MBB 2019-2020

[NativeCheesehead]

Didn't Markus redshirt his first year of JuCo?

[EddieCabot]

Didn't Markus redshirt his first year of JuCo?

Yes.  He's completing his 4th year of college.  Assuming most of his Juco credits transferred, it wouldn't be unusual for him to be graduating.

[sliman]

Northern Idaho listed him as a red shirt freshman during the season he played there and our media profile of him says he redshirted a year at Northern Idaho and played a year.

[FWalum]

Golder was at the Junior College for 2 years, he redshirted his first year and played his second leaving him with 3 years of eligibility.  He will be completing his second full year at VU so I am sure that he could be on track to graduate this spring without too much difficulty if most of his credits transfered and he took summer session classes as most of the MBB players have done at VU.

[EddieCabot]

Javon/Golder are really the only 2 players I am really going to miss.  I was kinda ready to move on from the 7 footers.   Any chance Golder still changes his mind?   If that is the case Javon is the huge loss and everything else can be made up with the right recruiting.   

Agree, but I like the way the roster is shaping up.  All the movement has balanced out the roster a bit ... as of right now, next year's team will be 2 sr, 4 jr, 1 so and 4 fr.

Sackey and Bradford have both started games and played a lot of minutes at the point.  Fazekas, Gordon and Robinson provide talented wing players who have proven themselves in the Big East and A-10.  McMillen showed enough flash early last season that he had earned the starting center spot (per the radio guy on USH).  We know what we have in Kiser.  And Clay, from what some have said, is a larger version of Freeman.

I'm afraid the other freshman may need some time to acclimate to the high-level college game, so ML may be looking for 1 or 2 grads transfers to provide some more front court depth. 

I'm not predicting greatness, but I'm also not as doom-and-gloom as some fans. 

[tiny707]

Looks like we will play 7 maybe 9 depending on last two slots we have open.

[vuny98]

Looks like we will play 7 maybe 9 depending on last two slots we have open.

7 if the freshman don't play at all and assuming Bradford does. My guess is those 7 play, at least 1 of the 3 freshman see decent minutes and we get 2 grad transfers to fill out the roster. That would put us at 10 players getting minutes.

PG - Sakey/Bradford/Lorange
SG - Gordon/Robinson/Stalling
SF - Fazekas/Clay/Kiser
PF - McMillan/Krikke
C - Freese-Vilien

We most likely will play small with 3-4 guards at a time, but McMillan and Fazekas both have some height and can stretch the floor. Right now Fazekas is the only returning player that played last year that really has the numbers to get excited about. We will need Gordon/Robinson to play like we hope they will, need some growth from Sakey/McMillan/Bradford and freshman need to contribute. Still 2 more scholarships open though, so hopefully we can get a good transfer as well.

[SanityLost17]

Looks like we will play 7 maybe 9 depending on last two slots we have open.

7 if the freshman don't play at all and assuming Bradford does. My guess is those 7 play, at least 1 of the 3 freshman see decent minutes and we get 2 grad transfers to fill out the roster. That would put us at 10 players getting minutes.

PG - Sakey/Bradford/Lorange
SG - Gordon/Robinson/Stalling
SF - Fazekas/Clay/Kiser
PF - McMillan/Krikke
C - Freese-Vilien

We most likely will play small with 3-4 guards at a time, but McMillan and Fazekas both have some height and can stretch the floor. Right now Fazekas is the only returning player that played last year that really has the numbers to get excited about. We will need Gordon/Robinson to play like we hope they will, need some growth from Sakey/McMillan/Bradford and freshman need to contribute. Still 2 more scholarships open though, so hopefully we can get a good transfer as well.

I would like to see FV/McMillan/Krikke all play the center position while Fazekas/Clay/Kiser play to PF position.   The hope would be that would open up the offense a bit.   This would require the acquisition of a decent grad-transfer shooting guard and/or Golder deciding to roll the dice and stay to see what happens. 

[M]

I think whats potentially exciting is that the majority of these guys can play multiple positions which makes the lineups Lottich could run out there nearly limitless. I'm a huge fan of position-less basketball.

[NativeCheesehead]

That interior is going to get eaten alive. I love Mileek as an example of what Vu basketball can be all about as far as hard work, but the young man can't stay on the floor. Great athlete, missed his calling as a tight end.

And we have no idea what to expect from the 5s. Not to stereotype too much, but the euro bigs usually need a season or two to adjust to the physical nature of the American game. Krikke has promise.

I just have trouble seeing these guys up against the Pippens, Faynes, and Krutwigs of the league. (Yes I know some of those guys graduated). I just really hope we're not bringing more Horizon League players into the MVC.

[GoldenCrusader87]

To me, in the era we live in with so many transfers ... why not play everybody? I wouldn't worry about redshirting any player. Let them all play and see who can serve us well down the stretch. No way am I worrying about redshirting one of these newbies unless they're totally incapable of adding something to the equation. Who is to say they'll be graduating from here anyhow? Might as well get minutes out of them or at least bodies out on the court as long as we're paying for their college tuition, room & board, and food. Play em, play em, play em.

[AranJacobs]

https://zoekelm.typeform.com/to/zSuYA8

Valpo basketball survey

[elephtheria47]

Great survey. Took about 3 min. Theres everyones chance to submit your ideas and complain about parking, seating, atmosphere. Will be interesting to see what, if anything, is done with this.

[wh]

MVC basketball: Way-too-early pre-season power rankings for 2019-20 season

Take a guess where the Crusaders are ranked.

https://bustingbrackets.com/2019/04/20/mvc-basketball-way-early-preseason-power-rankings-2019-20/amp/1/

[NativeCheesehead]

Considering where we finished and the experience we lost...yeah, hard to put us anywhere else.

Look at it this way: in both years in the league we have finished below expectations. Can't do that if we're picked tenth.

[vu72]

We have them right where we want them!  Over confident, and providing great bulletin board material! If the loss of those guys spelled doom, then we really are in deep trouble.  We have a lot to prove.

[GoldenCrusader87]

That's right. We're right where we want to be! Nothing like having zero expectations! Lol. Been awhile since I went on here since I'm having a hard time justifying my fandom. Then again, we did steal a bunch of dudes who chose us over other schools knocking down their doors.

Oh, wait - none of them had any other offers hahahahhaha.

Again, I truly hope Matt proves us all wrong and turns this thing around. But, I'm far from bought in.

[wh]

That's right. We're right where we want to be! Nothing like having zero expectations! Lol. Been awhile since I went on here since I'm having a hard time justifying my fandom. Then again, we did steal a bunch of dudes who chose us over other schools knocking down their doors.

Oh, wait - none of them had any other offers hahahahhaha.

Again, I truly hope Matt proves us all wrong and turns this thing around. But, I'm far from bought in.

You can check out any time you like,
But you can never leave.
The Hotel California and VU basketball fandom

[VU2014]

I want Valpo to hire Coach Patton on the staff one day. He has a really bright future and would be a natural fit with VU with his Region ties.

https://twitter.com/donboscohoops/status/1121493808057921537?s=21

[VU2014]

A really good article that puts things in perspective. A good read.

https://twitter.com/hoopvilleadam/status/1122899157721788417?s=21

[VU2014]

Is Zion on Valpo's campus yet? I'm a assuming he's still finishing classes at Wabash. I hope he can get in the gym at VU whenever he wants

https://twitter.com/ykzm0/status/1123287567766556673?s=21

[VUBBFan]

Is Zion on Valpo's campus yet. I'm a assuming he's still finishing classes at Wabash. I hope he can get in the gym at VU whenever he wants https://twitter.com/ykzm0/status/1123287567766556673?s=21

I am pretty sure he is still at Wabash. He had some responses to his twitter from people that are from Wabash. May be wrong, but I take it they were echoing the frustration.

[wh]

Just received this from the Athletic Dept.:

RESERVATION PROCESS FOR NEW SEASON TICKET HOLDERS

Dear Valued Season Ticket Holder,

Thank you to those who have filled out our post-season survey. We appreciate your honest feedback as we continue to plan for the 2019-2020 season of men's basketball.
If you haven't had a chance to fill it out yet, please click here.

We are working on some exciting new projects this spring, including a Season Ticket Incentive Plan that we will announce closer to the end of the summer. (emphasis added) Currently we are giving fans an opportunity to reserve their spot in line for season tickets. Before we begin this new reservation system for new season ticket holders, we wanted to make sure to communicate to you that as a current season ticket holder, your spot is secure. You will still have top seat selection priority over any new holders. Additionally, the seats you held last season will be available to you when renewals begin in early September.

Please keep an eye out for a mailing this fall to renew your season tickets for the 2019-2020 Valpo Men's Basketball season!  New season ticket holders will be given the opportunity to choose their seats after renewals are completed.
We thank you again for your continued support of Valpo Men's Basketball and Valpo Athletics!

[humbleopinion]

With the return of Javon, it seems that we are looking to be a very good defensive team.  It sounds as if Donovan can play D like Javon but has more length. We know Sackey is quick, and he has shown that he can harass ball handlers. Other recruits' defensive ability has been highlighted as well. With some questions at center, I wonder if we will see more full court pressure preventing opponents to get into a half-court set. 

[VU2014]

Javon coming back is so huge for this program!

Guys there is a considerable amount of talent on this roster. The only question mark for me is the young and inexperienced front court

https://twitter.com/wisbbyearbook/status/1123974244696825856?s=21