Season Predictions 2025-2026

With the revolving door of players, any "predictions" for our season should really be considered blind guesses. With that being said, I have a few blind guesses.

The limited preseason rankings that are available for the Valley (March to the Arch and the poll PO released) have little faith in Valpo. These both come with the (completely fair) explanation that they simply don't know much about the players and Valpo always finishes at the bottom. As somebody who has spent time researching our roster, but doesn't know much about the rest of the Valley, I am going to turn these 'predictions' on their head. 

I would actually argue this roster has more data points coming in than any roster Valpo has constructed in a while. We bring in 2 starters from respectable Division 1 programs, Tulsa and Texas AM Corpus Christie. For Isaiah Barnes, the competition level in the Valley should be a little below what he faced in the AAC, but at least comparable. For Owen Dease the competition should be a step up; but TAMU CC was also a better team than Valpo last year and he was a key part in that. It is fair to expect both of these players to translate well to the Valley. Also in this bracket of players that we know at least a floor of what we will get is Justus McNair. I am not going to sit here and say I expect a huge leap from him, but we know what he did last year and I would expect we get at least that level of production again in 2026. 

As for the new pieces that transferred in from non D1 schools, we have Brody Whitaker, Mark Brown Jr, Shon Tupuolo, and Tucker Tornatta. Mark Brown Jr is coming in as a "better" JUCO recruit than Isaiah Stafford. This is not to say he will be better but it is promising. Brody Whitaker comes in with a history of great shooting but struggled with the 3 at his previous stop. Shon Tupuolo comes in after leading NAIA in rebounding. Obviously D1 is a big step up, but he clearly possesses the fundamentals and size to make a positive impact on that aspect of the game. This selection of players is where the most uncertainty lies for me, and will be the biggest key to Valpo's success (or failure) this year. If Brown comes in and can just distribute while limiting turnovers and Tupuolo can make a difference on the boards, it will go a long way towards Valpo not finishing at the bottom of the Valley. 

Finally we have the freshman. I was disappointed I didnt hear JT Pettigrew mentioned in the March to the Arch podcast. A highly rated recruit from Illinois that had Power 4 offers and has scored 20+ on efficient shooting and rebounded well through both the secret scrimmage and the exhibition, I fully expect him to average double figures and be in the conversation (if not the favorite) for Freshman of the Year. He has not really been held a secret by Paul Oren, and I am surprised at the lack of chatter I hear about him from the rest of the conference. Carter Hopoi and Sader Servlius also look like that have potential to contribute, but I am not going to go into the season expecting them to be difference makers. 

As a whole, this roster appears to be Powell's most well rounded and experienced (take "experienced" with a grain of salt) roster to date. While we have had some good players the previous two years, it has been overshadowed by lack of size, interior defense, and constant growing pains that come with having underclassmen as our best players. This roster, while lacking a run-away "star" like Cooper or All, addresses those three concerns and that, in my opinion, raises the floor AND ceiling for this year's team. I would be shocked if this team is one of the worst teams in college basketball this year, something I could not say about last years team going into the season.

This roster is not going to win the league, but I could definitely see a middle of the pack finish. On paper, this team should be more consistent and less vulnerable to getting bullied, helping them play a brand of basketball that carries from game to game. Additionally, I haven't seen any evidence that the league is greatly improved this year. Indiana State and Evansville should be winnable games, and the top of the league is uncertain. The non-con has a lot of winnable games that should allow the team to mesh while winning, but mixes in games against Power 5 opponents that will help them get in touch with their flaws and get used to playing physical basketball before the conference season starts. 

With all that being said, I have them going 15-16 (8-12). I think this team will perform better than last year's team and that will be reflected in their conference record. Their non-con featuring 3 Power 5s and UNC Wilmington mute their overall record a bit, but overall a slight improvement over last year. Our size at the guard positions will help us be more competitive in conference and win some games against the 3 through 7 section of the league and that boosts our record.