Loyola @ Valpo (2/21) Game Thread

[sectionee]

Because valpo switches every screen. Loyola figured that out and Averkamp would set the first pick just to get buggs or bogan on him then head for the post.

http://sectionee.blogspot.com/2012/02/game-wrap-up-feels-good-to-be-1.html

[Valpo10]

Serious question:   Should Valpo continue to have a basketball team if it generates very little local interest or student interest?    Theoretically, you fund a Division I program because it generates excitement for the school and possibly impacts enrollment and donations,    If it is generating no buzz ANYWHERE even locally,......why spend a healthy sum each year to put a team on the court?      Just roll out a D-3 program and call it a day.   
I would HATE to  see it.  But I'm baffled by the apathy of the students and the community.  The tickets are a bargain and students get in free.   Joining the Horizon League ought to have boosted regular season crowds.   But I truly think we had better crowds come out to see UMKC or Southern Utah at the ARC than we see at the ARC on the webcasts now.   

Well then you aren't going to be pleased when you hear that Valpo is on Spring Break during the tourney I believe.

[lowposter]

This was the first game I attended this year and it was a great win for the program.  Ok, I am going to be a little late to the party, but the atmosphere has really changed.   The new video and sound system is a great addition to the facility.  There has been a marked movement towards "events" during the timeouts and there is certainly a different vibe than in the past.  Not sure, for those who simply enjoy college basketball if this makes for a more comfortable setting, but hey....that's sports marketing!

I too was baffled by the guarding of Averkamp by guards, particularly Buggs.  It started much earlier than during a switch.  Using Kenney on him at the end was more effective.  Averkamp was the best player on the floor and we certainly were lucky on his 4th foul...that was as bad of a call as I have seen in over 25 years of watching games at VU. 

Perhaps the "Bracketbuster Flue" with the considerable travel to and from SoCal had an effect, but after the early 8-0 run, VU really looked lethargic.   Nice shooting game by Will Bogans.  His 3 point shot was on the money, but his biggest offensive play was the attack of the basket from the corner (Averkamp with 4 fouls could only watch) and his little 10 footer on the next possession.  But Will, you gotta hit the free throws!  Nice game. 

KVW didnt look as effective as anticipated.  He had either 2 or 3 rebounds and wasnt a factor on the boards.  I expected more out of him.  Perhaps the knee or back was giving him issues.  Speaking of rebounding, and I havent consulted the stats...VU was killed on the offensive boards the first half.  The two rather large young men in VU travel gear sitting at the end of the bench will hopefully give assistance on the boards next year. 

What a progression Ryan has made in a year.  The word on him last year was that he was too "unselfish" and while that still applies, he has made great strides.  What a great player.  The quick release on the 3's he hit in the 2nd half was a thing of beauty.  Possibly the 2nd biggest play of the night was his defensive rebound, dribble coast to almost coast and feed to KVW for a layup. 

Loyola played well and the 1/3/1 zone give us fits.  That is a new look - the non trap/deny the reversal pass by placing the point man at the top to twart reversal rather than trap.  With Buggs on the floor, it was compounded by his inability to shoot the open shot.  Kenney hit a huge 3 by faking a pass and  creating time and space for a look.  I would have liked to seen the ball pounded to KVW a little more down the stretch, but VU was content to settle for 3's.

Bryce has given a huge boost to this program, more than I expected.  This team lost it's two leading scorers and hasnt missed a beat.  In fact, the team chemistry appears to be much better than last year.  While the passing game last year was excellent, this year was even better...at least against man to man.  The zone caused problems.

Do not expect a 25 year coaching run from this talented young man.  He is going to be far too hot a commodity to be able to hold onto in this community/university.  Enjoy this while we can as big campus and bright lights will be calling...quickly.

lowposter

[crusaderjoe]

This was the first game I attended this year and it was a great win for the program.  Ok, I am going to be a little late to the party, but the atmosphere has really changed.   The new video and sound system is a great addition to the facility.  There has been a marked movement towards "events" during the timeouts and there is certainly a different vibe than in the past.  Not sure, for those who simply enjoy college basketball if this makes for a more comfortable setting, but hey....that's sports marketing!

I too was baffled by the guarding of Averkamp by guards, particularly Buggs.  It started much earlier than during a switch.  Using Kenney on him at the end was more effective.  Averkamp was the best player on the floor and we certainly were lucky on his 4th foul...that was as bad of a call as I have seen in over 25 years of watching games at VU. 

Perhaps the "Bracketbuster Flue" with the considerable travel to and from SoCal had an effect, but after the early 8-0 run, VU really looked lethargic.   Nice shooting game by Will Bogans.  His 3 point shot was on the money, but his biggest offensive play was the attack of the basket from the corner (Averkamp with 4 fouls could only watch) and his little 10 footer on the next possession.  But Will, you gotta hit the free throws!  Nice game. 

KVW didnt look as effective as anticipated.  He had either 2 or 3 rebounds and wasnt a factor on the boards.  I expected more out of him.  Perhaps the knee or back was giving him issues.  Speaking of rebounding, and I havent consulted the stats...VU was killed on the offensive boards the first half.  The two rather large young men in VU travel gear sitting at the end of the bench will hopefully give assistance on the boards next year. 

What a progression Ryan has made in a year.  The word on him last year was that he was too "unselfish" and while that still applies, he has made great strides.  What a great player.  The quick release on the 3's he hit in the 2nd half was a thing of beauty.  Possibly the 2nd biggest play of the night was his defensive rebound, dribble coast to almost coast and feed to KVW for a layup. 

Loyola played well and the 1/3/1 zone give us fits.  That is a new look - the non trap/deny the reversal pass by placing the point man at the top to twart reversal rather than trap.  With Buggs on the floor, it was compounded by his inability to shoot the open shot.  Kenney hit a huge 3 by faking a pass and  creating time and space for a look.  I would have liked to seen the ball pounded to KVW a little more down the stretch, but VU was content to settle for 3's.

Bryce has given a huge boost to this program, more than I expected.  This team lost it's two leading scorers and hasnt missed a beat.  In fact, the team chemistry appears to be much better than last year.  While the passing game last year was excellent, this year was even better...at least against man to man.  The zone caused problems.

Do not expect a 25 year coaching run from this talented young man.  He is going to be far too hot a commodity to be able to hold onto in this community/university.  Enjoy this while we can as big campus and bright lights will be calling...quickly.

lowposter

Very nice comments and I agree with just about everything you said.

If Loyola was at full strength, they would have beaten us, probably by double digits, IMO.  We didn't necessarily win this game in as much as Loyola gave it away.

Defensive rebounding was atrocious, IMO.  I lost count of how many 2nd, 3rd, and even 4th chance attemps Loyola had on offense during the course of the game. 

I'm not complaining, but you are right about Avercamp's fourth foul--it was a garbage call.  IMO, it is that play that you can circle that changed the course of the game.  The call resulted in a six point swing, not to mention that Loyola's major offensive threat had four fouls with over eight to go as a result.

Jay Harris should have sat on the bench much longer that he did in the second half.  Not sure where the kid's mind was last night.  He was MIA.  C'mon Jay, you are better than that!

The zone defense Loyola threw at us caused us issues.  I wouldn't be surprised to see another team throw a similar defense at us down the road this year.

Nice to be regular season champions.  Congratulations to the kids.

All in all, a good evening and reason to celebrate.  Unfortunately I still get the feeling that we as a ballclub are very beatable right now.

[lowposter]

crusaderjoe:

Gotta agree with your last comment.  There was nothing about last night that screamed "dominant team".  Not even whispered.  It is a very good team that does certain things well, but this was for the championship and was against a one win conference team.  We looked "beatable".

Just checked the box score....3339 in attendance.  Lots of empty seats for the biggest game of the year.  The student section was much better than in the past couple of years, but there just isnt the support there that one would expect. 

If the sports marketing department is going to use asset utilization management to price tickets for the big games, then perhaps they should figure out a way to get more folks in the stands for the other home games of the year.  An extra 1000 people in the seats, even at $5 a tix would have generated $$$ and atmosphere.  This community/area just doesnt support VU as it should...and I cannot figure out why.

lowposter

[KL31NY]

Serious question:   Should Valpo continue to have a basketball team if it generates very little local interest or student interest?    Theoretically, you fund a Division I program because it generates excitement for the school and possibly impacts enrollment and donations,    If it is generating no buzz ANYWHERE even locally,......why spend a healthy sum each year to put a team on the court?      Just roll out a D-3 program and call it a day.   
I would HATE to  see it.  But I'm baffled by the apathy of the students and the community.  The tickets are a bargain and students get in free.   Joining the Horizon League ought to have boosted regular season crowds.   But I truly think we had better crowds come out to see UMKC or Southern Utah at the ARC than we see at the ARC on the webcasts now.   

Well then you aren't going to be pleased when you hear that Valpo is on Spring Break during the tourney I believe.

Courtesy the Valparaizone's official facebook account:

Horizon League Champs! Valpo will host the HL league tournament and has clinched no worse than a bid to the NIT. Our first tournament game will be Saturday, March 3rd at 7:30 p.m. at the ARC! Dorms will be open an extra day to allow everyone to stay on campus and go to the game! Plan on being there!

As of now, this is the only mention of such a plan that I have seen, but we are crazy if we don't do something like this. We need to bring some students out for the tourney...

PS: Haven't gone through the whole topic to see if this has been addressed, but how weak was the court storming yesterday? It was more like a trickle of water from a faucet than a true rush IMO.

[Valpo10]

Serious question:   Should Valpo continue to have a basketball team if it generates very little local interest or student interest?    Theoretically, you fund a Division I program because it generates excitement for the school and possibly impacts enrollment and donations,    If it is generating no buzz ANYWHERE even locally,......why spend a healthy sum each year to put a team on the court?      Just roll out a D-3 program and call it a day.   
I would HATE to  see it.  But I'm baffled by the apathy of the students and the community.  The tickets are a bargain and students get in free.   Joining the Horizon League ought to have boosted regular season crowds.   But I truly think we had better crowds come out to see UMKC or Southern Utah at the ARC than we see at the ARC on the webcasts now.   

Well then you aren't going to be pleased when you hear that Valpo is on Spring Break during the tourney I believe.

Courtesy the Valparaizone's official facebook account:

Horizon League Champs! Valpo will host the HL league tournament and has clinched no worse than a bid to the NIT. Our first tournament game will be Saturday, March 3rd at 7:30 p.m. at the ARC! Dorms will be open an extra day to allow everyone to stay on campus and go to the game! Plan on being there!

As of now, this is the only mention of such a plan that I have seen, but we are crazy if we don't do something like this. We need to bring some students out for the tourney...

PS: Haven't gone through the whole topic to see if this has been addressed, but how weak was the court storming yesterday? It was more like a trickle of water from a faucet than a true rush IMO.

Better than TCU's court storming the other week.

A couple of things:
1) Are students really going to be motivated to stay on campus?  Will other things like the Union be open on Saturday?
2) Assuming we win on Saturday, is Valpo going to keep the dorms/food/Union open until at least Tuesday night?

Prospects look bleak...

[valpotx]

Good win, sometimes have to grind out the games where you are not 'on.' 

What game did TCU storm??  Their basketball has not been good since 1997-1998, the year Lee Nailon was there.  We actually would have played TCU instead of Florida State in the second round, had TCU's 4 seed held that year.

[StlVUFan]

Good win, sometimes have to grind out the games where you are not 'on.' 

What game did TCU storm??  Their basketball has not been good since 1997-1998, the year Lee Nailon was there.  We actually would have played TCU instead of Florida State in the second round, had TCU's 4 seed held that year.

Lee Nailon... 89, am I confused or did I just experience a 1994 IHSAA Final Four negative flashback?

[valpotx]

Wow, just went to wikipedia and did not know he was from Indiana.  Weird that he went to TCU, as not many Hoosiers come to play basketball in TX!

My first memory of Lee was that same year (or the year before) when he punched a guy from UNLV in the first 2 minutes of the game to be ejected.

[Valpo10]

Good win, sometimes have to grind out the games where you are not 'on.' 

What game did TCU storm??  Their basketball has not been good since 1997-1998, the year Lee Nailon was there.  We actually would have played TCU instead of Florida State in the second round, had TCU's 4 seed held that year.

They beat UNLV a couple of weeks ago.

[milanmiracle]

Wow, just went to wikipedia and did not know he was from Indiana.  Weird that he went to TCU, as not many Hoosiers come to play basketball in TX!

My first memory of Lee was that same year (or the year before) when he punched a guy from UNLV in the first 2 minutes of the game to be ejected.

Here's a trip in the wayback machine...Lee Nailon and South Bend Clay beat Bryce and Valpo to win the Indiana state championship in 94.

[StlVUFan]

Wow, just went to wikipedia and did not know he was from Indiana.  Weird that he went to TCU, as not many Hoosiers come to play basketball in TX!

My first memory of Lee was that same year (or the year before) when he punched a guy from UNLV in the first 2 minutes of the game to be ejected.

Here's a trip in the wayback machine...Lee Nailon and South Bend Clay beat Bryce and Valpo to win the Indiana state championship in 94.

Negative flashback confirmed.  Thanks

[covufan]

Bryce has given a huge boost to this program, more than I expected.  This team lost it's two leading scorers and hasnt missed a beat.  In fact, the team chemistry appears to be much better than last year.  While the passing game last year was excellent, this year was even better...at least against man to man.  The zone caused problems.

Do not expect a 25 year coaching run from this talented young man.  He is going to be far too hot a commodity to be able to hold onto in this community/university.  Enjoy this while we can as big campus and bright lights will be calling...quickly.

While I agree with this, I hold out hope that Bryce would desire to stay here at Valpo, as Mark Few has stayed at Gonzaga and Brad Stevens with Butler.  If the right program called Bryce, I couldn't blame him for leaving, especially for the chance to build his own program - like his brother with Baylor.

[Valpo89]

Yes St. Lu, that gives me a negative flashback for sure. Worst day of my life.

[agibson]

PS: Haven't gone through the whole topic to see if this has been addressed, but how weak was the court storming yesterday? It was more like a trickle of water from a faucet than a true rush IMO.

I wasn't there in person.  Did they let them on the floor, or did a small number sneak past?  I know that in past games they've sort of roped off the victory bell.  Maybe they've also roped in the students?

[agibson]

I lost count of how many 2nd, 3rd, and even 4th chance attemps Loyola had on offense during the course of the game. 

At least two 4th chance attempts.

[agibson]

Unfortunately I still get the feeling that we as a ballclub are very beatable right now.

Unfortunately, I agree.  Hopefully they can turn it back on for the next games, against tougher competition.  It would be a shame to squander the home-court advantage.

[wh]

Bryce has given a huge boost to this program, more than I expected.  This team lost it's two leading scorers and hasnt missed a beat.  In fact, the team chemistry appears to be much better than last year.  While the passing game last year was excellent, this year was even better...at least against man to man.  The zone caused problems.

Do not expect a 25 year coaching run from this talented young man.  He is going to be far too hot a commodity to be able to hold onto in this community/university.  Enjoy this while we can as big campus and bright lights will be calling...quickly.

While I agree with this, I hold out hope that Bryce would desire to stay here at Valpo, as Mark Few has stayed at Gonzaga and Brad Stevens with Butler.  If the right program called Bryce, I couldn't blame him for leaving, especially for the chance to build his own program - like his brother with Baylor.

It will be interesting to see how the University responds when the Drew-led gravy train is over and Valpo basketball falls off the cliff due to inferior facilities and no working plan in place to do anything about it.  Like everything if life, having your cake and eating it too never lasts forever - nor should it.     

[agibson]

[The bad HLN connection]  It was probably because of the large amount of people who were trying to access it.  After all, its still the internet and is never perfect.  If all of a sudden a couple thousand people try and get on at the same time...well u get the idea...not that it helps any

Yes, sure.  But, you can also pay for a better connection.  Did they just not anticipate the number of users, and the load?  Or did they choose not to pay to support it?  Were they let down by their provider, who couldn't deliver on promises?

[FWalum]

[The bad HLN connection]  It was probably because of the large amount of people who were trying to access it.  After all, its still the internet and is never perfect.  If all of a sudden a couple thousand people try and get on at the same time...well u get the idea...not that it helps any

Yes, sure.  But, you can also pay for a better connection.  Did they just not anticipate the number of users, and the load?  Or did they choose not to pay to support it?  Were they let down by their provider, who couldn't deliver on promises?

I did not have any problems with the connection until HLN cut the feed at about the 20 second mark in overtime, but then again I was watching on a 50 mbps FIOS network. That would lead me to believe that the issue was not HLN but some other network issue.

[valpopal]

Yes St. Lu, that gives me a negative flashback for sure. Worst day of my life.

Same here. The first example I ever mention when talking about giving away a championship, blowing an 8 point lead with less than a minute remaining. The ride back from Indy was the longest I have endured. I think the guard who hit the shot to send the game into overtime was named Jaraan Cornell.

I still don't understand the coaching decision and why the Valpo players were standing inside the arc when only a 3-point shot could tie the game. They should have been bothering players in the three-point range and conceding the two-point shot. If anything, they even could have given a foul. That final minute and the coaching decision erased the magnificent performance, nearly 70 points scored, by Tim Bishop and Bryce Drew, as well as the undefeated championship. A horrible memory from one of the greatest seasons of high school basketball. 

[agibson]

I did not have any problems with the connection until HLN cut the feed at about the 20 second mark in overtime, but then again I was watching on a 50 mbps FIOS network. That would lead me to believe that the issue was not HLN but some other network issue.

Interesting!  In the chat room here, a number (at least three) of people were reporting multiple synchronized outages.  Of WAKE as well as HLN, if memory serves.

ESPN3 (with the WYIN Loyola feed) was reportedly more stable.

[StlVUFan]

I did not have any problems with the connection until HLN cut the feed at about the 20 second mark in overtime, but then again I was watching on a 50 mbps FIOS network. That would lead me to believe that the issue was not HLN but some other network issue.

Interesting!  In the chat room here, a number (at least three) of people were reporting multiple synchronized outages.  Of WAKE as well as HLN, if memory serves.

ESPN3 (with the WYIN Loyola feed) was reportedly more stable.

In my case, the synchronized outages were the HLN broadcasts of the Valpo game and the Butler game.  Both went out at *exactly* the same moment each time, while the Green Bay game trucked merrily on with nary a glitch.

[valpotx]

Bryce just does not seem like the same situation as Scott.  He seems to have pride in his alma mater, likes the community, and already made a good amount of money playing professional basketball.  I would have to think it would take a special university/situation to take him away with these factors.