1/28: Bradley at Valpo Game Thread -Also Game 2 on 2/10 ESPN3 6:00 PM

vu72 · February 10, 2021, 08:19:51 AM

The key will be to get Childs away from the hoop. That will require JO and McMillan to hit some 3's.

vok22 · February 10, 2021, 11:12:17 AM

I wonder what will happen to JO tonight. His minutes pattern has been so strange. Gets double digit minutes against Purdue, Drake (x2), and Missouri State, but barley gets in the game (or not at all) versus Evansville, Bradley, and Illinois State. Had 3 minutes last time we played Bradley. Does his play over the weekend translate to more minutes or is it all a matchup thing? Coming into the Drake series he hadn't played more than 5 minutes in 6 straight games, and then all the sudden he gets 25 in 2 games. He really showed some disciplined basketball this weekend, taking what the defense is giving him and not forcing anything. If he has a big man on him he's on the three point line knocking in over 50% of the threes he takes. If they try to guard that with a smaller man, he goes inside and lays in some and-ones. It won't be that easy every game, but he's clearly effective when he plays. He has played 10+ minutes in 9 games this year. He has scored double figures in 6 of those nine games. When you take out D2 games, he's played 10+ minutes 7 times, and scored in double figures 4 of those. 56 points in 96 minutes between those 7 D1 Games that he played 10+ minutes in. And it's not like those are low level D1 games. He's scored double figures against top 25 Drake (x2), now top 25 Purdue, and Missouri State. I just can't figure out why he then played a combined 5 minutes against Evansville when we couldn't score for 2 games.

valpotx · February 10, 2021, 12:29:54 PM

JO does seem to be getting quicker, which might have more to do with understanding defensive and offensive assignments better, versus raw speed. Based on everything that I have heard him mention, or be mentioned about him, he was just able to camp the lane on defense in HS ball, and was able to shoot over everyone, so he didn't have to worry much about a defender affecting his shot.

oklahomamick · February 10, 2021, 05:52:09 PM

Are we missing someone? Why are we getting 3.5 points at home to a team we beat? Also after the weekend we had.

vok22 · February 10, 2021, 07:20:23 PM

I don't know if there's a recruiting class good enough to fix this team. We have had the same problems on offense ever since Alec Peters left and it hasn't improved one bit. Every game, except for a few outliers, we have a stagnant offense with absolutely no hope of scoring. At some point it has to fall on Lottich. What is going on? 90% of this game has been some of the worst offense I've ever seen. If it wasn't for Clay, a terrible 3 pt shooter, getting hot early it would look even worse. I'm starting to get the feeling Lottich could make Gonzaga's lineup average 70 its per game if he were coaching them.

NativeCheesehead · February 10, 2021, 07:33:45 PM

To be fair, blowing out a top 25 team and then getting blown out by a sub .500 team is really the most Lottich thing ever.

valpotx · February 10, 2021, 07:38:57 PM

Nothing to do with Lottich when your players miss easy layups, still think that defenders will magically remain still while you throw a pass to the player they are guarding, and can't make a shot within 8 feet of the basket. So incredibly frustrating when this lazy team shows up. Back to telling the guys that they need to find their balls, and man up.

NativeCheesehead · February 10, 2021, 07:44:12 PM

Absolute. Embarrassment.

nkvu · February 10, 2021, 07:47:09 PM

Basket had a lid on it for the team in the second half tonight. Two for everything from three in the second half won't get you much. That and getting killed on the offensive boards again gives you the result we got tonight. Serves as a reminder to the team that they have to bring it every night or they can get blown out by anyone.

oklahomamick · February 10, 2021, 07:49:11 PM

Does this mean we are playing in the Thursday game again?

Chairback · February 10, 2021, 07:51:31 PM

Has everything to do with Lottich. Where have you been for the last 4 years.

valpotx · February 10, 2021, 07:52:36 PM

No, there are a ton of games left. However, it does mean that the team forgot how to shoot today.

Chairback, coaches can't make wide open shots.

vok22 · February 10, 2021, 07:54:26 PM

I knew there would be let downs after that great set of weekend games, but this is beyond what I could imagine in even my gloomiest of expectations. How can a team coming off such a great team weekend come out so ill-prepared. This is beyond just a bad night. This is what we see most games, disguised by a few nice performances. It's been the story of the Lottich era. Yea, the players have a role in it. But who chose the players to offer those players scholarships? Now, it looks like he might be constructing a pretty good roster. What took so long though? Why did it take 5+ years to START constructing a promising roster (we don't even know if it will be good yet). If Lottich doesn't find success in the next 2 years, it won't only spell the end of the Lottich era, it might sink any chance this program has of returning to sustained success.

vok22 · February 10, 2021, 07:55:52 PM

This was not a poor shooting night because we missed open shots. We missed bad shots because thats all we could get because our offense looked completely disoriented and confused, just like nearly every game the past 4 years.

valpotx · February 10, 2021, 08:00:54 PM

We were moving well in the first half, but the off-the-ball movement in the second half was as if they were ready to head to the retirement home. Missed opportunities at home this year, so hopefully the home court advantage also does not help our opponents over the next 5 games. If we don't come away with a winning record on this trip, this might be our worst performing team of the last 25 seasons, outside of the 2008-2009 season, which was 9-22 (5-13). For any of the players or family of the players that visit this forum, is that what you want to be known for?

Vok, yes, we missed plenty of wide open shots. Several just inside the FT line that were barely contested, a few layups, and several wide open 3s.

AlaskaCrusader19 · February 10, 2021, 08:01:42 PM

Just as it has been since Alec Peters left, a step forward was met with a subsequent step backward... This program has no identity right now, and that's a very concerning reality. While I'm very glad Valpo decided to make the jump from the Horizon to the Missouri Valley, I don't know that Lottich is the right coach to lead us in this endeavor. Lots of questions going forward.

Chairback · February 10, 2021, 08:04:32 PM

TX, players don't come up with an offense where they have no movement and have to take forced shots with 2 secs left on the shot clock. Over and over each game.

This is like Groundhog Day the movie.

vok22 · February 10, 2021, 08:13:40 PM

I have a flight this Saturday at 630 pm. I was going to pay the 8 dollars to get in flight wifi to watch the game live and give me something to do. After this, I'd rather sit and twiddle my thumbs.

valpotx · February 10, 2021, 08:22:10 PM

There is a designed movement, but the guys are not busting their arse to try and beat their guy to the open spot. This is a consistent occurrence when we lose. When they are moving with passion, and running after loose boards/balls, we win. Even if your shot is off, you can at least play with some passion and as if you actually have some testosterone running through your body.

vok22 · February 10, 2021, 08:24:17 PM

Quote from: valpotx on February 10, 2021, 08:22:10 PM
There is a designed movement, but the guys are not busting their arse to try and beat their guy to the open spot. This is a consistent occurrence when we lose. When they are moving with passion, and running after loose boards/balls, we win. Even if your shot is off, you can at least play with some passion and as if you actually have some testosterone running through your body.

I won't completely disagree with you on that. But why is that happening? How could it be that they are so uninspired before almost every start and are constantly having to dig a hole to find any inspiration.

AlaskaCrusader19 · February 10, 2021, 08:31:20 PM

Quote from: valpotx on February 10, 2021, 08:22:10 PMThere is a designed movement, but the guys are not busting their arse to try and beat their guy to the open spot. This is a consistent occurrence when we lose. When they are moving with passion, and running after loose boards/balls, we win. Even if your shot is off, you can at least play with some passion and as if you actually have some testosterone running through your body.

There is definitely designed movement, but I'd love to see more off-ball action. It seems as if there is very little off-ball action that allows Valparaiso to reverse the ball. The offense is mainly coming from a ball screen at the top of the key. It works with NBA talent, but this isn't Duke.

justducky · February 10, 2021, 08:32:07 PM

We looked almost as bad as Drake did Sunday. Every day a different Valpo team will show up.

Watched JO closely on his offensive assignments. Looks slow getting to and setting picks and screens. Too much thinking timing his cuts---not instinctual? The ball movement did seem to bog down with him on the floor. Not severely criticizing him because he obviously didn't have to work hard and fast to get other people open in HS. On the bright side he rarely gets called for a moving screen and that took Mileek 2 1/2 seasons to learn.

covufan · February 10, 2021, 10:07:39 PM

I guess we know which team showed up today. Wish the coaching staff would figure this out. Preferably this year.

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wh · February 11, 2021, 09:24:46 AM

Our coaching staff knows Bradley well. They know their strengths, weaknesses, and tendencies, individually and collectively. There's no reason to think we didn't have a winning game plan. Presumably, the players were confident and motivated. Not every loss, especially with the youngest team in the MVC, is an indictment on the entire program or on ML for settling for an "inexperienced 3rd choice assistant coach" instead of doing a national search.

Matt is building this program the right way. He is recruiting talented, coachable players of character. They are tight knit and squared away. Matt, Luke and Rob are men of Godly character. They exemplify the qualities they're working to develop in the young men they lead. In the grand scheme of life, our coaching staff is right at the top. They were great hires doing everything the right way. They're going to get us there. Keep building. Trust the plan.

oklahomamick · February 11, 2021, 09:46:24 AM

WH - How long does the plan take? How do you measure success?