Exhibition Game vs St. Joseph's

[EddieCabot]

Shouldn't be much of a test since St. Joe's is picked near the bottom of the GLVC, but was wondering what you guys are expecting?  I think everyone knows what to expect from the returning guys, so I'll be interested to see what Capobianco, Fernandez and Rossi bring to the table.  Predictions?

[historyman]

Halftime it will be close, by the end of the game a blowout.

St. Joe  57
Valpo    80

[govalpogo]

Looking forward to a break from paper writing tomorrow! 

St. Joe: 53
Valpo:   87

[vu72]

If we don't hit 100 I'll be shocked...

[HC]

I'm hoping to see something better from Capi and anything from Vashil, compared to what they did during that open practice. 94-54 final

[vu72]

Remember, there is no "taking your foot of the accelerator" with this team as we go 10 deep until dority can play and then 11.  There are no walkons to put into the game.

[valpotx]

Valpo 88
St. Joe's 56

We exact some more revenge on St. Joe's for them beating us on the last play of regulation in football (men and women's soccer victories already)

[vubballfan10]

Remember, there is no "taking your foot of the accelerator" with this team as we go 10 deep until dority can play and then 11.  There are no walkons to put into the game.

It is a little odd that Valpo doesn't have any walk-ons at all.  Maybe a couple last minute walk-ons like Stegelmann and Carpenter last year?

[VULB#62]

I haven't been a big BB follower, but I want to learn.  I noticed that both exhibitions are home and against smaller schools.  Is this kinda like FCS FB where the bigger D-I team pays the little guy (i.e. Valpo) to get clobbered?

[vusupporter]

I haven't been a big BB follower, but I want to learn.  I noticed that both exhibitions are home and against smaller schools.  Is this kinda like FCS FB where the bigger D-I team pays the little guy (i.e. Valpo) to get clobbered?

Exhibition games must be scheduled against non-Division I competition at home (except for rare instances, like last year's Missouri at Missouri State exhibition, which was granted a waiver as it was to raise money for tornado relief funds in Joplin).  Alternatively, and something a lot more schools are doing, you can have a scrimmage against another D-I school, but it must be a closed scrimmage and it cannot be publicized by the schools at all.  You are allowed a maximum of two combined exhibition games/scrimmages.

[EddieCabot]

Remember, there is no "taking your foot of the accelerator" with this team as we go 10 deep until dority can play and then 11.  There are no walkons to put into the game.

That's a great point.  Even though this team returns all 5 starters, you can make an argument that Capobianco, Rossi, Kenney and Dority (when eligible) are more talented than some of those returning starters.  As several people have stated, Bryce's biggest challenge this season may be finding enough minutes to keep all these talented players happy.

I tend to agree with vu72 that the early season games will all be blowouts.  What Bryce needs to do is develop a reliable rotation before the games at SLU, UNM and Murray State ... those games will be pivotal in Valpo's at-large chances. 

[vu72]

I haven't been a big BB follower, but I want to learn.  I noticed that both exhibitions are home and against smaller schools.  Is this kinda like FCS FB where the bigger D-I team pays the little guy (i.e. Valpo) to get clobbered?

WHAT!!!    Seriously, get ready for some fun!  Exhibitions are, for the most part, used to get the players comfortable with each other and try different combinations.  some, like last year's opener can be way too close as you have the "little guy" coming to the D1's home court and having their one chance all year to show people that they really could have played at the D1 level.  some can, most can't, and as a result, these games often start close and then turn into blowouts as they get tired of getting hammered on the inside and their constant barrage of 3's stop falling.

[vu72]

Hot off the Valpo sports website, an interview with Coach Drew.  Get excited, get REALLY excited!!

http://www.valpoathletics.com/mbasketball/news/2012-13/12110/mens-basketball-season-preview-with-bryce-drew/

[vubballfan10]

[size=78%] Remember, there is no "taking your foot of the accelerator" with this team as we go 10 deep until dority can play and then 11.  There are no walkons to put into the game. [/size]

[size=78%] That's a great point.  Even though this team returns all 5 starters, you can make an argument that Capobianco, Rossi, Kenney and Dority (when eligible) are more talented than some of those returning starters.  As several people have stated, Bryce's biggest challenge this season may be finding enough minutes to keep all these talented players happy. I tend to agree with vu72 that the early season games will all be blowouts.  What Bryce needs to do is develop a reliable rotation before the games at SLU, UNM and Murray State ... those games will be pivotal in Valpo's at-large chances. [/size]

It is truly amazing how deep this Valpo team is.  I truly believe that the top five off Valpo bench (lets say Dority, Kenney, Rossi, Capobianco, Fernandez) could beat Wright State's starting lineup without too much difficulty. 


I think every returning player will probably have 3-5 minutes cut from their playing time from last year, just because there is so much talent on this roster.

[wh]

Nice game day NWI Times article about Capo:

Capobianco eager to make Valparaiso debut
Paul Oren Times Correspondent
Friday, October 26, 2012 7:32 pm

VALPARAISO | Much has changed in the world of college basketball since the last time Bobby Capobianco stepped on the floor.

Homer Drew was roaming the sidelines for Valparaiso, coaching Brandon Wood and Cory Johnson in March of 2011. Capobianco was lucky to get more than six minutes a game for an Indiana team that would finish the 2010-11 season on a nine-game losing streak.

Fast forward nearly 20 months and the Hoosiers are the top team in the country while Capobianco is ready to make his long-awaited Valparaiso debut when the Crusaders host St. Joseph's in tonight's exhibition game at the Athletics-Recreation Center.

"As hard as it was to sit out last season, I really enjoyed it," Capobianco said. "I felt like I got better as a basketball player and I spent a lot of time reflecting on how I got to this point."

Capobianco was an ESPN Top-100 prospect coming out of high school and was good enough in the eyes of Indiana coach Tom Crean to become a part-time starter in the Big Ten. As a sophomore, Capobianco saw his minutes cut in half and his role diminished when he did play. Frustrated, he sought out a new opportunity and found one at Valparaiso.

"I do have a bit of a chip on my shoulder," Capobianco said. "I had two years of people invested in me and I don't really feel like they got a chance to see me play. I'm excited now, especially because it's been so long since my parents and my sister have seen me on the court."

It's not like the year off the floor has kept the Ohio native away from the game. Capobianco pushed his fellow post players in practice last season and was the first player in the gym the morning following Valparaiso's loss in the Horizon League title game. As soon as the season ended in Miami, Capobianco dove head first into getting ready for the 2012-13 season.

Capobianco spent part of his summer vacation playing overseas with Global Sports Partners. The forward averaged 17 points over five games while spending three weeks in China with a USA-based team.

"Playing overseas helped me get back into some game situations," Capobianco said. "It's been a long year and I'm just excited to be able to get back out there and play."

[FWalum]

Very impressed with Aaron Leavitt's questions for coach Drew.  Not your run of the mill softballs, but well answered by Bryce.  Now all Aaron needs is a little more vocal inflection.

[cornonthe]

I'll take a crack at guessing the score...

Valpo 105
St. Joseph's 67

[vuweathernerd]

based on the lack of a video link, i'm going to assume tonight's game is not being streamed anywhere?

[swiftmutiny]

Exhibition games aren't streamed, if I remember correctly from last year.

[chef]

Audio stream through WVUR is your best option. No sports radio network or HLN for exhibition games.

[StlVUFan]

Welp.  Can't even get that to work: Windows Media Player cannot play the file. A network firewall might be preventing the Player from opening the file by using the UDP transport protocol. If you typed a URL in the Open URL dialog box, try using a different transport protocol (for example, "http:").

[wh]

Just watched Rossi hit 19 of 21 3's in warm-ups.

[FWalum]

Well looks like the audio stream is not working so I guess those of us not at the game will have to rely on those in attendance for analysis.  You would think WVUR would test these things beforehand.

[vu72]

I'm getting live stats from the St. Joe site

[StlVUFan]

I'm getting them from CBS Game Tracker.  That's the only part that's working tonight.