Game #19- Green Bay Monday January 16 7pm ARC

[FieldGoodie05]

I saw the UW Green Bay message board poking fun of us and suggesting we aren't realistic in being the HL team to beat.  Even went as far as saying we weren't the better team last year because we couldn't beat them on a neutral floor.  I guess they forgot we did sweep them prior to the game in Detroit.  I will give them credit, the new coach has done a good job in recruiting.  They are a decent team now and going to be a really good team in the future.

I smell blood in the water too, can't hate their confidence.  We will have to improve mightily to prove we are the same team from Nov/Early December.

Perspective says we came into the HL and have had a lot of good seasons.  The target on our back will last until we drop below mediocrity.  Which unfortunately, we have trended towards.  But I see bright spots in these 5 HL games...we just need to but it together for a near complete game.  That's when we are Top 2 in the conference.

[VULB#62]

Quite a few empty seats.

[vu72]

Pretty solid start. Can't believe we missed two free throws on 1 and 1's.    Alec is being Alec.  GB is having a tough time controlling the All-American.

[FieldGoodie05]

Pretty solid start. Can't believe we missed two free throws on 1 and 1's.    Alec is being Alec.  GB is having a tough time controlling the All-American.

We need to get to the line in the 2nd half.  Although it's not a tightly called game, so that could be difficult.

We are benefiting from the lack of close calls too, as I'm convinced Jaume has not been vertical with his reach several times.

We need the enjoy these days with Peters and Tevonn, they aren't guaranteed!!!

[a3uge]

Smits is really costing us on offense. I can't believe a player his size is so unwilling to dunk the ball. He's never really going towards the hoop in his low post moves - he seems to resort to flicking the bull with a reverse, or a fade away floater. I wish he'd just use his size and go up strong.

[a3uge]

Also, Bradford deserves some credit for playing a good game so far on both ends. He still plays with a ton of confidence, and you can see a little bit of his potential.

[SanityLost17]

Maybe this will get the GB fans to shut up.  They hit an insane amount of 3's in the semi-final last year and they still needed overtime to beat us.  Did not make them the better team then, just like them starting off 5-0 against weak competition doesn't make them the better team now. 

[vu72]

Green Bay, better than Valpo?  Hahahahahahaha!!

[hailcrusaders]

Looks like RP40 needed some WD-40 tonight.

Jokes aside, I'm sure this was an off night for Green Bay and it will be closer next time we play them, but man is it fun to watch Valpo when we play to our potential.

Looked like a great student crowd for a Monday night. I was expecting their section to be half full, but it looks like they were 90%+.

Hot take: Valparaiso is still the team to beat in the Horizon League.

[hailcrusaders]

Side note -- Is this a record for quickest game all year? I know we don't really keep track of these things but the game started at 7 and was done by 8:40. 1:40 seems lightning fast for a college game with TV timeouts and stuff. I guess given that the game was a blowout, there weren't many fouls or timeouts at the end. Refs let them play for the most part anyway.

[VUSL98]

Only 24 combined fouls in the game. Had more than that in the first half against Oakland.

[vu72]

Hey!  The GB fan almot had the top number right!

GB 82 - Valpo 80

[FieldGoodie05]

Maybe this is a poor question.  But on the radio broadcast when they sign off, who is the guy with the speech issue?  Is that a real sign off?  I am trying to be polite, but the voice sounds audibly handicap.

Any insight is appreciated.

[govalpogo]

C'mon guys, don't let both of GB's fans get under your skin.                

Tonight boosted my confidence! Enough even to post on the forum for the first time since SC!  Keep that intensity up Crusaders!

Maybe this will get the GB fans to shut up.  They hit an insane amount of 3's in the semi-final last year and they still needed overtime to beat us.  Did not make them the better team then, just like them starting off 5-0 against weak competition doesn't make them the better team now. 

[SanityLost17]

Only 24 combined fouls in the game. Had more than that in the first half against Oakland.

This was refreshing.  I felt like I was watching a game circa 2011 (before they made defense illegal).

There was a lot of contact, but most of it was in the flow of the game.  Bodies are going to bounce off each other on drives to the basket, as long as arms are straight up, let it go.  The game is a lot more tolerable when the whistle isn't going off every time down the floor. 

[M]

GB runs fewer offensive sets then my middle school team on the half court.

That's why a team presses though. Turn over your opponent and try to score in transition. Didn't work tonight, as many here predicted.

[VUBBFan]

Only 24 combined fouls in the game. Had more than that in the first half against Oakland.

This was refreshing.  I felt like I was watching a game circa 2011 (before they made defense illegal). There was a lot of contact, but most of it was in the flow of the game.  Bodies are going to bounce off each other on drives to the basket, as long as arms are straight up, let it go.  The game is a lot more tolerable when the whistle isn't going off every time down the floor.

Per Paul Oren one of the refs is an NFL ref. So I guess if a player wasn't tackled and taken to the ground it was no foul. lol

[oklahomamick]

Credit to Bradford tonight, looked good.

[agibson]

Maybe this is a poor question.  But on the radio broadcast when they sign off, who is the guy with the speech issue?  Is that a real sign off?  I am trying to be polite, but the voice sounds audibly handicap.

Any insight is appreciated.

He's a big VU basketball fan and very regular at games. I don't know his story, but definitely seriously physically impaired.

Did they do it again tonight? I saw he was wearing a headset during the post-game. I was touched the first time I heard it. Even if it's every game, no harm done I guess. And a nice shout out to a guy, and a community, that's had a tough row.

[VU2624]

Only 24 combined fouls in the game. Had more than that in the first half against Oakland.

This was refreshing.  I felt like I was watching a game circa 2011 (before they made defense illegal). There was a lot of contact, but most of it was in the flow of the game.  Bodies are going to bounce off each other on drives to the basket, as long as arms are straight up, let it go.  The game is a lot more tolerable when the whistle isn't going off every time down the floor.

Per Paul Oren one of the refs is an NFL ref. So I guess if a player wasn't tackled and taken to the ground it was no foul. lol

Gene Steratore has been an NFL Referee for a long time. I thought he was a Big Ten BB official. Does the HL use Big Ten officials normally?

[wh]

John Kiser at 6-5/205 reminds me a lot of Matt Kinney 6-4/205. John averaged 21ppg as a senior at Noblesville. Matt averaged 19ppg at Mooresville. Both have big verticals and similar ball handling skills. Not only has John earned a scholarship, but in time he could Become a major contributor, just as Matt was.

[StlVUFan]

Maybe this is a poor question.  But on the radio broadcast when they sign off, who is the guy with the speech issue?  Is that a real sign off?  I am trying to be polite, but the voice sounds audibly handicap.

Any insight is appreciated.

That's Ryan Miller.  I see him at the ARC whenever I take my Dad, because we also sit in the handicapped section (my Dad will be 88 in a couple of months and needs a walker to get around).  Through his helper (because I can't possibly figure out what he's saying - and he does the best he can), every time he asks me what our RPI is, and through her I have a wonderful conversation with him.  His ears work perfectly, so he understands exactly what I'm saying.

I would tell you what his condition is, but I'm deathly afraid of getting it wrong.

[oklahomamick]

So that's how it feels to shoot 40% and not the typical 20% from 3 point. 

As Shane gets better from 3 point land his driving to the basket and finishing along with his ball handling is decreasing.

[NativeCheesehead]

Ryan Miller is an ARC institution. Been going to games even when I was a student in the 90s. STL is right, communicating can be tough. But there's few people with more passion for this program.

[frontrowfan]

He's actually quite funny.  Come over and teasingly chastised our group for nagging the refs. He said "listen I'm at the tale end of a mediocre career... give me a little slack". Good laugh had by all