NCAA College Basketball Talk

[Just Sayin]

I think Matt would do very well at Loyola and get a huge pay raise.

[usc4valpo]

Not sure where to go on that.

[valpotx]

You can't fault him for striking while the iron is hot this time.  Krutwig was their generational player, similar to our Alec Peters.

[justducky]

I think Matt would do very well at Loyola and get a huge pay raise.

I'm not certain if they would listen but if you want to submit a glowing recommendation for him then many of us would be willing to sign.

[usc4valpo]

Wow, a true Conference of Champions national championship title game for the women.

[wh]

I think Matt would do very well at Loyola and get a huge pay raise.

I'm not certain if they would listen but if you want to submit a glowing recommendation for him then many of us would be willing to sign.

At the risk of offending posters that I like and respect, are you not concerned that hyper critical comments like these on top of JO's trashing of Matt on his way out the door might cause our 2021 recruiting class and other potential future recruits to rethink their decisions? This is a public forum. IMO to think that they're not following it would be pretty naive.

[usc4valpo]

The way recruiting is going, it is the Wild West. I think our comments on this board will have no impact.

[vu84v2]

UCLA lost, but they sure played like a champion. Best Final Four game in awhile.

[valpotx]

Valpo vs. Valpo for the national championship!

[IrishDawg]

UCLA lost, but they sure played like a champion. Best Final Four game in awhile.

Mick Cronin must have made a deal with someone prior to the tournament. UCLA seemingly hit every tough shot, got every loose ball, etc that they needed to. Gonzaga didn't play their A game, but UCLA brought their A+++ game. Classic.

Now I fully expect Baylor to run Gonzaga out of the gym Monday. Houston definitely looked like a team that won a broken bracket and had only played double digit seeds to this point.

[justducky]

Gonzaga didn't play their A game, but UCLA brought their A+++ game. Classic.

Not very many missed shots to remember! What is the point spread for Monday?

[a3uge]

Gonzaga didn't play their A game, but UCLA brought their A+++ game. Classic.

Not very many missed shots to remember! What is the point spread for Monday?

On DraftKings, the line moved from -6 Gonzaga before the final 4 games to now Gonzaga -4.5.

[usc4valpo]

IrishDawg, I actually thought Gonzaga played great which made it such a phenomenal game.  UCLA gave it their all - and let's quit basing team quality on bogus seeding. They were Final Four worthy. Cronin has been outstanding in preparing his team for the journey, as compared to Sampson with Houston.

Who knows what will happen Monday night, but I'm leaning toward Gonzaga to win. The game last night may be a boost.

[justducky]

I think Matt would do very well at Loyola and get a huge pay raise.

I'm not certain if they would listen but if you want to submit a glowing recommendation for him then many of us would be willing to sign.

At the risk of offending posters that I like and respect, are you not concerned that hyper critical comments like these on top of JO's trashing of Matt on his way out the door might cause our 2021 recruiting class and other potential future recruits to rethink their decisions? This is a public forum. IMO to think that they're not following it would be pretty naive.

Because I was half joking I did consider attaching a smiley. Unfortunately I was also half serious!    I realize that Matt and his coaching colleagues are struggling to tread water in a rip current of change. Meanwhile it doesn't take a genius to know that when the floodwaters recede we will barely recognize the landscape.

Society, the courts and the NCAA are inadvertently creating a free agency model that many of us will ultimately drift away from or abandon. I have previously joked that I may need to be recruited to remain a mens college basketball fan. Unfortunately that statement is becoming true!

[IrishDawg]

IrishDawg, I actually thought Gonzaga played great which made it such a phenomenal game.  UCLA gave it their all - and let's quit basing team quality on bogus seeding. They were Final Four worthy. Cronin has been outstanding in preparing his team for the journey, as compared to Sampson with Houston.

Who knows what will happen Monday night, but I'm leaning toward Gonzaga to win. The game last night may be a boost.

Gonzaga didn't play great.  This was a pretty average offensive performance by them in actuality, but it was their worst defensive performance by almost 10 points per 100 possessions over any other game this year, and it wasn't because their defense was bad.  Gonzaga had 15 more shots at the rim and shot a better % shooting at the rim than UCLA.  UCLA's game is in the mid-range, but their season average from there is around 43%, but last night against the 4th most efficient defense in the nation (adjusted for opponents), they shot 68% on mid and long range 2's (they shot 25 of them, Gonzaga shot 10, hitting 4), which I'd have to go back and check every game log, but UCLA didn't come close to that in their other most efficient offensive performances of the year.  Pair that with shooting just under 50% from 3, and you wind up with the game we got.  I don't base team performances on seed lines, it's purely based on how they've performed and who they've done it against.  I certainly hope that what Vegas thinks happens, but given the shorter rest and the higher pressure game they had, I think Gonzaga in the 2nd half against Baylor's defense is going to show some fatigue.

[valpotx]

IrishDawg, I actually thought Gonzaga played great which made it such a phenomenal game.  UCLA gave it their all - and let's quit basing team quality on bogus seeding. They were Final Four worthy. Cronin has been outstanding in preparing his team for the journey, as compared to Sampson with Houston.

Who knows what will happen Monday night, but I'm leaning toward Gonzaga to win. The game last night may be a boost.

Much like many long-term CA-based companies that have seen the light, and moved to the great nation of Texas, the NCAA Men's Basketball Championship will find its home in the loving embrace of the Lone Star State

[wh]

Some bold predictions on here about Baylor dominating tomorrow. I don't see that at all. Gonzaga has the best starting 5 I've seen in a long time. UCLA didn't just play a great game, they played an out-of-their-mind great game. Yet they still lost. Gonzaga is favored by 4.5 points for a reason.

[VUGrad1314]

COVID deprived us of this great matchup in the regular season. It is only fitting we get it now. The two best teams in the country and both with Valpo connections. I can be happy with either outcome definitely but I am rooting hard for Gonzaga which is in the city of my birth. I have wanted to see them win a National Championship since I was a kid. They came so close in 2017 I hope they can get it done this year! Go Bulldogs!

[usc4valpo]

 I am glad you are happy 1314 and it should be a great game. IMO UCLA. And Baylor would be a great matchup also. The Bruins proved they were final four worthy and can play anyone.

[valpo64]

What is the latest on the Loyola coaching situation ?    Anything new on player movement,  in or out, of  MVC teams including Valpo?  What is the up-to-date number for the transfer portal and what was the previous high prior to this year?

[valpo84]

Former Oakland player, and current Loyola assistant Drew Valentine to become Loyola HC.

[valpo64]

That hire sounds exactly like the Valpo hire situation when Matt L got the job.  I had heard that the Cleveland State guy was the leading candidate.

[valpo84]

Drew is a good program succession candidate. He comes from a coaching linage. His brother is a Chicago Bull.  He was a GA at Michigan State.  Should they have interviewed and/or sought a current HC or big program assistant?  Don't know.  Roger Powell would have been an excellent choice to interview (and probably for the program).  He should have been a candidate for DePaul and for Loyola.  Maybe he's Mark Few's succession candidate?  Anyway, the MVC is wide open.  Based on this hire, would not think they are moving conferences either.  And, 64, based on your comments, it may be designed to try to have Krutwig and Williamson run it back next year.  Unlike Lottich, Drew doesn't get an Alec Peters.  But, after a couple CVD years, Loyola will save some $$ on coaches' salaries for a couple years.

[VUGrad1314]

I am glad you are happy 1314 and it should be a great game. IMO UCLA. And Baylor would be a great matchup also. The Bruins proved they were final four worthy and can play anyone.

Yes they did. I needed some time to calm down and process that game. That was one of the best games I had seen in a long time and I'm not just saying that because Gonzaga was involved and they won. I told my dad shortly after Suggs hit that heave that if UCLA was going to be taken out of this tournament this is exactly the way it had to go. That was a championship level effort by UCLA the same sort of toughness and effort they had shown all tournament. They have nothing to hang their heads about at all they lived up very well to the tradition of their program and their conference. UCLA truly had some of the best players in this tournament and was probably the toughest-minded team. I would expect nothing less from a Mick Cronin coached team. I have to admit though it felt really good to exercise some of the demons of past Gonzaga-UCLA meetings though. It did my heart good to hear Morrison exclaiming in jubilation after Suggs' shot went in considering the way his college career ended. It's just amazing to marvel at where Gonzaga is now even compared to the Morrison era where they had already been more or less accepted as a national power at least to some degree. I want this win tonight really bad because it is in my opinion the final missing piece for Gonzaga as a program but if we have to lose I'd be happy that it's to a coach and a man like Scott Drew and the Valpo connections that abound through that program because of him.

[wh]

Some bold predictions on here about Baylor dominating tomorrow. I don't see that at all. Gonzaga has the best starting 5 I've seen in a long time. UCLA didn't just play a great game, they played an out-of-their-mind great game. Yet they still lost. Gonzaga is favored by 4.5 points for a reason.

Looks like the bold predictions about Baylor dominating the Zags are spot on. Up 33-14. Very impressive - and totally dominating!