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WH, you hit in the head. These kids gut it out every night for the the most part. Loyola relied on Townes and Krutwig during the stretch. They delivered. Moser coached his team to a Final 4 last year and won the CBI (or CIT) a few years earlier. He is quality and what the conference needs. Don't put this on Matt. The boys came ready to play. I was actually surprised to see Golder out there as I thought he was done. When I went to the Mo State game he was on crutches and had his foot in a walking boot.


Frustration no doubt as we now know what this team is capable of but anyone that doesn't think that we can play, at full strength, for 2-3 games with the rest of this conference come early March in St. Louis hasn't seen a full picture. I see a team that's actually starting to really gel. We have a young coach inserting new pieces and had to deal with injuries and lack of scholarship players due to a couple of transfers. I like to think next year shapes up to be an excellent year for this team. I know it's tough but there is so much gold at the end of this teams rainbow.


Everyone wanted to step up from the Horizon League and this is what you get. Tough outs game in and game out. Last I checked, even woth a top 10 recruiting class, Vandy is only 30-40 spots ahead of Valpo from an NCAA Net rating perspective.

Freeman with a double/double...I'd hate to think where this game would be without him out there tonight. Plus he's doing the little things, filling passing lanes, crashing defensive (and offensive boards), making good decisions for the most part. Plus his tap out off the offensive board saved a possession and led to points.

Freeman is amazing working those passing lanes...

2 point game w/ 15 minutes to go...hopefully they strong and finish

Smit's Looking like his back ain't bothering him much...4 points, 2 boards and a voracious block in the early going...Plus one nasty poke in the eye. #Gritty

The technical on Golder is what it was and the right call. That's fine. Boys compete and guess what? We get them in the ARC and make a name. 4-1 in conference with 3 games played at Loyola, MO State and SIU and I'm feeling pretty Dan good.

The staple of last year is our Achilles heal in this one...too many TOS and points off of. This is a really balanced team, with size and athleticism. Probably the most athletic team I've seen since being a Valpo fan back in '09. The one thing lacking is 3 point shoooting. We had Peters and Walker for  years. Thrown in Skara. We don't have that ... WE need that in today's game, it neutralizes other teams. What I gleen from this game is more talent but they have enough to match up and hit critical,3's when they need them.

There is a definite mismatch here but you have stallions you run, yiou cannot hang with a team like this in the half court, you need to run.

We are still in this one guys!!!

We need better post presence on offensive and defensive ends.

I know the outcome was horrendous for some but I look at some things that transpired and don't see it nearly as bad.

Shooting and rebounding were the areas that stood out to everyone as being not so good. And they were. But if you look inside those numbers, you see some of it goes hand in hand. Valpo shot 35% from the field and 16% from 3. I don't know the last time, if ever, I saw Valpo only make 16% of its 3's. The team shot 63 times and only made 22. That gave Indy 41 opportunities for a defensive rebound which is A LOT of opportunity and a good way to pad the rebounding stats. Out of those 63 shots Evelyn and Fazekas shot 21 which is a Third of them And only made a combined 4 of those attempts. I don't think that happens again or even comes close. If so, maybe a temperance of expectations is in order. On the flip side, Indy only had 55 attempts which is 8 less. Valpo was outrebounded by 9. All Valpo had to do was make 2 more of those extra 8and they win. Also, it sounded as if the effort and desire were somewhat lacking. Rebounding is about positioning, size and height to a large degree but it's also about tenacity and desire. Improve that and increase motivation, which is easier than teaching size, and you should see the rebounding improve. They're going to have to because if McMillan is starting st Center and playing significant 5 minutes you are going to be outsized most nights.

For me the good from the box score was Indy only scored 4 points off of 9 Valpo turnovers while VU scored 15 off of 14 for Indy. TO's and point disparity between VU and their opponents was one the biggest things that hurt them last year so that was nice to see. Defense seemed to be on par what we'd expect holding Indy to 34.5% from the field. And Free Throw shooting was at around 83% which is damn good.

I'm a glass half full guy. I still believe in the potential of the team and think shots will start falling, chemistry and rotations will tighten up and effort will improve. The last one is what I'll pay most attention to after the Concordia game. If it doesn't, after a lackluster performance out of the gate, will disappoint me more than anything.

Here's the rub 13-14, IF they play to their potential. The same thing befalls Valpo, we need our OOC to hold serve to what we expect or do better. The new metric assumes close losses on the road equate to points gained. We have to make a good showing and we definitely need to beat Ball St. at home. Basically at worst we need to win all Home OOC games.

Agree that just getting into any early season tournament is not that difficult, however getting into an early season tournament that includes the opportunity to play a P5 team(s) on a neutral court is another matter entirely. That is very difficult for a mid-major and usually involves 1) building relationships with the people running the tournaments (often by playing in an inferior tournament they run first), 2) planning an additional year or two in advance relative to all other basketball scheduling and 3) a six figure entry fee payment - a major investment for programs without P5 money.

Thanks ml2!!! We are now educated to the politics and nuances of how these early season tourneys are structured and tiered. One and two make total sense but I wasn't aware of #3. I never knew you had to pay to get into these things at this level. Grammar and High School tourneys I know always required payment for refs, renting of equipment, etc. I figured on the major college level corporate sponsorships and TV money took care of the costs associated. Lets hope the 6 figure investment turns into some quality wins and great program exposure.

This would be huge is right. Hopefully the visit goes well. I'm sure him and JFL are familiar with each other which will help add another arrow into the quiver of recruiting.

Points well taken 13-14 and wh. I was thinking we at least had a return game against GW since we received the same against URI. Obviously WVU and A&M are P5 schools. Hopefully Huggy sees he's playing us at home and again at a neutral site will give some incentive to come here but if Valpo beats them in one or dare I say both, he may not be so inclined.

And again, 13-14, these tourneys give ADs the ability to talk and hopefully come to an agreement on offering the fan base and students some incentive to come to games in November /December. Plus it will only help us competitively. What does beating Concordia and PNW do by beating them by 20+? Other than you can work the lower half of the bench in and work on some things, nothing more than glorified exhibitions.

VU 84,you are spot on. In the very least try and get a decent Lower major team to come in. Playing Concordia and Purdue NW isn't helping the cause. And Chairback hit it. Recruits know what they're getting into playing in the MVC but if you can supplement that with a good OOC schedule and they can get exposure more the better in landing them. The admin needs to address this. I'll definitely drive the 60miles for Ball State. Maybe UC Riverside and SIUE. But High Point and the non D1 schools why bother.

That being said, upside is the road /neutral portion. Quality abounds there. Hopefully we've negotiated at least a return game with one or more of A&M, WVU or GW. That NIT run doesn't help that teams don't want to play here either and that's still fresh. They saw what happened to FSU and St. Mary's.  I know Marcus Liberty is a fan of the overall OOC schedule based on his tweet. My biggest rub is we play that gauntlet and we end with a home game against Purdue NW. Valpo needed a better tune up game leading into MVC play.

Point taken Irish Dawg. His transgressions and moral fiber are tainted for sure but Pitino will not be coaching anytime soon IMO. Not sure any network will take a chance on hiring him either. Calipari stays gainfully employed while leaving two programs, UMass and Memphis in the dust and had to face sanctions as a result of his actions as he moved on elsewhere. I don't deny any complicity on the part of either institution and feel no sorrow for what they went through but I have a hard time with the fact that the guy is guilty and pays nothing for any damage he caused. Pitino at least is finally paying a price as well as he should.

2014, I chuckled too at that. I was thinking more than the players, they should use that money to teach coaches about unscrupulous behavior. In the last few years you've had Pitino, Pearl, Tim Floyd, Larry Eustachy, Jim Harrick, Sampson and probably the dirtiest that lands on his feet all the time, Calipari, doing some really shady stuff. I'm sure I'm missing some too.

When I look at that, it makes me glad I root for a school like Valpo.

FG05, the 3 Elite AAU / EYBL teams around Chicago are obviously Illinois Wolves, Meanstreets and Mac Irvin Fire. Meanstreets and The Fire focus on the CPL as well as top regional and downstate talent. The Wolves focus, it seems, is the Catholic schools, suburban and downstate kids. There are always exceptions but roster makeup is somewhat consistent to this approach.


I'd say as of recent it is Mac Irvin Fire getting some of the more elite recruits going forward. Started by the patriarch of the Irvin clan, Mac, they've been around since the late '90's. They are tied in tight with Morgan Park (obviously as Lance was most recent HC there), Simeon and more of the Southside CPL teams. While they always got top local and regional talent, it seems their scope is going nationally a bit more. They just had Khalil Whitney out of NJ sign with Kentucky. Saw his ranking skyrocket over the summer. He's a top 20 kid. Jabari Parker (Simeon), Jahlil Okafor (Whitney Young),Hardaway Jr. (HS in FL)

Meanstreets was the home for Javon Freeman Liberty and Xavier Castanedas (Whitney Young) to name a few. They have and some serious players come through like Derrick Rose (Simeon) and Anthony Davis (Perspectives Chicago). Webster Slaughter HC of Whitney Young has close ties to the program. I believe Tai Streets who played for the 49'ers and Michigan was an all-State basketball and football player at Thornton HS started the program in the early 2000's while still playing in the NFL.

Dan Mullins ran some successful summer camps before AAU took of and started his program in 1999like you said. His focus was primarily on suburban and Catholic kids and gets some quality downstate Is kids as well. As we've seen he has Tom Welch (Naperville North),Marquise Kennedy (Brother Rice) and Frank Jakubisec (Cary Grove) as current members. Some notable alumni I can recall are Bobby Fraser (Brother Rice), Frank kaminsky (Benet Academy), Evan Turner (St. Joe's Westchester) and Keita Bates Diop (University HS Normal, IL).

As far as local schools of interest / P6 schools. Obviously Loyola has a direct line to the Wolves. I think Mullins has a decent relationship with both Illinois and NU as well. I know JORDAN Ash and Barret Benson played under Mullins and are at NU. NU has had some success with Meanstreets getting Vic Law and I think Scottie Lindsey from them in recent years. Illinois is hit or miss with Meanstreets and the Fire. It all depends on who is hired as HC and even asssitants. Moreso with the Fire but if they don't like an Illinois hire within the coaching staff they will try and blacklist them with their kids. It works on some I must say. Seems Underwood may be making some inroads with both. DePaul has a BAD relationship with all but most with the Fire and the Wolves. Meanstreets kids will at least glance at them. The rest of the smaller local school staff get fair shakes at the remaining kids that don't garner major or high interest.

Kennedy is a strong lean at this point for Loyola. Plays for Illinois Wolves run by Dan Mullins and his son Bryan is Moser's right hand. #UpperHand

I think what 2014, 1314 and Fieldgoodie05 said are spot on with Alec. Him staying with his team says all we need to know where Valpo sits in his heart and the fact that they gave him a chance. I encountered him a few times after games and once on campus and he was truly a humble, respectful kid. I will forever be one of his biggest fans. Keep in mind he's a little younger than Ryan and like as has been said, hasn't had the time to truly reflect like Ryan had.

What I think the focus should be on is that in within the last 5years Valpo has generated 2 NBA players. That's a recruiting tool that is severely underrated as most kids have the novel notion that they are going to play in the NBA someday. I know this staff and their integrity will not sell a kid on that but will,promise them development. Outside of Duke, Kentucky, Kansas, North Carolina, UCLA and a few other P6 schools how many others schools can say that with respect to NBA players on their roster. While unfortunate, it's what kids want to hear. And Valpo has 2 to their credit. Heck, there are some P5 schools that don't have a single "player" on an NBA roster. And the fact remains, the schools I mentioned earlier have nothing but one and dones in those ranks. Valpo isn't getting one and dones but getting kids that they have a track record of developing and offering them a possible opportunity at greener pastures carries weight. See Javon Freeman Liberty. I believe more of him are coming in the future years. Valpo is a true sleeping giant. Now if we could do something about the facilities....

i think these are 2 shrewd and great coaching selections by Matt. Up and comers are developed in these ranks and I think he hit a HR on both hires. Chicago will be fine now.

Definitely worth the wait.

WH, My hope is playing in a better conference wil no longer force us those "opportunities"to play less than D1schools. Just like us, the bottom D1schools want to play better non conference schedules, whether it means extra cash for them or raise their respective (conference) RPIs. I think everyone knows the "new"landscape of the NCAA and that's playing a tougher schedule throughout even if it means canabalizing each other.

VUGrad1314,from what I'm hearing on Roberts is he's weighing his options and is really wanting a P5 offer. He's not going to get get it, IMO but I've been wrong before. JC is an also option. He's a sit 1 play 3 and if he saw what he'd playing with going forward at  Valpo it would be a NICE destination for him. Plus he bridges the gap between Evelyn and Bradford and allow Lottich and company to develop their PG of the future. Maybe Evelyn and Bradford having an extra year scares him, I don't know but he'd have 2years of running the show on this team which has aspirations of having a bounty of talent for some years. He's not NBA sized but Valpo has proven that it take kids of lesser pedigree and allow them to make money professionally somewhere.

Here's the thing, he's an Indy kid with one prep year exception. I don't think Loyola ever recruited him and Mullins and Valentine haven't plucked the Hoosier state of anyone while Valpo has its roots here and guys that have recruited here successfully. Not that means anything but it doesn't hurt Valpo.

While schools may be limited with scholarships one inevitably opens up if a player of need or want becomes available. It's the world of today's D1 basketball.

I am hearing a lot of early MVC interest in recent transferring DePaul PG Justin Roberts. Valpo, Ill. State, Drake, Loyola, Mo State and Ball State seem to be showing some early interest. Former 4 Star recruit out of Indy via Findlay Prep in Nevada.

He would be a Redshirt Sophmore when Evelyn and Bradford are Seniors.

Looks like Loyola already capitalizing on the FF success and building an $18MM practice facility on campus per today's Chicago Sun Times...

https://www.suntimeshighschoolsports.com/2018/04/22/porter-mosers-overlooked-coaching-strength-recruiting/