Game #11 Chicago State at the ARC 12/16 3pm CT payback

[talksalot]

so... coming off finals week.  Will there be a new starting line-up?   Let's take a numbers look at the opponent.  The Cougars are the only D1 Independent - No Conference Affiliation.

Hoping for not a repeat of the historically bad loss to EwwyPewwy earlier... the Cougars are an up and DOWN team.

3-9 on the season, 1-5 on the road, 1-3 at home and 1-1 Neutral court, with one game to play before heading to the Vale of Paradise... they get to travel to Welsh-Ryan-Northwestern on Wednesday night.

So far:
Lost at Bowling Green 70-41
Lost to Mercer 66-61 at home
Beat Southern Indiana 78-67 in Evansville
Lost to Cal-State Northridge 74-64 at home
Lost at SIU-Carbondale 71-55 in the Cancun-Challenge
Lost to Northern Colorado 78-77 in Overtime in Cancun
Beat Morgan State 84-83 in Cancun
Lost to UT-Martin 94-71 at home
Lost to Loyola 62-53 at the Gentile
Lost to Delaware State 76-69 at home
BEAT Stetson 77-54 at home  (a home-home, going to Florida 1/15)
Lost to University of St Thomas Tommies at home 66-50

They have 2 more home D1 games this season.  UT-RioGrande on 12/18 and Bethune Cookman on 12/20.   They have three home non-D1 games in 2024 (East-West, St Xavier and finish their season on 2/19 against IUN.  More Scheduling Fun... Tuesday 1/2 they play at Kansas State and Wednesday 1/3 they play at Oklahoma State.

Anyway... Who are these guys?

Here's the recap of their big win over Stetson...
he Chicago State men's basketball team beat Stetson 77-54 Sunday afternoon at the Jones Convocation Center in Chicago. The Cougars took a six-point lead into the locker room at halftime and used an early second-half 14-0 run and maintained the lead through late pressure to increase the margin to 20 for the eventual 23-point victory.

Four Cougars players were in double figures led by Jahsean Corbett with 23 points. Wesley Cardet added 16, Noble Crawford 13 and Brent Davis 12 while both Crawford and Corbett each pulled down nine rebounds.

The Cougars will be back in action a week from today, Sunday, December 10, at home against St. Thomas with tip set for 2 p.m. at the JCC.

1st Half - Chicago State 31, Stetson 25
-Noble Crawford opened the scoring in the game with a dunk on the Cougars possession and Stetson answered with a layup before Greg Spate, making his first collegiate start, hit a three to put CSU up early, 5-2
-The Hatters responded with a dunk and a three to take their first lead, 7-5, at the 16:45 mark
-Brent Davis hit a pair of free throws to knot the game at 7-7 when Stetson went on a modest 4-0 run to lead 11-7 at the 14:32 mark
-Deshawn Jean-Charles then ignited a 9-2 Cougars run with a three with additional buckets by Jahsean Corbett (2) and  Davis to turn the four-point deficit into a three-point lead, 16-13, with 11:03 remaining until the end of the half
-Stetson stopped the run with a three to knot the game at 16-16 when CSU went on another run, this time 7-0, with two hoops by Corbett and a Davis three and the Cougars led 23-16 at the 8:24 mark
-Both teams failed to score for the next two minutes when Stetson stopped the drought with a jumper and free throw to cut the margin to four, 23-19
-The Cougars responded with a 6-2 run with four points from Corbett and a driving layup by Jean-Charles to CSU led by eight, 29-21, with 2:54 until half
-The teams exchanged hoops with Wesley Cardet providing the Cougars score and the Hatters closed the scoring for the half with a pair of free throws and Chicago State led 31-25 at the half

2nd Half - Chicago State 46, Stetson 29
-The Hatters came out of the halftime locker room hitting back-to-back buckets to cut CSU's lead to two, 31-29, just a minute into the half
-Chicago State responded with an 14-0 run with Cardet, Crawford, Jean-Charles and Corbet contributing to the scoring and Chicago State led by 16, 45-29, with 13:36 remaining in regulation
-Stetson stopped the run and ended a scoring drought of nearly six minutes with a dunk before Corbett made a pair of free throws and CSU's lead was 16 at the 12:55 mark
-Chicago State scored on their next possession, a driving layup for Cardet and CSU's was 18. The teams exchanged scores when Stetson hit a three and, following a Cougars score, a Hatters hoop and pair of free throws left the score 55-42 with 7:49 left in regulation
-The Cougars then went on a 7-0 run with scores by Corbett, Crawford and Jean-Charles and CSU led 62-42, at the 5:32 mark
-The Hatters responded with a 6-2 run to cut the margin to 16, 64-48, at the 4:23 mark
-Crawford hit a three and the lead was back to 19 and climbed to 21 following a Davis rebound, 70-51, with 3:02 left to play and cruised to a 23-point win, finishing with 44 points in the paint

=====
#1 Wesley Cardet  6'6", 204lb Jr, Tallahassee-Transfer from Samford two years ago.  17.3 ppg, 5 rb/gm 36 minutes/game, 46% from the field, 33% from 3, leads the team in both Assists and Turnovers (29 and 24)

#24 Jahsean Corbett  6/7" 210lb Jr, Orlando. 13.0 ppg, 6.8 rb/gm, 35 minutes/game is second on the team in assists and turnovers (18 and 23).  41% from the field, 26% from three.

#12 Brent Davis, 6'3" 190lb Jr, Miramar, Fl9.7 ppg, 3,3 rb/gm, shooting 49% from the field, but is only 8 of 42 from 3pt (19%), so he's 31 of 45 from inside the arc, 69%.

#2 Deshawn Jean-Charles, 6'7" 200 Sophomore, Fort Lauderdale.  7.4 ppg, 35% from the field 26% from 3, playing 28 minutes/gm.

Yes, those 4 starters are all from Florida.  Practically their entire team is from Florida.  Exceptions:
Cameron Jernigan a Junior from Gary
Tehshaundre Cole a Sophomore from Toronto
Alex Raiford, Junior from Chicago

and...

Their 5th starter (Kedrick Green) hasn't played in 2 weeks, and they've tried several others in that role.  He's from Georgia.

Their tallest players are twin 6'9" freshman brothers... who have not played all year.

team stat comparison
        CSU      VALPO
PPG   65        67.8
FG%  40.2     39.7
FG/Gm  22     24.6
Shots/gm 55.1    62.0

3pt % 27.6     30.7
3pt /gm  5.6    6.7

FT % 68.6      69.2
FT /gm  15.1   17.2

Reb/gm 31.7    36.1

Asst/gm  9.5     12.1
TO/gm  14.0      11.3
Steals 9.6         7.2
Blocks 2.6        4.4

CSU Average Home Attendance:   156  (not a typo)
Valpo Average Home Attendance:  1,458

Twice this year, they have MADE 27 free throws in a game, against Delaware State they were 27 of 26, and at Morgan State, they were 27 of 39. and they were 20 of 30 against Mercer.

In their last game, they were only 7-12 against St.Thomas.

They have MADE more Free Throws (181 of 264) than we have attempted (119 of 172), in two more games.

NET ranking: 
Chicago State 327 (RPI 352)
Valpo 296  (RPI 286)

[VULB#62]

How many/who are returnees from last year's team that beat us? And of those, how much damage did they contribute to our loss?

[talksalot]

Most of their team is back... Here's their box score from the CSU Win last year... notice the free throw shooting 27 of 28
Leads: 0
Chicago St.
NO   STARTERS   POS   MIN   FGM-A   3PM-A   FTM-A   OREB   DREB   RB   AST   STL   BLK   TO   PF   PTS
00   Weaver,Elijah   G   34   4-10   2-3   6-6   0   2   2   1   0   1   2   4   16
01   Cardet,Wesley   G   34   5-8   2-2   12-12   1   3   4   1   0   2   5   2   24
12   Davis,Brent   G   24   3-4   3-4   2-2   0   1   1   2   1   0   0   2   11
23   Cole,Teshaundre   F   20   1-3   0-0   0-0   0   3   3   0   2   1   0   3   2
24   Corbett,Jahsean   G   37   2-8   0-3   4-5   1   7   8   0   0   0   4   2   8
NO   BENCH   POS   MIN   FGM-A   3PM-A   FTM-A   OREB   DREB   RB   AST   STL   BLK   TO   PF   PTS
02   Jean-Charles,Deshawn   G   24   5-7   1-2   3-3   1   0   1   1   0   0   0   2   14
03   Johnson,Bryce   G   22   4-5   2-2   0-0   1   5   6   1   1   1   0   1   10
04   Meran,Faheim   G   1   0-0   0-0   0-0   0   0   0   0   0   0   0   0   0
05   Green,Kedrick   G   4   1-1   0-0   0-0   0   0   0   0   0   0   0   0   2
TM   TEAM         -   -   -   1   2   3            2   0   
TOTALS   25-46   54.3%   10-16 62.5%   27-28 96.4%   5   23   28   6   4   5   13   16   87

[justducky]

Just checked our stats and DeAverio easily leads his teammates in minutes played. He doesn't have a great shooting % but is 8 of 23 from 3 and has retained his solid assist to turnover ratio with 51 vs 23. He may be our biggest surprise of the season.

Can we assume that Williamson will return for Sat? We may need the added depth. At home this is a game we could win. It is also a game that might test our open floor fast paced strategy. Seems like this could be a good test both for our players and for our coaching staff scouting and game planning.

[covufan]

A game we need to win.  Play to our potential.  We can play a full 40 minutes.

Valpo   74
Chi St   62

[valpotx]

We are lucky that those twins are not allowed to play this season.  Both are 5 star recruits that followed their AAU coach to Chicago State. 

https://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/story/_/id/38809045/chicago-state-brothers-sue-ncaa-denied-eligibility

Valpo 78
Chicago State 65

[VUGrad1314]

I think we'll be fine in this one. The biggest reason for our loss (Lottich) is NOT returning so we should be good. That said I am happy for Chicago State that they have found a D1 conference home in the NEC. Their D1 existence has truly been a wild ride being members of a defunct conference (Great West) a western league (WAC) and an eastern league (NEC). Sounds like they have been given full membership this time so they don't have to worry about being kicked out when they are no longer needed but I hope this is a springboard for them into a more geographically sensible league in the future.

[VULB#62]

I think we'll be fine in this one. The biggest reason for our loss (Lottich) is NOT returning so we should be good. That said I am happy for Chicago State that they have found a D1 conference home in the NEC. Their D1 existence has truly been a wild ride being members of a defunct conference (Great West) a western league (WAC) and an eastern league (NEC). Sounds like they have been given full membership this time so they don't have to worry about being kicked out when they are no longer needed but I hope this is a springboard for them into a more geographically sensible league in the future.

And the NEC is, finally, a league that makes sense for them. And it also has low level FCS football, which they are jumping into in '25 (I think).

[tiny707]

Valpo 72
Chicago State 64

[VU75]

Along with football in 2025, next year they are adding a women's triathlon team.  I hope they compete in the the fall cause that lake be cold in the spring.

[vu72]

This is going to be a tough game. Granted that Loyola is not the Loyola of old but, Chicago State lost by 9 at the Gentile.  They are battle tested and we aren't.  Let's hope for a big crowd.  I hate to say it but, Chicago State 72, Valpo 68.

[covufan]

I think we'll be fine in this one. The biggest reason for our loss (Lottich) is NOT returning so we should be good.

I thought that with IUPUI and was hoping for more against CMU. 

We just need to get better each week.  Maybe we can also get healthy this week

[VULB#62]

CSU has been playing together for at least 2 years. They have more frequent flyer miles than most teams and still compete in front of 900 fans at home . Playing in the ARC will not faze them. Gonna be tough. Gonna be close.

[valpotx]

Good to see that they found a temporary conference again.  Their long-term home is the OVC.  I give it another 4-5 years before the OVC loses a few more teams, and has to add Chicago State.

[wh]

Aside from our youth and inexperience, we're missing an athletic big that can rebound, protect the rim, and score down low. If we find that guy, we could become a major threat in the MVC next year. That would be a major success story in a very short time.

[tiny707]

Maybe Lual will be the big we are looking
for?

[justducky]

Maybe Lual will be the big we are looking
for?

Our luck with project centers and injury prone players has not been great. If healthy how long will it take him to mature into an impact player? Will his recovery and maturity match with our other competitive timetables? As scholarships become available where will Roger focus?

[vu72]

Maybe Lual will be the big we are looking
for?

Our luck with project centers and injury prone players has not been great. If healthy how long will it take him to mature into an impact player? Will his recovery and maturity match with our other competitive timetables? As scholarships become available where will Roger focus?

The injury question with Lual is certainly legit.  I believe that if healthy, he can be an impact player.  Remember that coming of high school (class of 2022) he was ranked by 247 as the 17th best center and a top 150 player overall.  I would think that working with Roger will only improve the skills.

This video is from THREE years ago:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nWL4aSvqn4s

[valpotx]

Is Lual out for the year, and is Scroggins officially redshirted at this point?

[tiny707]

Yeah, I would to know:
1.) Will Lual see any playing time at all this season?
2.) Are we 100% certain that Scroggins is a red shirt? Isn't he dressing?

[covufan]

Along with football in 2025, next year they are adding a women's triathlon team.  I hope they compete in the the fall cause that lake be cold in the spring.

If you grow up going into Lake Michigan in late spring or summer, you later find out it was never warm.  Unless you are comparing southern most end to anywhere in Superior.

[VUGrad1314]

I think we'll be fine in this one. The biggest reason for our loss (Lottich) is NOT returning so we should be good.

I thought that with IUPUI and was hoping for more against CMU. We just need to get better each week.  Maybe we can also get healthy this week

I am TRYING to either be optimistic or not post at all. It's hard right now. Pretty disillusioned and beaten down from the past several years including the start to this year. Yes there are signs of hope and growth but losing to IUPUI and Central Michigan is absolutely unacceptable even in a rebuild. I'm maintaining my distance until I see a reason to come back. I had high hopes for year one of the Powell era and then the IUPUI loss really killed that for me because it made me feel like it was just more of the same. I hope this team proves me wrong as the season wears on but I won't hold my breath. Hope to get back and reinvest emotionally at some point but right now it's just not productive for me.

[JD24]

I had high hopes for year one of the Powell era 

The question for you would be why? What was there that would give anyone high hopes for year one. The recruits were a bag of no names and lower level guys. There was hope that maybe one or two of them could play. Beyond that it was hopefully that the culture and effort on the floor will have changed over the last few years. It appears the effort is there but the roster is lacking.

It was always going to take a few years to turn it around.

[valpo64]

In this year, I believe we will lose some games that we should  win or should have won and will win some games that perhaps we should have lost.  When we have such a young roster we will see many ups and downs.  It will be a long season but it should be fun watching the team improve as they gain experience.

[justducky]

I had high hopes for year one of the Powell era 

The question for you would be why? What was there that would give anyone high hopes for year one. The recruits were a bag of no names and lower level guys. There was hope that maybe one or two of them could play. Beyond that it was hopefully that the culture and effort on the floor will have changed over the last few years. It appears the effort is there but the roster is lacking.

It was always going to take a few years to turn it around.

My expectations were modest so I don't view us as being far off track. Best case with a near total healthy team I was thinking a handful of OOC wins, maybe another 5 in Valley play resulting in an ending NET near 230. With a total rebuild youth project MVC team, those results could be pretty respectable. Despite our struggles to compete with bad OOC teams both player and team developments are happening and that will eventually get us where we want to go.

No promises but I'll try to make it to the Chicago St game. It could be a good one!