Lets see what the redbird message board is saying tonight. Gotta love the quotes. Gold!
Just win the f'ing game. Enough of this cursed shit vs. the mighty Beacons. We need to get out of there with a W. This isn't Hulman, or Carver, or Koch back in the day...go get it done FFS.
I hope to god he does. I've seen all 6 losses in person at the ARC, I think. And I finally want their 15 fans to finally look dejected as I walk out in Red.
I also love how the Valpo swim team has made a better student section than we've had all year.
Funny this goofy broadcast team predicted that Valpo would would throw the long ball down the court, but apparently we can’t talk about that out of a timeout
Roger Powell absolutely owns us.
Pettigrew and Dease are bad matchups for us. And it doesn’t help that it seemed like every time they had the ball, the refs would call a foul. They made more free throws between the two of them than our entire team made all game.
Two days after the heartbreaking loss in football and we lay a big fat egg against a crappy Valpo team. Maybe they should have been practicing instead of watching the game. Unacceptable
Well for one someone decided to take a defibrillator to the heart of the ARC for this game. It was decently loud in the building.
Was there. Big Shon would not be bullied. Clutch team stuff. Not undersized. WE CAN COMPETE
Lets see what the redbird message board is saying tonight. Gotta love the quotes. Gold!
Just win the f'ing game. Enough of this cursed shit vs. the mighty Beacons. We need to get out of there with a W. This isn't Hulman, or Carver, or Koch back in the day...go get it done FFS.
I hope to god he does. I've seen all 6 losses in person at the ARC, I think. And I finally want their 15 fans to finally look dejected as I walk out in Red.
I also love how the Valpo swim team has made a better student section than we've had all year.
Funny this goofy broadcast team predicted that Valpo would would throw the long ball down the court, but apparently we can’t talk about that out of a timeout
Roger Powell absolutely owns us.
Pettigrew and Dease are bad matchups for us. And it doesn’t help that it seemed like every time they had the ball, the refs would call a foul. They made more free throws between the two of them than our entire team made all game.
Two days after the heartbreaking loss in football and we lay a big fat egg against a crappy Valpo team. Maybe they should have been practicing instead of watching the game. Unacceptable
Pretty funny, they like to trash Valpo over there for sure. I had 4 Redbird fans in front of me last night at the game..... let's just say they were uncomfortable and irritated all night long. Anyone that sits close to me knows I going wasn't letting up, Section G was loud, proud, and rocking last night. I'm not sure what they expected, did they really think they would just show up and we would give them the win? Listen, when you bring your team into the ARC you better expect it's going to be A LONG DAMN DAY, we grinded them out, we found our shot, and we played better. Plain and simple!
Well for one someone decided to take a defibrillator to the heart of the ARC for this game. It was decently loud in the building.
For 1444 fans in attendance, it was pretty electric in the ARC down the stretch to be honest, best atmosphere of the year so far. The swim team was amazing with their hype, I hope we can get more of that. I also seen the girls' team out supporting the guys which was great to see. The team was really fired up and playing off the fan support, the players were feeling it and so were the fans. Such a good ride home, I want to remember this feeling and sustain it if we could. Tough games coming up but we have some momentum, if we can split the next 2 on the road which will be very tough, we can carry this momentum through the standings. Proudest moment with the "this is our house" sign so far this year!
Was there. Big Shon would not be bullied. Clutch team stuff. Not undersized. WE CAN COMPETE
@valpodad the Shonster was a monster against Walker. He disrupted him on so many plays; he was the only one on Valpo who could physically match him. When Shon went for rest Walker went to work and scored. When Shon came back in Walker had troubles, Shon didn't give Walker an inch, I loved the physical match up. It just goes to show us how important Shon and his defensive is to this team. He is a dynamic shot blocker, a good rebounder overall, and just a great young man in general.
This game was certainly worth the price of admission
To close out my thoughts on this game: the Beacons finally got the lid off the basket and were unconscious from three. Valpo shot 75% from downtown, marking the second-best three-point shooting percentage in the KenPom era for this team. The last time Valpo hit 75% from three was against Western Illinois in 2007. The only time they shot better was against UNI in the 2004 season, when they shot 85.7%.
Valpo also shot better from two-point range than in recent games, though still not great at 41.4%. ISUr actually edged them out from two-point land, shooting 45.7%. Offensive rebounding was a sore spot for the Beacons—ISUr grabbed 17 offensive boards compared to Valpo’s 4. Valpo has generally been strong on the offensive glass this season, but not in this game. Overall, the Beacons were out-rebounded 36–28.
Another key observation: shot attempts. ISUr took 21 more field goals than Valpo, but the Beacons shot 12 more free throws. Valpo went 26–35 from the charity stripe (74.3%), while ISUr finished 14–23 (60.9%). That was a critical factor in securing the win. Fun fact: Valpo shot better from three than from the free-throw line. ISUR lacked a true 4 man and Valpo obviously scouted that weakness and executed on it.
Individual performances stood out:
- Owen played lights out—efficient from the field, deadly beyond the arc, and perfect at the line.
- JT delivered another solid all-around game, continuing to find his stride early in conference play. FOY favorite??
- Rakim came through with a few of big baskets at key defining moments.
- Shon was a defensive monster and a huge reason we won on that end of the floor.
- Mark deserves credit for stepping into the backup point guard role and playing it well for the second straight game after a tough start to the season. His output wasn’t huge, but that wasn’t what we needed from him.
- Justus was solid in limited action.
The ARC was bumping—Section G was loud, and we gave it everything we had, the players played into our energy and ISUr was hearing it and affected by the rowdiness. It was a long ride home for Redbird fans, and it should have been—Valpo outplayed ISUr. Like I said in the preview thread: if the shooting shows up, we can beat any team in the Valley. That statement held water last night.
On to the next one! Let’s enjoy this a little before heading south for a few road games. I saw St. Louis mentioned above—still early in the year, lots of basketball left—but I already have my tickets and accommodations booked for Arch Madness. Who’s going with me?
The video of players and coaches celebrating the win in the locker room reminded me that this is what college sports can be all about, i.e., coming together to stage an upset win against one of the conference's best teams.
It's hard -- and perhaps unfair -- to tell a 20-year-old kid to ignore opportunities to grab NIL cash. But as many of us can attest with the gift of hindsight (and, concededly, no NIL cash), a good, meaningful life includes creating great experiences and memories. The process of growing as a team and seeing the results is one of the most satisfying aspects of playing team sports. And wins like this one you don't forget.
I wonder if some of the guys who couldn't enter the portal fast enough after last season's Arch Madness run are now wondering what might've been.
wonder if some of the guys who couldn't enter the portal fast enough after last season's Arch Madness run are now wondering what might've been.
All Wright may have thought that last night when that “not very good” Marquette team took down Xavier.
wonder if some of the guys who couldn't enter the portal fast enough after last season's Arch Madness run are now wondering what might've been.
All Wright may have thought that last night when that “not very good” Marquette team took down Xavier.
Was at the Xavier-Marquette game last night. All Wright had foul trouble in the first half, but looked very energetic and engaged in the second half. They just don't get him the ball for shots much (he plays more of a QB type of point guard).
To expand on David81's point. Beyond happiness and fulfillment, there probably should be some consideration for networking and support after graduation. A friend who played D1 ball and is still close to his alma mater points out that alumni are far more likely to help a recent former player who played four years at a school than one who played no more than one or two years at any school and transferred one, two or three times. He further goes on the express dismay at players who transfer (and avoid a degree) from top/more prestigious academic schools to finish at far less prestigious schools because they can get playing time. He argues that the value of the NIL money is outweighed by the potential loss of earnings over 30-40 years from these factors.
Zek Montgomery started at Bradley for 2 years, transferred to Rhode Island for a year, and then went back to Bradley for his senior season.
Cooper Schwieger is averaging 3.7 pts/game and 17 minutes at Wake Forest this year. Wonder if he would consider coming back…
Zek Montgomery started at Bradley for 2 years, transferred to Rhode Island for a year, and then went back to Bradley for his senior season.
Cooper Schwieger is averaging 3.7 pts/game and 17 minutes at Wake Forest this year. Wonder if he would consider coming back…
If anyone were to come back it would be wright. Kid genuinely did not want to leave and loved it at Valpo, but 700k is life changing money for him and his family.
Cooper Schwieger is averaging 3.7 pts/game and 17 minutes at Wake Forest this year. Wonder if he would consider coming back…
These guys are under some sort of contract so leaving may be difficult. There is a player in the news who had signed a $4 million dollar NIL deal and then decided to go to a different school for presumably more bucks. Law suits to follow...
As for All getting 700k, where did that info come from? Xavier is a school much like Valpo, small, private, religious. Though there enrollment is about double Valpo's, their endowment is only $269 million (2024) while Valpo's at the same period was $312 million. Not much different but quite a bit different on a per student basis. I guess the tv deal for the Big East allows these payments but doubt their alumni are able to funds payments like that.
At some point, though a bit different than 84's point, if a kid is thinking of ever going pro, the playing time and exposure has got to be a factor. Cooper is an afterthought at the moment. Being a star at Valpo would no doubt give him a significant exposure for scouts to see. Less money now but more in pro contracts? Who knows.
Cooper Schwieger is averaging 3.7 pts/game and 17 minutes at Wake Forest this year. Wonder if he would consider coming back…
These guys are under some sort of contract so leaving may be difficult. There is a player in the news who had signed a $4 million dollar NIL deal and then decided to go to a different school for presumably more bucks. Law suits to follow...
As for All getting 700k, where did that info come from? Xavier is a school much like Valpo, small, private, religious. Though there enrollment is about double Valpo's, their endowment is only $269 million (2024) while Valpo's at the same period was $312 million. Not much different but quite a bit different on a per student basis. I guess the tv deal for the Big East allows these payments but doubt their alumni are able to funds payments like that.
At some point, though a bit different than 84's point, if a kid is thinking of ever going pro, the playing time and exposure has got to be a factor. Cooper is an afterthought at the moment. Being a star at Valpo would no doubt give him a significant exposure for scouts to see. Less money now but more in pro contracts? Who knows.
The player who signed a $4M NIL deal and then decided to go to a different school was Demond Williams, a QB at Washington. He signed the NIL deal and then decided to renege and enter the transfer portal.
I had the same thought regarding how Xavier could afford that level of NIL spending. The following is a statement form their AD in a recent letter to fans/alums/etc.
"The reality, though, is that our 2025-26 team NIL/revenue sharing cap is in the middle grouping of the Big East, off the league average by 15%."
St. John's (with a billionaire mega donor) and UConn likely skew the Big East NIL average upward, but my guess is that their overall NIL spend would have to be $3-4M if they are paying All Wright $700K. Their reported revenue, however, was $16M in 2021-2022 (and that has likely gone up)...so maybe?
Another reference point on Big East NIL outside of St John's and UConn: I had a basketball player in a class two years ago who is now in the NBA. He had one year of eligibility left, but had graduated with a finance degree in three years and decided to go into the draft (he was drafted in the 2nd round). He told me that if he had decided to transfer, he would have gotten ten times the NIL money he was getting for his final year at our school. Also, we are bigger but similar to Xavier - but our endowment is just over $1B. My point is that Big East schools other than St John's and UConn, as far as I can tell, are paying far less in NIL....which makes me dubious that All Wright got $700K.
@vu84v2 I had heard 600K, I cannot remember where I heard that from, but it was some kind of media, it may have been on Morning in the Valley or other source that covers MVC basketball. I don't think the number was pulled out of a hat but who really knows. I had also heard Cooper got 900K to go to WF, I wish I could pinpoint the exact source of that information. Either way that info is second hand to me from some type of sports coverage that got that information somehow. Paul from @thevictorybell may be the most informed of that information, not saying he knows.
