehead plays game after game. I feel good about the steps Sorolla has made at both ends. He will be beast. Alec played like crap, I don't care what his numbers were.

Rebound inn sunday and just get the kinks worked out come tourney time!

[VULB#62]

Valpo is clearly still adjusting to life without Jubril. When he was playing the offense looked a lot more fluent and a bit different than the typical Bryce Drew system. He was really opening up the lane for a 1 on 1 from Peters or easy Hammink layups by stretching the floor.

Jubril: His absence was a major factor. He can shoot the 3.  He could take pressure off Alec.  He could help neutralize OU's athleticism.  He's experienced.  Damn, I miss his presence in the line-up. 

BTW, the ESPN coverage showed a graphic that was prophetic -- OU is #1 in three major HL defensive categories (which I can't remember).  This is an incredible turnaround for Kampe.  He changed his scheduling philosophy AND is playing defense.  HOLY COW.

[Valpo89]

The atmosphere? It was awful. The team came out flat and barely showed signs of life. Pathetic all around. Fans never got into it.
I've said it before: No Jubril, no NCAA. Couldn't have been more evident tonight, even with Sorolla's excellent game.