Game #4 - #23 Illinois at Champaign - 11/17/23 The Prodigal Son returns

[David81]

What I posted on TVB stream: "Of course I care what happens in the 2nd half. But if we don't think that something special is building here under Coach Powell, then we've missed the real lesson of the first 20 minutes."

[valpolaw]

Checked the score at half and thought it was glitching at first. Hope they can keep it up!

[AlaskaCrusader19]

Illinois is pulling away here, but that first half was the most fun I've had watching this program since 2020 Arch Madness. Better days are ahead!

[valpotx]

I didn't watch the game, but it seemed like there were shots by both teams every 10 seconds in the second half!  Was it like an old Loyola Marymount vs. UNLV shootout feel?  That is how it appeared in live stats

[vu72]

A lot of folks lost a lot of money tonight. Go Beacons!

[VULB#62]

I tried to follow the TVB thread.  No matter what I clicked (there are 3 options) none presented comments in the order in which they were posted. My "3 minutes ago" comment was buried 15 comments in and no matter what I did it did not appear at either the top or bottom of the string at the time.

Paul, please look into this. It detracts from the thread and is frustrating. The VU Fan Board string is better at this.

[covufan]

Illinois  Too much
VU       Not enough

Way too much of this in second half...

[covufan]

What a first half!

Need to take away the confidence that we can compete with anyone on our schedule - just need to play a full 40 minutes.

[AB]

Can't count on Stafford to do this every night, but impressive. Jaxson Edwards 0-12? 0-3 on three's ouch. From an effort standpoint, appears it's more consistent from the get go compared to last year, which augers well for the future. Seemed like we were down 25 to Toledo last year before you blinked. That kinda thing happened way too much. Who's gonna be our consistent third scorer this year outside of Stafford and Cooper? Palm will have plenty of jump shots available this year.

[VULB#62]

How does Jaxon pull down 15 freakin RBs, not draw one foul, and not score a single point in 32 minutes ?

Congrats to Jerome on a double-double! 

Looks like Jahari is moving up in the assists and scoring profile. 

Anybody who drops 30 on the #23 team in the country just woke up a lot of MVC coaches. 

Good all-around game (12 points, 7 RBs) by Cooper in only 20 minutes ⬆️

Nice playing in front of almost 15,000 

The big question, however.....

Can Roger now push these kids to play with the same grit out of the gates against Western Illinois and Southern next week?  Or will the sense that they won (only) the first half make them think they are better than they really are?

[David81]

I tried to follow the TVB thread.  No matter what I clicked (there are 3 options) none presented comments in the order in which they were posted. My "3 minutes ago" comment was buried 15 comments in and no matter what I did it did not appear at either the top or bottom of the string at the time.

Paul, please look into this. It detracts from the thread and is frustrating. The VU Fan Board string is better at this.

It's slightly dodgy. Though it takes a bit of extra effort, when I opt for the newest to show on top and periodically refresh, it works fine for me.

[VULB#62]

I tried to follow the TVB thread.  No matter what I clicked (there are 3 options) none presented comments in the order in which they were posted. My "3 minutes ago" comment was buried 15 comments in and no matter what I did it did not appear at either the top or bottom of the string at the time.

Paul, please look into this. It detracts from the thread and is frustrating. The VU Fan Board string is better at this.

It's slightly dodgy. Though it takes a bit of extra effort, when I opt for the newest to show on top and periodically refresh, it works fine for me.

More than dodgy. I was doing exactly that. Nada. Lucky that the accurate LiveStats link got posted to the TVB thread.

[FWalum]

It's slightly dodgy. Though it takes a bit of extra effort, when I opt for the newest to show on top and periodically refresh, it works fine for me.

This is the best way I have found. Not great, just OK.

[valpopal]

This is the way to display command and positivity in a press conference even following a loss:

[historyman]

Illinois 88
Valpo 62

U of I  87
Valpo  64

3 points off, very good!

[usc4valpo]

A step in the right direction regarding progress. I enjoy watching a team grow and improve, which will happen this season. I'm not a believer in moral victories, but steady progress, something not happening with Coach Prime at Colorado,  is a beautiful thing.

[VULB#62]

The final post-game question and Roger's response "I came to coaching to change lives" (or something to that effect) is all we need to know about the man and the direction the program is headed.

[Chairback]

https://m.youtube.com/watch?si=GtVaLshFIPOGW-E3&v=eE5oQyAKsJc&feature=youtu.be

[vok22]

Despite the second half, that game inspired more confidence for the future of this program than I've gotten from a game in years.

Schwieger 12 points 7 rebounds 2 blocks and a steal and ZERO turnovers. Foul trouble of course, but that typical for a freshman going up against a seasoned vet.

Jaxon edwards, despite going 0-12 from the field, did everything he could elsewhere to impact the game with 15 rebounds. Often times when a young player is having a bad night offensively, they let it impact them on the other end. It's a great sign to see he bought into the team aspect of the game.

Isaiah Stafford.

Team could really benefit from manyang rn even just to eat up minutes and fouls right now. We also have to find a way to not let Jerome Palm 15 shots. Those need to be going to Schwieger or ANYBODY else.

I also really liked Coach powells attitude towards the game and season. You can tell he is proud of them, but at the end of the day he's telling them they have to be better if they didn't win. He set the bar high and he's not moving it. That's what it takes to develop a winning culture and I think that was my favorite thing about the game: the fact that coach Powell didn't take it as a moral victory.

[vu84v2]

A step in the right direction regarding progress. I enjoy watching a team grow and improve, which will happen this season. I'm not a believer in moral victories, but steady progress, something not happening with Coach Prime at Colorado,  is a beautiful thing.

A vision of what is possible with the path that Coach Powell has started...

[JD24]

Can't count on Stafford to do this every night, but impressive. Jaxson Edwards 0-12? 0-3 on three's ouch. From an effort standpoint, appears it's more consistent from the get go compared to last year, which augers well for the future. Seemed like we were down 25 to Toledo last year before you blinked. That kinda thing happened way too much. Who's gonna be our consistent third scorer this year outside of Stafford and Cooper? Palm will have plenty of jump shots available this year.

Being down quick last year was a big issue for me. Once in a while...it happens. As often as it was last year...team not ready willing or wanting to play.

So far, this team is definitely invested and particularly defensively. The offense is obviously hit and miss and that looks as if it is player related.

[JD24]

A step in the right direction regarding progress. I enjoy watching a team grow and improve, which will happen this season. I'm not a believer in moral victories, but steady progress, something not happening with Coach Prime at Colorado,  is a beautiful thing.

What does Coach Prime have to do with Coach Powell, Valpo, the MVC or basketball other than the fact that he's in your head?

[JD24]

Isaiah Stafford.

His...to this point...streakiness is already starting to bug me. It could be a case where Valpo is only competitive when he's on and UIPUI-ish when he's not.

[vu72]

Sure, I'm always looking for a bright spot and I think I've found it!  Last night we only had seven turnovers against the #23 team in the nation. Against Green Bay we only had five!  Compared to last year's final game against Murray State where we had 19!!!!!

Taking care of the ball will lead to wins.  Clearly the coaching change has already had a big impact.

[VULB#62]

Isaiah Stafford.

His...to this point...streakiness is already starting to bug me. It could be a case where Valpo is only competitive when he's on and UIPUI-ish when he's not.

That was kinda my earlier point.

Anybody who drops 30 on the #23 team in the country just woke up a lot of MVC coaches. 

Roger has to prepare the team to respond to MVC game plans that try to take Isaiah out of the game (or games when Isaiah goes cold).  The rest of the team has to take up the challenge. And Isaiah has to learn to recognize when that is happening and involve his teammates.

BTW, independent of this particular point..........

Last night's video clips brought out another way how different this team is compared to the last few years in at least one obvious way:  even I could see that when our offense is forced into their half court attack, these kids RUN through their patterns, not jog. So the half court attack is fast paced too. I loved watching that.