My recent record with opening game threads has been unspectacular but the team is headed for Vegas and I'm feeling lucky. Gradually these guys are finding the answers and I see nothing that will interrupt this trend. I have seen zero minutes of UNLV basketball so I will not predict an outcome. That said I'm expecting us to play well either in victory or in defeat.
I see this listed as an AT&T regional game ... does that mean there will be streaming video available like there was for WVU?
This is a winnable game. UNLV has a young roster.
Does anyone know Jay's status coming into this game?
I am going to go against my gut, and say that we steal one here:
Valpo 77
UNLV 75
Part of this probably goes back to the great LMU vs. UNLV battles, where I will always view them as the bad guys :).
When are they flying to Vegas? May be tough today.
Quote from: tiny707 on November 26, 2018, 06:59:40 AM
When are they flying to Vegas? May be tough today.
I think I saw on Twitter that they flew out on Sunday.
Hmmm An extra day in Vegas? What could go wrong? ;D :o
UNLV crashes the offensive glass hard (2nd best offensive rebounding rate in the country), but they turn the ball over a lot and don't shoot the 3 that well. Defensively they've been pretty solid all around, but where they have been vulnerable at times is from deep. The 2 teams they've played that are comparable to Valpo in terms of quality were Loyola Marymount (lost to by 11 at home) and Pacific (beat by 26 at home), so I guess it depends on what kind of UNLV team shows up on Wednesday.
If we shoot well keep the rebounding battle close and win the turnover battle I like our chances.
We have a 35% chance according to ESPN prediction graph.
We need to win this one. We need to start contributing some wins of consequence to the conference. I'm tired of hearing other fanbases saying we have done nothing for the conference and not having a counter argument. We haven't been helped by the fact that Wake Forest and West Virginia have absolutely sucked eggs this year but if that's the case we should have beaten those teams. I can't wait for better days when we move beyond simply hoping for better results and start to actually see them.
You know what other fanbases were complaining about our lack of success and us doing nothing for the conference? Horizon League fanbases, circa 2009 after our second year in the league. How'd that work out? Patience.
Gotta like the way UNLV schedules games... we are their 6th consecutive game at home (1 exh); following us is Cincinnati on Saturday.
Then, they fly to Champaign to play the Illini on December 8th
Then, they go across the Strip to TMobile to play BYU
Then, they spend Christmas in Hawaii at an MTE (including Indiana State). They do open with the Rainbow Warriors, so road game #2.
Then, MW conference starts in January.
What does Las Vegas offer that we don't???
Quote from: vusupporter on November 26, 2018, 02:55:15 PM
You know what other fanbases were complaining about our lack of success and us doing nothing for the conference? Horizon League fanbases, circa 2009 after our second year in the league. How'd that work out? Patience.
I don't know if Valpo will ever dominate the MVC the way they did the Horizon, but I anticipate they'll be competing for championships in the near future, starting with next season.
Quote from: VUGrad1314 on November 26, 2018, 02:00:13 PM
We need to win this one. We need to start contributing some wins of consequence to the conference. I'm tired of hearing other fanbases saying we have done nothing for the conference and not having a counter argument. We haven't been helped by the fact that Wake Forest and West Virginia have absolutely sucked eggs this year but if that's the case we should have beaten those teams. I can't wait for better days when we move beyond simply hoping for better results and start to actually see them.
Who is saying Valpo hasn't contributed and what have they won for the league in the last season plus? Unless they're Loyola fans, it's not like the other teams in the league are dominating the good teams on their schedules over the last year.
This game isn't much of a game of consequence either. They win, and good for them, but a win there won't make or break Valpo's or the league's year, because UNLV is basically the same level of team that they'll face in the MVC, and Valpo's beaten those teams before.. As others have said, continue to have patience. The team has shown strides compared to last season. As long as there continues to be growth, then eventually the results will come.
Quote from: IrishDawg on November 26, 2018, 07:13:47 PM
Quote from: VUGrad1314 on November 26, 2018, 02:00:13 PM
We need to win this one. We need to start contributing some wins of consequence to the conference. I'm tired of hearing other fanbases saying we have done nothing for the conference and not having a counter argument. We haven't been helped by the fact that Wake Forest and West Virginia have absolutely sucked eggs this year but if that's the case we should have beaten those teams. I can't wait for better days when we move beyond simply hoping for better results and start to actually see them.
Who is saying Valpo hasn't contributed and what have they won for the league in the last season plus? Unless they're Loyola fans, it's not like the other teams in the league are dominating the good teams on their schedules over the last year.
This game isn't much of a game of consequence either. They win, and good for them, but a win there won't make or break Valpo's or the league's year, because UNLV is basically the same level of team that they'll face in the MVC, and Valpo's beaten those teams before.. As others have said, continue to have patience. The team has shown strides compared to last season. As long as there continues to be growth, then eventually the results will come.
Agree, but, remember that last season the team had to deal with a few effectively season ending type issues, at least from a "growth" standpoint. First, guys like Bakari were in their first season with the program and then the presumed star, Joe Burton, is out before the conference play even started. Oh, and the probably best player suffers mono and isn't right for a long time. Enter guys like John Kiser as a regular contributor rather than a role player and the probability of success was extremely limited. Still, given all that, the team beat the conference runner-up, Illinois State and swept Drake. By conference time, nobody will take Valpo lightly.
Chicago Blackhawks playing in Vegas tonight. Hope the team can catch some of the game. Better than Hoover Dam.
Quote from: vu72 on November 27, 2018, 08:52:52 AM
Agree, but, remember that last season the team had to deal with a few effectively season ending type issues, at least from a "growth" standpoint. First, guys like Bakari were in their first season with the program and then the presumed star, Joe Burton, is out before the conference play even started. Oh, and the probably best player suffers mono and isn't right for a long time. Enter guys like John Kiser as a regular contributor rather than a role player and the probability of success was extremely limited. Still, given all that, the team beat the conference runner-up, Illinois State and swept Drake. By conference time, nobody will take Valpo lightly.
That's good perspective. This year's team is dealing with Jay/Micah injuries and a starting lineup with 3 guys new to the program. I expect some growing pains, but like vu72, think this team will make some noise in the MVC games.
Quote from: EddieCabot on November 25, 2018, 03:27:31 PM
I see this listed as an AT&T regional game ... does that mean there will be streaming video available like there was for WVU?
Sounds like it. Albeit I missed the memo for WVU.
The game nots are clearer this time:
Following the Crusaders: TV – AT&T SportsNet Rocky Mountain (683 DirecTV; 414 Dish) – Nick Gismondi and Dave Bollwinkel
Video - Available outside AT&TSN viewing area by visiting TheMW.com
Radio – WVUR (95.1 FM, Valparaiso) – Todd Ickow and Aaron Leavitt
Links for the video, audio and live stats will be available at ValpoAthletics.com.
If we play like we did against Monmouth and West Virginia, we have a chance of upsetting UNLV.
Valpo 72
UNLV 70
Current Line is -5.5 with an O/U at 140.5
I think we keep it close but close enough to win? I'm not sure. I think the over is a solid bet as this should be a high scoring game.
UNLV-79
Valpo-75
UNLV 68
VU 54
Unless it's on twitter (which I don't use), I haven't seen MVC fans complaining about Valpo at all.
Last year, the MVC had one of the best bottoms in the country (even better than a few BCS leagues) per KenPom. Thus, you don't hear anyone griping about bad teams. Because there aren't any.
The griping is on MVCfans.com, the MVC fan forum.
Quote from: FWalum on November 28, 2018, 06:50:39 AM
The griping is on MVCfans.com, the MVC fan forum.
Ok, let's say that the teams of the gripping fans are legit and are superior to Valpo the last 15-years. Let's make a list of programs that have equaled or exceeded our success in that time . . .
Teams With More Success
1) Loyola (one single year - moon shot)
2) UNI?
3) Illinois State?
I am only starting the conversation because there are those of you who have a better idea on this subject (and more time probably). I suppose what I am getting at is that fans complaining is "noise in the channel" and should be ignored. YEAR 2 gentleman is NOT the year to determine a teams legitimacy in a new conference . . .
I am fairly certain that Loyola was seen as FAR more deficient at the time of their joining then our program. I don't expect we are Final Four bound any time soon, but the comparison exists.
For those of us with realistic expectations, this was always a 3 year plan:
Year 1 - Acclimate to new style and arenas, try to be as competitive as possible, win a game or two we shouldn't. (check)
Year 2 - Compete night in and night out. Defend home court, win a couple on the road.
Year 3 - Compete for the top spot with a senior loaded team.
Now if we go into St. Louis having to play on Thursday this year, and especially if we play on Thursday and lose, we have to take a serious look at how the program is doing and whether we have the right coach for the job.
Quote from: FWalum on November 28, 2018, 06:50:39 AM
The griping is on MVCfans.com, the MVC fan forum.
The same people griping about us were the same people groaning about Loyola for 4 years til last year. I'm not saying we'll go on a F4 run but we'll be better when we have a full recruiting cycle of being in the MVC. I think we have a talented team but we need to get fully healthy and get Jay back.
Did anyone see that the SIU beat reporter ranked us last? Smh
Loyola never dominated the HL as we did. They eventually won a MVC championship.....Should give us some confidence that it can be done.
Where's the griping on the MVC Forum about Valpo's contributions to the conference? Just searched "Valpo" and can't find anything. In fact, they picked Valpo 5th preseason.
Basketball notwithstanding, the Commissioner has pointed out that academics will play a larger role in the pie split and that Valpo will have a very positive effect in that regard.
5 games tonight in the MVC/MWC challenge...Lots of them road games for the MVC.
2 games Saturday both being home games for the MVC
MVC currently with 2-1 advantage
Who ya got in the rest of the games and which conference wins the challenge?
Quote from: may know on November 28, 2018, 12:41:18 PMWhere's the griping on the MVC Forum about Valpo's contributions to the conference? Just searched "Valpo" and can't find anything. In fact, they picked Valpo 5th preseason.
It was an Illinois State fan saying we've "done nothing" for the conference when they were talking about the new rankings. There have been other instances in the past. It shouldn't ruffle my feathers as much as it did I just hate seeing my school put down in any way
Quote from: VUGrad1314 on November 28, 2018, 02:12:09 PM
Quote from: may know on November 28, 2018, 12:41:18 PMWhere's the griping on the MVC Forum about Valpo's contributions to the conference? Just searched "Valpo" and can't find anything. In fact, they picked Valpo 5th preseason.
It was an Illinois State fan saying we've "done nothing" for the conference when they were talking about the new rankings. There have been other instances in the past. It shouldn't ruffle my feathers as much as it did I just hate seeing my school put down in any way
Illinois State hasn't even been to an NCAA tournament in over 20 years ... they probably shouldn't be pointing fingers.
Thanks, found it. It was a 7 paragraph post dissecting where MVC teams stood in the ratings. This is the final paragraph and only mention:
"If the conference as a whole wants to improve, it has to start here. Evansville has had a pretty tough schedule to this point, but has done nothing with it. Valpo has just done nothing. Really need the bottom to pick it up."
Again, this was just 1 mention in 1 paragraph of 7 in a post strictly about this year's ratings. Most people probably glossed over it. I wouldn't let that ruffle your feathers.
The statement is invalid anyway because of Evansville's 85-63 win over TSU who beat 2 P5s/1 T25. Better win than anything ILST's got.
Quote from: EddieCabot on November 28, 2018, 02:26:45 PMQuote from: VUGrad1314 on November 28, 2018, 02:12:09 PMQuote from: may know on November 28, 2018, 12:41:18 PMWhere's the griping on the MVC Forum about Valpo's contributions to the conference? Just searched "Valpo" and can't find anything. In fact, they picked Valpo 5th preseason.
It was an Illinois State fan saying we've "done nothing" for the conference when they were talking about the new rankings. There have been other instances in the past. It shouldn't ruffle my feathers as much as it did I just hate seeing my school put down in any way
Illinois State hasn't even been to an NCAA tournament in over 20 years ... they probably shouldn't be pointing fingers.
To be fair the two schools' situations haven't exactly been comparable until recently. Theoretically it's easier to rack up titles and tournament appearances from lower conferences. That said you would think a program that has had the benefit of being in a multibid league with in-conference home and homes with Creighton Wichita State as well as SIU Bradley and UNI at peak strength over those years would be able to play their way into the dance once. Meanwhile we handled one step up already and eventually figured out how to beat our chief rival and dominated once they left. I know 15-16 Valpo gets in from the MVC and may have even been good enough to win it that year. Your argument holds a lot of merit he probably shouldn't be pointing fingers.
Quote from: SanityLost17 on November 28, 2018, 01:23:12 PM
5 games tonight in the MVC/MWC challenge...Lots of them road games for the MVC.
2 games Saturday both being home games for the MVC
MVC currently with 2-1 advantage
Who ya got in the rest of the games and which conference wins the challenge?
I'll say Wyoming over Evansville @ E-ville
ISU-b over San Jose St @SJS
Utah St over Northern Iowa @ US
The balance VU @ UNLV, MSU @ Air Force, New Mexico @ Bradley, and San Diego St @ ISU-r I will call tossups. Home court is so important that the Valley will probably end up again at 5-5. A win by Valpo tonight would really help the cause. :thumbsup:
If you live outside the blackout area: https://player.watchstadium.com/47/index.html?asset_id=152424&player_id=47&type=liveevent
https://twitter.com/ValpoBasketball/status/1067975508166500354
Sure wish I could watch this.
Anyone else getting picture but no sound?
Not getting either.
no picture or sound here also
Have picture and sound. Good quality both. On the floor, UNLV quickness is an issue but they've made enough TOs that we're staying even with them. Clearly won't get any breaks from the officials.
UNLV hitting ALL of their midrange jump shots, which happens to be one of the harder shots in the game.
I am worries that we had too high of expectations of Fazekas. His lack of athletic ability shows on that missed layup, getting blocked a few times, and traveling on trying to get open for a 3.
At what point do we admit that Fazekas just isn't a good shooter? Frustrating to hear him referred to like he can score when he's playing this poorly
Fazekas seems to get easily frustrated, something I didn't see watching him on TV with Providence. Perhaps he's putting too much pressure on himself. We also need Golder to quit trying to do too much and stop posing/trying to intimidate and missing an acrobatic move when a simple layup would work. We looked baffled by the full court trap. They get instant offense and we work like heck.
Quote from: sliman on November 28, 2018, 10:12:50 PM
Fazekas seems to get easily frustrated, something I didn't see watching him on TV with Providence. Perhaps he's putting too much pressure on himself. We also need Golder to quit trying to do too much and stop posing/trying to intimidate and missing an acrobatic move when a simple layup would work. We looked baffled by the full court trap. They get instant offense and we work like heck.
I've also noticed that. It looks like he's putting a lot of pressure on himself. Maybe he feels he needs to more of "The Guy" or more pressure to produce here at Valpo then he did at Providence. He not be knocking down shots consistently in the early going this season but he's still playing well in other parts of the game. I'm not too worried. I think he'll get it going eventually.
Thought we were going to be blown out for a while, but they turned the ball over enough to allow us back in the game. Now if we can get a few outside shots to drop we could win this thing. Fazekas needs to get off the bagel and make something.
Quote from: RS on November 28, 2018, 09:52:43 PM
no picture or sound here also
You may need to use a different browser.
UNLV also shot 60% from the field in the 1st half. As I said earlier, a lot of those were mid range jumpers, but we also let them get to the rim a lot. Need to play better defense.
Suddenly, Smits is the team leader in grit and toughness. After the first half he has 10 points, 5 rebounds, and an assist, plus a lump on his forehead, a bloody lip, and redness around one eye. In fact, for a change Valpo leads in offensive rebounds 9-1 and 2nd-Chance Points 10-0! He's also been vocal with others on the court.
The refs have swallowed their whistles on the Valpo end of the floor, calling only 3 fouls on UNLV despite some obvious hard fouls. Even the UNLV announcers noted Golder was clearly fouled on the last shot of the half. Need to hit 3-pointers.
Quote from: sliman on November 28, 2018, 09:56:59 PM
Have picture and sound. Good quality both. On the floor, UNLV quickness is an issue but they've made enough TOs that we're staying even with them. Clearly won't get any breaks from the officials.
on tv or internet?
Quote from: vu72 on November 28, 2018, 10:40:01 PM
Quote from: sliman on November 28, 2018, 09:56:59 PM
Have picture and sound. Good quality both. On the floor, UNLV quickness is an issue but they've made enough TOs that we're staying even with them. Clearly won't get any breaks from the officials.
on tv or internet?
Internet: https://watchstadium.com/live/152424/
Quote from: VU2014 on November 28, 2018, 10:28:43 PM
Quote from: RS on November 28, 2018, 09:52:43 PM
no picture or sound here also
You may need to use a different browser.
Do you have an ad blocker? I had nothing until I turned the ad blocker off.
Valpo came back to take the lead.
Lavender was a hell of a addition to this team!
Is this the best ball we've played all year?
Freeman is a very very solid freshman. Has a great basketball IQ and court awareness.
Fazekas now 1-9. As our depth improves/gets healthy, he needs fewer minutes. Coach needs to pick his spots and see if he can get Fazekas to relax into a more productive role off the bench, and rebuild confidence.
Did I miss something.... is McMillan injured?
A team called Valpo won. Who were those guys in gold uniforms. They rebounded. They moved without the ball. They played with intensity. Who stole our team and replaced it with those guys?
No McMillan....No Kiser....
Hmmm....
https://twitter.com/jeffwaddilove/status/992111847150161922?s=21
Karma has funny ways of working out...
Great win! Smits is playing like a man among boys out there. Additions of Lavender and Freeman can't be understated.
A nice win on the road. Held it together down the stretch. Smits had another good game. Showing signs of becoming the player we all hoped he would be. Nice to see Jay back too.
Great win! Beat a quality opponent and did it on the road!
I wonder if playing Press West Virginia the other day helped us through today's game, especially when UNLV pressed. We never really let it get to us. But man, we look bad at rebounding sometimes.
:thumbsup: Had this one down as a big question mark on my prediction, REALLY wanted to see Valpo step up and take this one...and they did. Now, as Paul mentioned in his podcast, they have a chance to really string together some wins. Some winnable games coming up. Great work!
Great game and a good win!
Did Mileek get in the game today?
My favorite stat of the night: Second Chance Points, Valpo 18, UNLV 6! Smits played great, and having Sorolla back gives Valpo the two-headed force in the middle we have been hoping to see. With 9 points, Freeman just misses double-digit scoring again. Combine the stats for Freeman, Lavender, and Evelyn, and you get a very solid 31 points, 7 rebounds, 11 assists, and 11 steals! Golder also had 10 points and brought a lot of energy. Obviously, Fazekas had a poor shooting night, but he still contributed with 9 rebounds. Most importantly, team is moving ahead in the right direction recently and looking better with each game.
The refs just let both teams play and beat the crap out of each other. Some of the contact not called was pretty surprising.
Regardless, that was a fun game to watch. Even though we couldn't handle the press until the end of the game, we caused a ton of turnovers by UNLV. Lavender was a fantastic late pickup, and Smits is finally showing some guts on both ends of the floor. I like it.
can we join the MW? 2-0
Congrats to Smits. Happy for me that hes finally playing to his potential.
Freeman is the best freshman we have had since Peters. We are lucky to have him and he has great potential.
Can we call Fazekas a chucker....? At least Bader hit his 3's
Fazekas needs to settle into the role of spot up shooter. Right now he is trying to do too much, but he doesn't need to be the guy who creates his own shot. With Smits dominating the low post teams are going to have to start doubling and that should leave Fazekas with some wide open spot up shots of which he will hit a very high percentage.
Quote from: VU2014 on November 28, 2018, 11:38:41 PM
Did Mileek get in the game today?
I think he has struggled a lot lately and I hate to say it but seems to hurt the team when he is in...
Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk
We certainly had some rough spells in this one. In fact, I remember saying that we looked like a struggling high school team for a stretch.
However, the guys figured it out and I'm thinking this win will be a nice coincidence boost.
- Smits looked great against some bigger players...
- We did a great job of stealing their inside passes.
- Fazekas does best at stepping into a shot. If he's more selective his % will improve.
ALL-IN-ALL... Nice Win....
Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk
Sooooo many turnovers. Luckily they were worse then us. Valpo rebounded well defensively in the first half it seemed, but maybe they only allowed 1 offensive rebound because UNLV shot it at a 60% clip. Second half rebounding looked more familiar. Smits was good, missed a few gimmes which would've made him great tonight. Fazekas, come on man! Golder was high flying.
Very nice road win! Will be nice to have a win streak (is 2 a streak) if they can pull off the win on Sunday (does the team play again before that??).
Quote from: SanityLost17 on November 29, 2018, 07:17:29 AM
Fazekas needs to settle into the role of spot up shooter. Right now he is trying to do too much, but he doesn't need to be the guy who creates his own shot. With Smits dominating the low post teams are going to have to start doubling and that should leave Fazekas with some wide open spot up shots of which he will hit a very high percentage.
Do we think that Fazekas would benefit from coming off the bench and having a few more sets run to get him his "spot up" shot attempts? Right now it feels like he is just "willing" his shots rather than letting them come to him in the flow of the offense.
There is that old adage, shooters shoot themselves out of funks . . . maybe this is what we are seeing? The issue is that we have such a small body of work to compare with him that we are more emotional than fact driven in our observations (me included).
I was very happy with his rebounding in this game, 9 Reb is awesome!
Besides Smits hitting on a double-double (20 pts/12 RBs), another big difference (for me at least) was seeing all the motion on offense. Not a lot of standing around off the ball. Glad that is becoming part of the formula.
4-3 going into Cal-Riverside on Sunday. Keep it up boys!
Quote from: may know on November 28, 2018, 02:55:10 PMThanks, found it. It was a 7 paragraph post dissecting where MVC teams stood in the ratings. This is the final paragraph and only mention: "If the conference as a whole wants to improve, it has to start here. Evansville has had a pretty tough schedule to this point, but has done nothing with it. Valpo has just done nothing. Really need the bottom to pick it up." Again, this was just 1 mention in 1 paragraph of 7 in a post strictly about this year's ratings. Most people probably glossed over it. I wouldn't let that ruffle your feathers. The statement is invalid anyway because of Evansville's 85-63 win over TSU who beat 2 P5s/1 T25. Better win than anything ILST's got.
Here was my response to a Drake fan's assertion that we have a "coaching problem" Full disclosure: he made his post before the UNLV game while I made mine after. (I got the "counter argument" game I needed.)
I don't think the problem lies with coaching as frustrating as the game against SIUE was. The issues have been injury and transition related. We are playing out contracts with SIUE and UC-Riverside that we signed as members of the HL. Those are done after this year. Even so we've scheduled up and shown well in many games. We were competitive with WKU into the second half. Same story with WVU. Against Wake Forest we were in it until the end.
The problem? Micah Bradford who emerged late last year as a valuable distributor has played all of 3 minutes this year and Jaume Sorolla a key piece of our frontcourt just saw his first action in a tight contest against UNLV. The result? We won. His absence forced Mileek McMillan and even John Kiser to play minutes at center which neither is well-suited to do. I have to think that made a difference down the stretch in those earlier games which in turn makes a difference in our metrics. Those teams being generally underwhelming this year also probably hurts because it means our schedule isn't as strong as it looked initially but that's out of Valpo's hands.
As for the coaching, Derrik Smits has been an absolute revelation this year. His development has been incredible and I think McMillan will show similar progress once he gets into a more comfortable role. If Bradford continues his improvements and our freshmen continue to grow then it should be pretty clear that there is no serious coaching problem. If Valpo has one then I think you have to wonder whether every team in the MVC has one based on the performances we've seen this year.
Agreed with drawing up plays where Fazakes is a spot shooter. The realization and maybe why the Drake fan said we have a "coaching problem" is I have not seen many set plays. Bryce designed several plays that gave shooters wide open looks. Or he used the shooter as a decoy.
Best example is a HL championship game we were losing to Green Bay on our home court. Drew designed a play where 2 defenders went after Alec on the 3 point line. It ended up an easy pass and dunk by Fashil as the buzzer sounded. I'm sure many remember it.
I just don't see the movement off the ball or designed plays. Nonetheless, great win last night.
Box score shows two Valpo technical fouls. Can someone who watched the game explain?
Quote from: FieldGoodie05 on November 29, 2018, 09:23:35 AM
Quote from: SanityLost17 on November 29, 2018, 07:17:29 AM
Fazekas needs to settle into the role of spot up shooter. Right now he is trying to do too much, but he doesn't need to be the guy who creates his own shot. With Smits dominating the low post teams are going to have to start doubling and that should leave Fazekas with some wide open spot up shots of which he will hit a very high percentage.
Do we think that Fazekas would benefit from coming off the bench and having a few more sets run to get him his "spot up" shot attempts? Right now it feels like he is just "willing" his shots rather than letting them come to him in the flow of the offense.
There is that old adage, shooters shoot themselves out of funks . . . maybe this is what we are seeing? The issue is that we have such a small body of work to compare with him that we are more emotional than fact driven in our observations (me included).
I was very happy with his rebounding in this game, 9 Reb is awesome!
*checks stats*
*sees Fazekas is shooting 40.5% from 3 (15-37), Evelyn shooting 25% from 3 (10-40)*
*questions why we are questioning Fazekas's shooting and not Evelyn's*
Great win on the road last night. Guess the MWC signed on with the A-10 to have a chance to win a few games in their "Challenge," huh?
Quote from: hailcrusaders on November 28, 2018, 11:32:03 PM
I wonder if playing Press West Virginia the other day helped us through today's game, especially when UNLV pressed. We never really let it get to us. But man, we look bad at rebounding sometimes.
It didn't get to us in the sense that we eventually got back into the game. But, it was horrible for a while. They stole... two consecutive inbounds passes at one point? We turned it over against their press directly under the basket!
Both teams seemed to be playing fast, losse, and kind of sloppy. Which was fun to watch. I'm tempted to say UNLV's turnover numbers were at least as much about their game as they were about ours. But, a solid, come from behind win. Hopefully something to build on.
And Smits has just been a monster. I don't know where this came from. Even earlier this season it seems we were all, "What could have been, what should have been!" Bizarre to hear Coach Gore talk about him flipping a switch, earlier in the season... in the middle of a game! Smits is reminding me a bit of KVW. (Now if he could only learn to shoot with his right...)
Quote from: oklahomamick on November 29, 2018, 10:08:20 AM
Box score shows two Valpo technical fouls. Can someone who watched the game explain?
I only see one currently at
http://www.valpoathletics.com/mbasketball/boxscore/2018-19/7182/valpo-vs-unlv-11-28-2018/
(and in the play-by-play there).
Fairly early in the first half, against Golder, after a dunk. The broadcasters (who were a lot fun, rather even-handed, and did a nice job) initially thought it was for hanging on the rim and thought it was a pretty bad call - at that point Paul Oren was livid on twitter. Turned out it was for taunting. My wife, with eyes sharper than mine, did notice his teammates pulling him away from the UNLV players (maybe even before the whistle?).
I saw the one technical when Golder hung on the rim (I hope he said something cause he was trying not to land on the guy he posterized)
Didn't see the other one though--and I watched the entire 40 minutes.
Quote from: valpo4life on November 29, 2018, 10:20:56 AM
Quote from: FieldGoodie05 on November 29, 2018, 09:23:35 AM
Quote from: SanityLost17 on November 29, 2018, 07:17:29 AM
Fazekas needs to settle into the role of spot up shooter. Right now he is trying to do too much, but he doesn't need to be the guy who creates his own shot. With Smits dominating the low post teams are going to have to start doubling and that should leave Fazekas with some wide open spot up shots of which he will hit a very high percentage.
Do we think that Fazekas would benefit from coming off the bench and having a few more sets run to get him his "spot up" shot attempts? Right now it feels like he is just "willing" his shots rather than letting them come to him in the flow of the offense.
There is that old adage, shooters shoot themselves out of funks . . . maybe this is what we are seeing? The issue is that we have such a small body of work to compare with him that we are more emotional than fact driven in our observations (me included).
I was very happy with his rebounding in this game, 9 Reb is awesome!
*checks stats*
*sees Fazekas is shooting 40.5% from 3 (15-37), Evelyn shooting 25% from 3 (10-40)*
*questions why we are questioning Fazekas's shooting and not Evelyn's*
I prefer to only look at the 4 games we have played of any significance...By that measure neither are shooting particularly well.
Against WKU / WVU / UNLV / WF:
Evelyn = 8-28 (28.5%)
Fazekas = 7-22 (31.8%)
Quote from: valpo4life on November 29, 2018, 10:20:56 AM
Quote from: FieldGoodie05 on November 29, 2018, 09:23:35 AM
Quote from: SanityLost17 on November 29, 2018, 07:17:29 AM
Fazekas needs to settle into the role of spot up shooter. Right now he is trying to do too much, but he doesn't need to be the guy who creates his own shot. With Smits dominating the low post teams are going to have to start doubling and that should leave Fazekas with some wide open spot up shots of which he will hit a very high percentage.
Do we think that Fazekas would benefit from coming off the bench and having a few more sets run to get him his "spot up" shot attempts? Right now it feels like he is just "willing" his shots rather than letting them come to him in the flow of the offense.
There is that old adage, shooters shoot themselves out of funks . . . maybe this is what we are seeing? The issue is that we have such a small body of work to compare with him that we are more emotional than fact driven in our observations (me included).
I was very happy with his rebounding in this game, 9 Reb is awesome!
*checks stats*
*sees Fazekas is shooting 40.5% from 3 (15-37), Evelyn shooting 25% from 3 (10-40)*
*questions why we are questioning Fazekas's shooting and not Evelyn's*
Your answer is in my original post emboldened above regarding "not Evelyn". It's certainly not fair, but its reality.
Quote from: oklahomamick on November 29, 2018, 10:07:08 AM
Agreed with drawing up plays where Fazakes is a spot shooter. The realization and maybe why the Drake fan said we have a "coaching problem" is I have not seen many set plays. Bryce designed several plays that gave shooters wide open looks. Or he used the shooter as a decoy.
Best example is a HL championship game we were losing to Green Bay on our home court. Drew designed a play where 2 defenders went after Alec on the 3 point line. It ended up an easy pass and dunk by Fashil as the buzzer sounded. I'm sure many remember it.
I just don't see the movement off the ball or designed plays. Nonetheless, great win last night.
This post made me recall something that is NOT a big deal, but curious. On fast breaks Golder seems to play the more selfish non-passing option in nearly 100% of the scenarios. Anyone else notice several times that he could have passed off for the easy lay-in or dunk by a teammate this year?
Again, not a big deal just an observation.
Quote from: FieldGoodie05 on November 29, 2018, 01:09:56 PM
Quote from: oklahomamick on November 29, 2018, 10:07:08 AM
Agreed with drawing up plays where Fazakes is a spot shooter. The realization and maybe why the Drake fan said we have a "coaching problem" is I have not seen many set plays. Bryce designed several plays that gave shooters wide open looks. Or he used the shooter as a decoy.
Best example is a HL championship game we were losing to Green Bay on our home court. Drew designed a play where 2 defenders went after Alec on the 3 point line. It ended up an easy pass and dunk by Fashil as the buzzer sounded. I'm sure many remember it.
I just don't see the movement off the ball or designed plays. Nonetheless, great win last night.
This post made me recall something that is NOT a big deal, but curious. On fast breaks Golder seems to play the more selfish non-passing option in nearly 100% of the scenarios. Anyone else notice several times that he could have passed off for the easy lay-in or dunk by a teammate this year?
Again, not a big deal just an observation.
When Golder gets the ball on the break he is going to the rack regardless of how many defenders are back or how many of his teammates may be trailing. I assume he feels that even if he can't finish he will get fouled. Or he'll finish and get fouled for a three point play. I wonder if this isn't the way some current players (finishers) are coached, as it seems to me a lot of players do this even where there is a teammate they could pass to for an easy layup. Just my observation. The traditional way to run the fast break seems to me to be less common now.
Good win despite some poor shooting from Fazekas and Evelyn and still giving up way too many offensive rebounds. Certainly wasn't an upset, and should be some easy games ahead leading into Ball State and Texas A&M, which should be the last couple of tests before league play starts.
I know a lot of focus is on Fazekas and his shooting, but overall he's been really efficient on offense, and through 6 D1 games he's basically shooting at the same rates he did his first 2 seasons at Providence. Against the best teams that Valpo's played so far (Tier A & B opponents in kenpom, which doesn't include the Wake Forest game), Fazekas is shooting 35% from 3 and 46% from 2, which again are basically what he's been before.
As others have stated, Evelyn is by far the bigger issue on offense right now, but the sample size is too small to draw any real conclusions from it.
Quote from: IrishDawg on November 29, 2018, 03:25:20 PM
Good win despite some poor shooting from Fazekas and Evelyn and still giving up way too many offensive rebounds. Certainly wasn't an upset, and should be some easy games ahead leading into Ball State and Texas A&M, which should be the last couple of tests before league play starts.
I know a lot of focus is on Fazekas and his shooting, but overall he's been really efficient on offense, and through 6 D1 games he's basically shooting at the same rates he did his first 2 seasons at Providence. Against the best teams that Valpo's played so far (Tier A & B opponents in kenpom, which doesn't include the Wake Forest game), Fazekas is shooting 35% from 3 and 46% from 2, which again are basically what he's been before.
As others have stated, Evelyn is by far the bigger issue on offense right now, but the sample size is too small to draw any real conclusions from it.
I wouldn't be surprised if Evelyn might have put a little too much pressure on himself to be the go to scorer for this year's team and has forced it a little too much early in the season. As this team settles into their roles and we find a flow I would expect his numbers to increase. When that happens we could be a tough team to defend when you consider the variety of pieces this roster has.
Quote from: nkvu on November 29, 2018, 02:05:01 PM
Quote from: FieldGoodie05 on November 29, 2018, 01:09:56 PM
This post made me recall something that is NOT a big deal, but curious. On fast breaks Golder seems to play the more selfish non-passing option in nearly 100% of the scenarios. Anyone else notice several times that he could have passed off for the easy lay-in or dunk by a teammate this year?
Again, not a big deal just an observation.
When Golder gets the ball on the break he is going to the rack regardless of how many defenders are back or how many of his teammates may be trailing. I assume he feels that even if he can't finish he will get fouled. Or he'll finish and get fouled for a three point play. I wonder if this isn't the way some current players (finishers) are coached, as it seems to me a lot of players do this even where there is a teammate they could pass to for an easy layup. Just my observation. The traditional way to run the fast break seems to me to be less common now.
There's no question that Golder loves to be on the highlight reel (in and of itself) but there may also be a kind of conservatism to taking it to the rack, especially early in the season while the team is still getting to know each other. Sometimes, the mere fact that you avoid a pass makes it a sound play. I've lived through some early Valpo teams who could turn even a 3-on-1 break into a disaster with one poorly-timed pass that completely took the potential to get a foul off the table and resulted in a missed bunny. If you've got a player who's fast enough, can finish, and knows how to draw a foul, why not let him run?
Good win for Valpo. The transformation of Smits is simply amazing.
Quote from: JD24 on November 29, 2018, 09:24:38 PM
The transformation of Smits is simply amazing.
Yes, if you omit the game against Western Kentucky in which Smits only played 8 minutes, his averages for the other six games are 16.3 pts. and 8 rebs. Plus, he seems to be improving, since his stats for the past 4 games show 18.25 pts. and 8.5 rebs. per game.
Quote from: valpopal on November 29, 2018, 10:40:04 PM
Quote from: JD24 on November 29, 2018, 09:24:38 PM
The transformation of Smits is simply amazing.
Yes, if you omit the game against Western Kentucky in which Smits only played 8 minutes, his averages for the other six games are 16.3 pts. and 8 rebs. Plus, he seems to be improving, since his stats for the past 4 games show 18.25 pts. and 8.5 rebs. per game.
If I was the bragging type I would make a compilation of all the times I posted that Smits would have a breakout season this year. Over the last 2 years he always had little short Bursts where he just looked unstoppable or he would make a move most 7 footers in the nation would have trouble doing. But they were just occasionally and not consistent but you could always see the potential. Now we are seeing it all come together.
Quote from: SanityLost17 on November 30, 2018, 07:26:19 AM
Quote from: valpopal on November 29, 2018, 10:40:04 PM
Quote from: JD24 on November 29, 2018, 09:24:38 PM
The transformation of Smits is simply amazing.
Yes, if you omit the game against Western Kentucky in which Smits only played 8 minutes, his averages for the other six games are 16.3 pts. and 8 rebs. Plus, he seems to be improving, since his stats for the past 4 games show 18.25 pts. and 8.5 rebs. per game.
If I was the bragging type I would make a compilation of all the times I posted that Smits would have a breakout season this year. Over the last 2 years he always had little short Bursts where he just looked unstoppable or he would make a move most 7 footers in the nation would have trouble doing. But they were just occasionally and not consistent but you could always see the potential. Now we are seeing it all come together.
I'm more ensnared by his seeming improvement defensively in the last 4 or so games. Because you are right, offensively he's had several games last year that excited us all. But he still needs to prove he can stay on the court against the more athletic 6'8" to 6'9" MVC centers!
Quote from: FieldGoodie05 on November 30, 2018, 07:31:11 AM
Quote from: SanityLost17 on November 30, 2018, 07:26:19 AM
Quote from: valpopal on November 29, 2018, 10:40:04 PM
Quote from: JD24 on November 29, 2018, 09:24:38 PM
The transformation of Smits is simply amazing.
Yes, if you omit the game against Western Kentucky in which Smits only played 8 minutes, his averages for the other six games are 16.3 pts. and 8 rebs. Plus, he seems to be improving, since his stats for the past 4 games show 18.25 pts. and 8.5 rebs. per game.
If I was the bragging type I would make a compilation of all the times I posted that Smits would have a breakout season this year. Over the last 2 years he always had little short Bursts where he just looked unstoppable or he would make a move most 7 footers in the nation would have trouble doing. But they were just occasionally and not consistent but you could always see the potential. Now we are seeing it all come together.
I'm more ensnared by his seeming improvement defensively in the last 4 or so games. Because you are right, offensively he's had several games last year that excited us all. But he still needs to prove he can stay on the court against the more athletic 6'8" to 6'9" MVC centers!
The question in my mind is whether or not he may become even more aggressive now that he has a back-up in Jay available and also whether or not the McMillan experiment at the 5 will go away.
Smits is playing with a lot of confidence now. Before I thought he played tentatively, afraid to make a mistake sometimes looking like he was second guessing what to do. What I've seen recently is a player confident and unafraid to go at it hard without thinking of failing. He may not be "THE" team leader but he's got the other players responding to his play.
The half court offense seems to be alive now. Not so much standing around waiting for someone else to do something. They need to keep up this new found energy and carry in through the rest of the season, if they do, this will be a very good year.
Quote from: VUBBFan on November 30, 2018, 11:44:02 AMSmits is playing with a lot of confidence now. Before I thought he played tentatively, afraid to make a mistake sometimes looking like he was second guessing what to do. What I've seen recently is a player confident and unafraid to go at it hard without thinking of failing. He may not be "THE" team leader but he's got the other players responding to his play. The half court offense seems to be alive now. Not so much standing around waiting for someone else to do something. They need to keep up this new found energy and carry in through the rest of the season, if they do, this will be a very good year.
I wonder if McMillan getting the start at the 5 at the beginning of the year had anything to do with his increased aggressiveness. Lit a fire under him, let him know he's not guaranteed to be playing...
Quote from: vuny98 on November 30, 2018, 12:13:33 PM
Quote from: VUBBFan on November 30, 2018, 11:44:02 AMSmits is playing with a lot of confidence now. Before I thought he played tentatively, afraid to make a mistake sometimes looking like he was second guessing what to do. What I've seen recently is a player confident and unafraid to go at it hard without thinking of failing. He may not be "THE" team leader but he's got the other players responding to his play. The half court offense seems to be alive now. Not so much standing around waiting for someone else to do something. They need to keep up this new found energy and carry in through the rest of the season, if they do, this will be a very good year.
I wonder if McMillan getting the start at the 5 at the beginning of the year had anything to do with his increased aggressiveness. Lit a fire under him, let him know he's not guaranteed to be playing...
Everybody's missing the obvious: Derrik read the message board and set out to prove us wrong.
Quote from: Valpower on November 30, 2018, 07:39:06 PM
Quote from: vuny98 on November 30, 2018, 12:13:33 PM
Quote from: VUBBFan on November 30, 2018, 11:44:02 AMSmits is playing with a lot of confidence now. Before I thought he played tentatively, afraid to make a mistake sometimes looking like he was second guessing what to do. What I've seen recently is a player confident and unafraid to go at it hard without thinking of failing. He may not be "THE" team leader but he's got the other players responding to his play. The half court offense seems to be alive now. Not so much standing around waiting for someone else to do something. They need to keep up this new found energy and carry in through the rest of the season, if they do, this will be a very good year.
I wonder if McMillan getting the start at the 5 at the beginning of the year had anything to do with his increased aggressiveness. Lit a fire under him, let him know he's not guaranteed to be playing...
Everybody's missing the obvious: Derrik read the message board and set out to prove us wrong.
I sure hope no players read this message board. That can't be healthy. Maybe it was what motivated him if he did. Either way it worked and he's clearly playing with much more aggression and he has really impressed.
Who cares what his motivation is? He's finally playing like the player we all knew he could be and that is wonderful to see. Keep it up Derrik! We need both you and Jay to shine in order to take a step forward and ultimately reach our potential. Go Valpo!
I really enjoyed the commentators for this game. They made a ton of errors when referring to our guys, musing up their names very routinely. But they were fair and very entertaining.
Quote from: M on November 30, 2018, 10:55:25 PM
I really enjoyed the commentators for this game. They made a ton of errors when referring to our guys, musing up their names very routinely. But they were fair and very entertaining.
100% agree. It's very rare to get an opposing broadcast that calls balls and strikes on both sides. They were an entertaining and knowledgable duo. I always enjoy when broadcasts have an entertain old ball coach as the color guy because they offer a little more insight to the game.
I really enjoy our broadcast duo of Todd and Dave. Todd is one of the best in the business and our guy but also calls it like he sees it without the exaggerated spin that many home play-by-play guys do. Random thought but one guy I always thought would be a fantastic national broadcast color commentator is Greg Kampe. He's seen it all, entertaining and will tell you the blunt truth. I can forgive him poking Valpo over the years. Who would make a good future color commentary guy for Valpo? Indiana has a wealth brilliant basketball minds from the area, but you'd probably want a guy with a VU connection. Former player or Coach in the area? Chris Artis is an entertaining guy and knows the game, but I have no clue what his broadcasting chops are like.
https://twitter.com/Givemeliberty30/status/1068859193837404161
Quote from: VU2014 on December 01, 2018, 07:37:37 AM
https://twitter.com/Givemeliberty30/status/1068859193837404161
What do we suppose that means? Did he get less minutes or less shits @ UNLV?
Quote from: FieldGoodie05 on December 01, 2018, 08:46:44 AM
Quote from: VU2014 on December 01, 2018, 07:37:37 AM
https://twitter.com/Givemeliberty30/status/1068859193837404161
What do we suppose that means? Did he get less minutes or less shits @ UNLV?
Whoops, shits = shots 🤪
A couple points on Bakari. He had foot surgery this summer and missed the entire off-season. I don't think he's 100 percent healthy right now. However, I think he's actually moving the basketball much better this season. Last year he had 93 assists and 88 turnovers. Thus far this season he has 28 assists and just 14 turnovers. I think the poor shooting has likely been caused by the lack of play leading up to the season.
Quote from: FieldGoodie05 on December 01, 2018, 08:46:44 AM
Quote from: VU2014 on December 01, 2018, 07:37:37 AM
https://twitter.com/Givemeliberty30/status/1068859193837404161
What do we suppose that means? Did he get less minutes or less shits @ UNLV?
Quick research shows he's been getting 24-32 MPG. UNLV game was a season high (or near) in mpg @ 32.
Pure speculation says he's frustrated with 4-3 record? Either way, he's a rock on both ends of the court. Glad to have his services!
Quote from: FieldGoodie05 on December 01, 2018, 09:23:52 AM
Quote from: FieldGoodie05 on December 01, 2018, 08:46:44 AM
Quote from: VU2014 on December 01, 2018, 07:37:37 AM
[tweet]1068859193837404161[/tweet]
What do we suppose that means? Did he get less minutes or less shits @ UNLV?
Whoops, shits = shots 🤪
I wouldn't read anything into this. Javon had a very good game. He played 32 minutes and only Lavender (35) had more time on the court. Javon's shooting also was good: he shot 50% from the 3-point line (1-2) and was 50% overall (4-8: right on his average for shots taken and made). His scoring of 9 points was slightly below his average only because he didn't get to the free throw line. In addition, he had 2 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals, plus he had only 1 turnover and committed 0 fouls. In addition, the team won in an upset!
I wouldn't read too much into Javon's uncle saying "good talk". Javon is very close to his uncle and he's like a father like figure to him. If anything I think it's a positive thing. I follow him on twitter he's a pretty motivating guy and follows Valpo Basketball closely.
I saw nothing negative in the tweet. Fun to see Javon with him and see how short he seemed at 6'3"
Yeah, no worries on that tweet. He probably just gave him pointers, after watching him play against some good competition.
In regards to assists to turnovers, when was the last season where we ended up with more assists? I have to think that it has been many years...
Cincinnati wins at UNLV, 65-61.
Quote from: vusupporter on December 01, 2018, 10:42:16 PM
Cincinnati wins at UNLV, 65-61.
We may get a crack at Cincinnati next season in the Paradise Jam. There are a lot of good programs in that tourney.
Quote from: VU2014 on December 01, 2018, 10:55:06 PM
Quote from: vusupporter on December 01, 2018, 10:42:16 PM
Cincinnati wins at UNLV, 65-61.
We may get a crack at Cincinnati next season in the Paradise Jam. There are a lot of good programs in that tourney.
I certainly hope so. As a greater Cincinnati resident for the past almost 40 years it has been my hope to get UC or Xavier on a neutral court when we have a team that has a real chance to knock them off. A win over a Cincinnati team would give me bragging rights over a number of my friends. I see that X played Oakland today. I can't see why Valpo couldn't get a paid game with them too. Next year I think we could have a legit chance, though that's probably why X wouldn't play us.
Quote from: VULB#62 on November 29, 2018, 09:49:16 AM
Besides Smits hitting on a double-double (20 pts/12 RBs), another big difference (for me at least) was seeing all the motion on offense. Not a lot of standing around off the ball. Glad that is becoming part of the formula.
Bingo, so true. This team ran their offense so much better.
The most commonly heard phrase heard all night, "C'mon Rebs! These guys are nobodies."
I loved thinking to myself, "Well, those nobodies just outhustled your Rebs."
(https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6a/Thomas_%26_Mack_Center_by_Gage_Skidmore.jpg/1024px-Thomas_%26_Mack_Center_by_Gage_Skidmore.jpg)