Drake @ Valpo: 2/6 & 2/7

[bbtds]

Valpo is up 10. How long will it take Drake to tie up the game. 2 minutes, 5 minutes, 10 minutes or 20 minutes?

7 minutes so far. Can this Valpo team pull off a top 25 win? The anticipation is a killer.

12 minutes and growing.

17 minutes & holding

NEVER!!!!!!

[nkvu]

WOW! Just WOW!  That was so good I almost don't believe it. They had a chance to melt down in the second half but today they held it together and did what they needed to. Well done!

[Valpofamfan]

Yes Edwards has a lot of maturing to do but towards the end of this game (after his silly quick 3 attempt) he made a fair number of good decisions. I'm excited.

I know this is one game but I hope the guys see what they can achieve when they approach the game with intensity and desire. And I hope that for the rest of the season we see this intense, disciplined Valpo team turn out and we don't regress to silly decision making and throwing up quick 3s.

[vu84v2]

I really hope that CBS scrolls sports scores at the bottom of the screen during the Super Bowl. Would like to see this score shown 800 times during the four hour broadcast!

[vu72]

Donovan is struggling but he generally adds stuff in other valuable ways. Today, 14 boards, something we needed very much. 

[valpotx]

Drake's board is as you would expect.  Some rightfully blaming their poor play, and others taking shots at a team that is better than their 7-12 (4-6) record indicates.  As others have said, we are young, and most of these other teams are older, with more games under their belts.  If we play at our average level, we can beat any team in the MVC this season, except for Loyola.  The problem is that we can also see that really crappy and immature team, while also seeing that above average team that can beat a Purdue or ranked Drake team.  I see a 5 or 6 seed this season, and if our core sticks together, these MVC opponents better get used to looking up at Valpo in the next 2 seasons...

Good win, guys!  All of you in the #FireLottich crowd, what say you, after these 2 games?  You can act like petulant little children when things don't go our way, but now, I look forward to your posts .  ML had a hell of a game plan for this series. 

[CPkValpoFan]

Agree on that.   If Valpo had lost, I would have placed the blame on this play.   What looked like a sure layup or controlled dunk turned into a missed shot because of some showboating by Edwards.  Drake promptly drove the court and made a basket, a four point swing and this could have been a momentum changer.   Fortunately Valpo was able to get some stops but more importantly they hit their free throws.   All in all a great game after letting yesterday's slip away.   I am very impressed with the efficiency of Jacob O.   He will continue to develop and improve each year.  I like that he attacked the basket this game.

[VUGrad1314]

Does anybody else feel like this is a loss in the grand scheme of things if it knocks the Valley down to just one bid? Like I said Valpo took a big step today in proving they belong in the MVC and that's very good but with the wider implications of what this outcome could mean I can't help but wonder at what cost that gain has come? I hope we're the ones actually helping the league get that second bid instead of playing spoiler someday soon.

[valpotx]

Does anybody else feel like this is a loss in the grand scheme of things if it knocks the Valley down to just one bid? Like I said Valpo took a big step today in proving they belong in the MVC and that's very good but with the wider implications of what this outcome could mean I can't help but wonder at what cost that gain has come? I hope we're the ones actually helping the league get that second bid instead of playing spoiler someday soon.

Does anybody else feel like this is a loss in the grand scheme of things if it knocks the Valley down to just one bid? Like I said Valpo took a big step today in proving they belong in the MVC and that's very good but with the wider implications of what this outcome could mean I can't help but wonder at what cost that gain has come? I hope we're the ones actually helping the league get that second bid instead of playing spoiler someday soon.

Absolutely not.  Come back over to the side of positivity, my friend!  Did anyone ever give a crap when we lost in the Mid-Con or HL, as a top team?  I feel no sympathy for our opponent, and want to win every game, so that our team has more cohesiveness, which leads to the potential of them sticking around next season.

[justducky]

Much as I want us to win, man, Drake does NOT look like a T25 team so far today.

I wonder if some of their local players may have been allowed to spend last night with family. That doesn't sound important but any distractions from typical team discipline could  be a negative.

I guess it serves Drake right for gorging on creampuffs in the non conference but still... I really want to see the MVC be a two bid league again..

I think they gorged on 6 helpings of creampuff this morning. Good win anyway!

[vu72]

we are young, and most of these other teams are older, with more games under their belts. 

Yep. Drake got 48 of 57 points from Juniors and Seniors. One underclassman even scored.  We got 28 points from Juniors and Seniors (an improvement) while our freshman and Sophomores scored 46.

[bbtds]

Donovan is struggling but he generally adds stuff in other valuable ways. Today, 14 boards, something we needed very much. 

Also cudos to Eron Gordon for staying consistent the whole game, and I think playing near the whole game. He didn't score a lot but played steady and contributed much to the win.

[VUBBFan]

After game locker room

https://fb.watch/3w5LvPcjTD/

[hailcrusaders]

Drake's board is as you would expect.  Some rightfully blaming their poor play, and others taking shots at a team that is better than their 7-12 (4-6) record indicates.  As others have said, we are young, and most of these other teams are older, with more games under their belts.  If we play at our average level, we can beat any team in the MVC this season, except for Loyola.  The problem is that we can also see that really crappy and immature team, while also seeing that above average team that can beat a Purdue or ranked Drake team.  I see a 5 or 6 seed this season, and if our core sticks together, these MVC opponents better get used to looking up at Valpo in the next 2 seasons... Good win, guys!  All of you in the #FireLottich crowd, what say you, after these 2 games?  You can act like petulant little children when things don't go our way, but now, I look forward to your posts .  ML had a hell of a game plan for this series.

We've certainly ranted through our share of head scratching losses during our years atop the Horizon, so I definitely feel for Drake fans at the moment. Hope this doesn't put an end to their at large hopes if they lose again in St. Louis.

As for Lottich, jury's still out until at least the end of the season, imo. I don't think a win or two absolves a terrible season, just like a loss or two doesn't doom a coach after a good season. Long term, I think the expectation should be to finish upper third in the MVC consistently. But it's hard for anyone to succeed during a pandemic, and I'm hoping our incoming recruits have bright futures.

But I digress. This is the proudest I've been of this team in a while. Go Crusaders!

[IndyEIT777]

Proud of this team today and this whole weekend frankly. Played good basketball on both sides of the court all around. Now don't repeat what happened last weekend against Evansville this week and actually build on this win!

[JD24]

Does anybody else feel like this is a loss in the grand scheme of things if it knocks the Valley down to just one bid? Like I said Valpo took a big step today in proving they belong in the MVC and that's very good but with the wider implications of what this outcome could mean I can't help but wonder at what cost that gain has come? I hope we're the ones actually helping the league get that second bid instead of playing spoiler someday soon.

The board continues its amazing ability to feature posts which look for the black cloud behind the silver lining.

Why would any Valpo fan be thinking this after a big win unless your personality is such that you walk around with a "kick me" sign on your back.

Incredible.

[wh]

Donovan is struggling but he generally adds stuff in other valuable ways. Today, 14 boards, something we needed very much. 

Yes, Donovan is struggling OFFENSIVELY. He was player of the game DEFENSIVELY.

[wh]

Does anybody else feel like this is a loss in the grand scheme of things if it knocks the Valley down to just one bid?

If we win the conference tournament, promise me you won't express disappointment that the conference received a lower seed than it otherwise would have.

[Pgmado]

I gotta say, I didn't have a "Valpo winning is bad post" on my message board bingo card today.

[AB]

Good win today, team showing improvement. Drake is good matchup for Valpo, allowing a little more freedom and up tempo style  offense. Evansville and Loyola are bad matchups. Both teams are very disciplined, dictating half court tempo and make you guard for the whole shot clock. Moving forward with the rotation, we have a solid starting 5. Zion is a nice piece off the bench Defends, handles ball, energy. Jacob, McMillan, Goodnews I guess will split minutes based on matchups and production. Which one of these three will be the most productive/valuable going forward?.All three have a glaring weakness. All have a strong suit. Lets see if we can build on this win and show we can steal a few games this month when we have to play the other teams tempo/style.

[valpo64]

A great win!  We really played well both games.  I think Coach Lottich did a tremendous job preparing the team for these 2 big games.  We must remember that this team is very young and will have let downs along the way.  But this 2 game series shows they have great potential in spite of their youth.  Keeping the team focused and together is a great compliment to Coach.  These young kids for the most part played 2 games against the oldest average aged team in D-1 and stayed right with them over the course of both games.  Even after several runs by Drake the kids stayed together and did not fold.  Very happy for all involved.  They have great potential, this year and in the future.  Can't wait to be able to see them play in person.

[bbtds]

I gotta say, I didn't have a "Valpo winning is bad post" on my message board bingo card today.

I did have a "Drake comes back from 20 points down to beat Valpo" on my bingo card today. I was extremely happy I didn't cover that square. 

[bbtds]

Agree on that.   If Valpo had lost, I would have placed the blame on this play.   What looked like a sure layup or controlled dunk turned into a missed shot because of some showboating by Edwards.  Drake promptly drove the court and made a basket, a four point swing and this could have been a momentum changer.   Fortunately Valpo was able to get some stops but more importantly they hit many of their free throws.   All in all a great game after letting yesterday's slip away.   I am very impressed with the efficiency of Jacob O.   He will continue to develop and improve each year.  I like that he attacked the basket this game.

Correction in bold above.

[covufan]

Best game of the year!  Best defensive game of the year. Coincidence?  We need to keep up this defensive intensity the rest of the season.


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[vok22]

This game against Bradley on Wednesday is huge. A win would put us 2 full games ahead of Bradley and give us the tiebreaker. It looks like it will come down to us/Bradley/UNI for the last 2 Thursday spots. Will be a big week