Messages

SIU  74
VU   62

In this game I was struck by the contradiction in statistics between VU dominating the rebounds by a margin of 44-33 (15-8 in offensive boards); yet, Valpo's interior guys took very few shots and the team was beaten 38-28 on points in the paint. That is where the game was lost. Schwieger and Sepp each only attempted 4 shots the whole game while playing 58 minutes. I appreciate that DeAveiro has improved his game; however, something is wrong when he takes 13 shots, making only 3, while those higher percentage interior guys combined for only 8 shots (making 6). It is not like the inside shots were being blocked. Valpo actually led in blocked shots by a 7-2 margin.   

The same thing happened in the Bradley game. Darius took 12 shots while Schwieger and Sepp combined for only 6 in 54 minutes (Ojiboye took 0 shots in the 13 minutes he subbed for those two), and Valpo lost on points in the paint by a margin of 32-18. Admittedly, Bradley has better interior players than UIC, and Bradley out-rebounded Valpo. However, the unbalance of shot selection needs to be addressed. In these two games, VU has lost on points in the paint by a 70-46 margin!

This week the university has begun its demolition of Strongbow's restaurant. I have fond memories of that place.

V. U.  62
UIC.  74

We have no offense tonight

Oddly, I find their play offensive every night. 

Nice play by Darius, who led the team in points, rebounds, and assists. Everyone else could have stayed on the bench with Stafford. The team gave up 40 rebounds and committed 20 turnovers! We are in 2024 and about halfway through the season schedule; however, I'm not seeing the progress we'd been promised.

Bradley U. 74
Valparaiso 66

Women get boat-raced by 28 having made a couple of free throws with no time left. Embarrassing.

The women have only one win, against Chicago State, an independent team with the worst record in Div. 1: 0-20!

Apparently GCU has once again (shocking I know) misrepresented the cost of their programs and degree.  I know we've had some previous discussions regarding the academic quality of GCU degrees and wasn't sure where to post this.

https://www.cnn.com/2023/10/31/politics/biden-grand-canyon-university-tuition/index.html

I have read through the extensive GCU statement on this issue. As someone who has attained a PhD as a student and taught graduate courses as a faculty member, I have to say my initial reaction would be to side with the university. The GCU statement seems clear and comprehensive in its refutation of the Department of Education's accusations.
https://news.gcu.edu/press-releases/government-agencies-unjustly-targeting-gcu/

Valpo   71
Elon     75

Four individuals will be inducted into the Valpo Athletics Hall of Fame Saturday, Feb. 10 as the Class of 2024. Raitis Grafs '03, Jon Robisch '64, Jordan Rutkowski '12, and Ozzie Young '96 comprise the 26th class in Hall of Fame history....

The Hall of Fame induction will take place as part of the inaugural All-Sports Reunion weekend Feb. 9-10, 2024. The induction luncheon is slated for midday on Saturday, Feb. 10, and the inductees will be honored at that afternoon's men's basketball game as well. Further details about the induction luncheon and registration information will be available in the coming weeks.

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Another thing that the stats revealed, that was also kinda obvious in the video when you think about it, was the number of offensive rebounds we gave up to them - sometimes 2-3 put backs.  We have got to learn to box out under the boards or else it undermines any good defensive play leading up to a shot.

Oddly, the box score shows both teams with 13 offensive rebounds, and Valparaiso actually won the second-chance points battle 13-4.

While I certainly hope that enrollment is going well, I suggest being cautious when any general comments about enrollment that are not accompanied by data. Further, there are really only three measures that are good indicators: # of visits, prospective students who have stated that they will enroll, and deposits. Given that applying to more universities is easy once someone has applied to one, the number of applications is essentially meaningless.

My comment was made after seeing all the data, including the three categories you mention. I don't rely only upon others' reports. However, my continued caution is based upon a later than usual federal funding schedule and a new earlier VU acceptance schedule.

Historyman with 8  Missed on DeAveiro and Williamson

Very happy to be missing on De and Sherm.

Same here. I didn't expect DeAveiro to be leading the team with 33 minutes per game to get so many assists, but his increase in scoring has made that possible. Also, Jahari (I think you meant Jahari rather than Sherm) has been very impressive with his discipline to avoid turnovers, especially as a freshman, averaging only 1 turnover every 30 minutes of playing time!

The market has come roaring back in 2023. The S&P is up 20% YTD.  It has nearly gained back all the 2022 losses. I sure didn't see that coming in the face of high interest rates on fixed investments. 

Perhaps an extra distribution in 2024 can help bridge us to a better enrollment.

Yes, I have enjoyed seeing investments start a return to respectable levels, and I am hoping the predicted cuts to the Fed rate in 2024 will keep the momentum going. Plus, I have heard some good news that early enrollment numbers at VU are especially encouraging, though the application landscape and the university's acceptance schedule have changed a bit this year, so comparisons to the past are difficult thus far. However, contrarian economist Harry Dent is bucking the trend of optimistic outlooks and predicting a depression-like crash in 2024, and numerous media observers are warning that the next year could match or surpass 1968 in political or social disorder, which I remember well even as a high school kid. So, who knows? I am hoping for the best, but my guess is that everyone should fasten their seatbelts as the new year approaches because the next 12 months are guaranteed to offer a bumpy ride.

SAMFORD U.   80
VALPARAISO.  71

The growing pains this season are also going to happen on the coaching side. We started to run clock and get out of our offensive rhythm way too early. If we learn from this, then it's a tough but tolerable lesson.

Other than the first and last 5 minutes, I thought this team looked and played well.

Yes, the 10-0 start and the 10-0 finish for Chicago State were both the result of tentative play that spotted CSU 20 points in a one-point loss. The pace and play calling during those spells were the problem. That is on the coach, who in this instance showed he is as much a freshman in his role as some of his players are in theirs.

Any university seeking this grant needed to submit a proposal. We do not know if Valpo submitted a proposal.

Could the grant have applied to any of the capital projects we know are in the works? Dorms, nursing building, or arena? Probably depends on how you sell it, but I would bet dorms would be a long shot. Nursing has a new partnership with UChicago, right? That seems community oriented.

If Valpo didn't apply... why not??

Valpo did submit a proposal and can try again in the spring during a second round of applications.

I have designed, constructed, and edited online journals since the 1990s; therefore, I was initially impressed by the slickness of the new digital Valpo Magazine. From a technical standpoint, it is an admirable publication. However, I did notice a few drawbacks that could be easily remedied. First, although viewing the site on my computer I could find a drop-down menu with clickable contents, that feature seems absent on my tablet. (There is a good search mechanism, especially for finding related stories grouped in Topics or by College; however, I wonder how many readers will find it and be comfortable with it for navigating.)

Also, as has been mentioned, a pdf feature that allows one to download a version approximating a print edition would be helpful. For many who might come upon this digital publication, it will seem overwhelming, and one could get lost browsing through the site, wondering if an article has been missed along the way. This would especially be true for any readers who are not sophisticated or confident with such technology, which would include a number of older members of the audience, a key demographic as potential donors. There is a good chance for off-putting frustration.

I read almost all my daily literature—magazines, books, newspapers, etc.—digitally, but I would like to see the options of creating a pdf of Valpo Magazine or printing a copy that resembles a traditional magazine spatial format. A more obvious clickable Table of Contents prominently displayed upon entry would also aid anyone who might become confused by the layout. Steve Jobs used to tell his engineers that no matter how advanced the technology might be, it was inaccessible and useless without a convenient interface that doesn't alienate users.   

Chicago St.  65
Valparaiso.   69

Bowling has a new interim head coach.
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The attached article includes comments from Rep. Erin Houchin, R IN-9th, and somehow she drags Valpo into the discussion because of the Confucius Institute which was closed in 2022.  Weird.
https://wibc.com/204906/houchin-to-ivy-league-presidents-on-anti-semitic-protests-apology-is-not-enough/

As poor as President Gay has been with her use of language at times, even to the extent of being accused by some of plagiarism in her PhD dissertation, I still find it difficult to believe she mistakenly cited "the second amendment" in her defense as this news article seems to misreport: "Gay said in her testimony that Harvard's rules on speaking on campus are 'guided by the second amendment' when asked why anti-Semitic protests were allowed to proceed on Harvard's campus."

Sepp put up a few points but his court movement is that of a 6-10/6-11 player and not one who is 6-7. Maybe he can be turned into a Krutwig type who plays underneath all the mayhem above him.

When Sepp was signed, i wrote on this board that I hoped he had the potential to be similar to Kevin Van Wijk, who was 6'8" and whose game I liked a lot. I would be pleased if that is the outcome.

If nothing else comes out of the current road games, we are seeing the emergence of Kaspar Sepp as a regular member of the rotation, perhaps even a starter going forward. Combining the past two games, Sepp has been 8-12 from the field and recorded 17 rebounds. Palm has no rebounds in either of those games, and he has a total of only one basket. Sepp has also committed only 2 turnovers in 58 minutes, while balancing those with 2 steals.