At Bradley Jan 3 7:00 PM CST Wardle we do now?

[VUGrad1314]

I was just about to post that we should experiment with the idea of playing small because our centers contribute so little on a nightly basis.

[a3uge]

How many times will these Bradley announcers mention how consistent the reffing is?

[valpotx]

Over the last few years, we have to be the most idiotic team in regards to defending 3's.  How many times have we fouled a 3 point shooter??  We always roll our feet under the guy, so that they land on them.  Who the F teaches them this tactic so poorly?

[oklahomamick]

I saw STLvufan behind our bench!

Our 7 footers play below the rim.

At least smits has a little hook every now and then

[VUSL98]

Bigs can't play defense.

[Just Sayin]

They look like they are playing like they are tired of losing. This is a positive development. Baby steps.

[VUGrad1314]

Why Bakari? What terrible shot selection....

[crusader05]

everyone wants to be the hero with the big shot.  Id rather they pick up a few of those second chance shots theyve didnt get right by the basket

[valpotx]

F'ing stupid fouls too.  This team is so annoying.  We foul on rebounds that we should be able to get without fouling. 

[M]

Biggest difference between Horizon League and Missouri Valley is the play of the 4s and 5s. Mileek and Marty will be able to hang eventually, but Smits and Sorolla are being exposed.

[VUGrad1314]

Or try not spotting the opposition 11 points before you finally start playing.

[valpolaw]

This was at least somewhat competitive but this team is so frustrating to watch.

I agree our 4 and 5s are being exposed. Micah also shooting 2-11 doesn't help

[NativeCheesehead]

Me: Much better. They tried their best.

My inner John Mason (from the massively underrated 1996 classic "The Rock"): "Losers always whine about their best. Winners go home and (kiss) the prom queen."

[M]

I'm encouraged with the offensive sets. So much more movement!

Defense and rebounding, especially our bigs, has to get better if we are going to win a few of these games this year. Bradley had a couple Vashils on their team tonight.

[valpotx]

We accomplish another low for the program in a long time, in starting 0-3 in conference for the first time since my FR year of 1999-2000.  We ended up second that year and won the tournament.  Unfortunately, that won't happen with this team, so the comparison stops there.

[nkvu]

Well, at least they looked like they belonged on the same court & competed for most of the game.

Better than I thought they would do. 

[FieldGoodie05]

F'ing stupid fouls too.  This team is so annoying.  We foul on rebounds that we should be able to get without fouling.

I'll 2nd that, I can't recall agreeing with nearly 100% of fouls that go against us. 

My favorite was still Mileek giving a good strong hump while "screening"!!!  Someone should get him a girlfriend for such things...

[EddieCabot]

Once again, the announcers on the ESPN3 broadcast were unbearable.  Will we ever get to watch a broadcast with our announcers? 

[VUGrad1314]

If you ...

Can't shoot... (33%FG)

And you....

Can't rebound.... 45-30 Bradley so -15 for Valpo....

Then you...

Can't win....

It's that simple...

This is going to take 2+ more years before we see results. We have so many players that just aren't MVC caliber right now...

That said we competed hard and looked a lot better. Things are looking up even though the losses sting. Let's see how we do against a shorthanded Saluki squad at home. Go Valpo!

[EddieCabot]

If you ...

Can't shoot... (33%FG)

And you....

Can't rebound.... 45-30 Bradley so -15 for Valpo....

Then you...

Can't win....

It's that simple...

This is going to take 2+ more years before we see results. We have so many players that just aren't MVC caliber right now...

That said we competed hard and looked a lot better. Things are looking up even though the losses sting. Let's see how we do against a shorthanded Saluki squad at home. Go Valpo!

Patience.  I think that Paul and 2014 both pointed out on Twitter that this performance was much better.  You just can't expect such a young team to perform much better than they did tonight.

I haven't heard Coach L's post game press conference, but I'm sure he'll confirm this.

[VUGrad1314]

I'm encouraged with the offensive sets. So much more movement! Defense and rebounding, especially our bigs, has to get better if we are going to win a few of these games this year. Bradley had a couple Vashils on their team tonight.

I agree with everything except your comment on our defense. I think our defense is the best thing about this team right now. To make it look even better they need to rebound better or at least stop fouling on rebounds.

[valpopal]

The game was lost on the boards: 45-30 in favor of Bradley. The centers need to be taught toughness. Smits and Sorolla combined for a total of 4 rebounds, while guards Walker and Joseph grabbed 12. How did they play all last year with Peters and not learn how to rebound? Also, why can't the 7-footers dunk the ball? I'm tired of watching the centers miss layups. If I were an outsider watching this team for the first time, my evaluation would be that overall they are a soft bunch. I wish the whole team had the grit of Walker and the hustle of Linssen. 

[justducky]

Everybody played hard and most played well.

Not to knock Mileek or Parker but we needed a mature 4 to have a chance to win. Could have been Joe, could have been Fazekas, even could have been a healthy Kiser, but we needed some additional production from the 4 position to have a chance.

[FieldGoodie05]

The quantity of Derrick "claps" is directly correlated to our success as a team.

2 or fewer = victory
3 or more = oh ______, here we go again!!!

[FieldGoodie05]

The quantity of Derrick "claps" is directly correlated to our success as a team.

2 or fewer = victory
3 or more = oh ______, here we go again!!!

https://giphy.com/gifs/applause-joker-the-dark-knight-TbRXNJJJbgIkE