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Dot Neuchterlein recognition game.

I understand that Thursday morning,  the sun will rise.

Start of Lent, week 2.

Hope PGMADO  is well enough to make it.

That's the important stuff.

[The second half started with a furious pace with 36 points scored between the teams before the first media timeout.]

MVC TV Network (NBC Sports Chicago)

Playing without the services of leading scorer Isaiah Stafford for family reasons, the Valparaiso University men's basketball team started four freshmen for the first time in 40 years on Saturday afternoon at the Athletics-Recreation Center. The Beacons were even or ahead for the majority of the first half, but the experience of visiting Missouri State proved too much to overcome as the Bears used a 12-0 second-half run to prevail 81-70 despite a combined 39 points from Darius DeAveiro and Jahari Williamson

Da Bears come in on a 3-game losing streak.  @UNI 72-65; Home to IndSt 73-71 and @ Murray St 82-72.  The recap on this last game:
N.J. Benson's free throw with 7:34 left in the game drew visiting Missouri State within three points of Murray State, but the hot-shooting Racers ended the game on a 13-6 run to put the Bears away down the stretch, 82-72, in a Valley battle here Wednesday.

Matthew Lee led Missouri State with 22 points and 7 assists, while Chance Moore scored 21 for the Bears (14-12, 6-9 MVC), while Cesare Edwards contributed 10 points.

The second half started with a furious pace with 36 points scored between the teams before the first media timeout. The Racers made 16 of their first 19 field goal attempts in the second half to push ahead 69-61. But Lee and Benson closed the game to 69-66 after Benson's free throw at the 7:34 mark.

But Ellington and Wood carried the Racers to the finish line as Missouri State made just one of its last eight shots down the stretch to fall by ten. The Racers shot 21-of-28 (.750) in the second half.

The Bears finished 27-of-60 (.450) overall, 7-of-25 (.280) from long range and 11-of-16 (.688) from the foul line with 9 turnovers.

Donovan Clay played just 14 minutes (fewest of all dressed athletes) no points, 2 rebounds and no other stats.   In the Indiana State game, Donovan played 35 minutes, 1 of 10 shooting and 5 rebounds..  and a total of 5 points. 

Their NET is 141, They are 7-4 at home; Valpo's Net is 298. 

so, let's see if Isaiah can help make the difference.  After this one, we only have two more road games to score the OVER on the coveted preseason prognostications, so we may as well win this one and further upset the middle of the Valley applecart.

Suppose nate heise were to not play tonight? Would that alter your guesses?

[Northern Iowa would fall behind on a 9-0 Flames run]

Headlines:
$172 in the Half-Court Carryover pot
Schwieger wins 4th Freshman of the Week Honors.
UNI comes in after losing to UIC in their last game, losing 4 of their last 5 games
Halftime:     amazingtyler.com       
Heise coming in during his 27th year of eligibility... or it just seems like it.
Valpo record vs UNI:   5-31
Valpo record on Valentine's Day:  lost the last three... last win, 2012 74-65 over UIC
It is Ash Wednesday, hoping the Panthers had too many paczkis on Tuesday.  Maybe they will give up the 3 point shooting for Lent.

about their game at UIC...
From the UNI recap:

A second half rally came up short for the UNI men's basketball team on Sunday afternoon as the Panthers dropped a 71-65 road contest to the UIC Flames at Credit Union 1 Arena in Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) play.

The loss by the Panthers' snaps their three-game winning streak against the Flames in their first loss to UIC since 2008. Northern Iowa shot effectively in the first half, but struggled to keep up with UIC's hot shooting hand from beyond the three-point arc.


HOW IT HAPPENED
Jacob Hutson, Nate Heise and Tytan Anderson helped pace UNI's interior offense in the opening period in an entertaining back-and-forth to begin the game. Struggling to defend the three-point shot against the Flames, UIC's Filip Skobalj buried four three-point baskets on four attempts in the first half and pressured the Panthers into seven turnovers in the first 20 minutes of play and struggled to slow CJ Jones down in the paint. Northern Iowa would fall behind on a 9-0 Flames run, but slowly chipped its deficit back down to single-digits in the final minutes. Kyle Pock gave the Panthers a final spark on offense in the final seconds of the half after being fouled on a made three-point shot and converting on a free throw to head to the locker room trailing, 40-32.

UNI scored the first four points of the second half and quickly fought back into the game with an aggressive pursuit of loose rebounds and drawn contact. Pushing the Flames' defense in transition, the Panthers tied the game at 51-51 thanks to a 13-point half by Heise and a defensive effort that slowed down UIC's three-point shooting in the final minutes. Northern Iowa would struggle at the free throw line, however, missing six attempts from the charity stripe and finding difficulty in establishing a three-point shooting game (4-21).

Heise finished the afternoon with a team-high 19 points and 11 rebounds for his fourth double-double performance of the season, while Anderson notched 13 points with eight rebounds. Trey Campbell tallied 11 points with four rebounds in the loss, as Born posted a seven-point game. Landon Wolf, Michael Duax and Pock all finished with four points each.



UNI is 7-7 in the Valley, NET is 129.  Best wins
Home win over NET #70 Richmond, followed by a 22-point blowout win over #141 Stanford in the Bahamas.  Other than the UIC thing, they have done what they were supposed to do.

0    Heise   6-5, 205 Sr  13.8 ppg, 6.2 rpg
13  Born   5-11  170 Jr  13.3 ppg (90% from the line)
32  Anderson 6-6, 205    11.2 ppg 6.3 rpg
4    Campbell 6-4 185  9.2 ppg, shooting 42% from 3
11  Hutson 6-11  250   8.4 ppg started every game, not taken a 3pt shot, Trf from Loyola (IL), 3rd on the team in rebounding, 4.0 rpg

Next player in Minutes per game is Michael Duax 51% from the field... only 58% from the line.

Can the guys auditioning for next year's team put it together over a slumping team? 

omebody who, if this game was occurring on his watch, would lay the wood to a few guys whether whistled or not.

Oh Come on... someone has to add Phil Wille to this list...

[20. Ron Howard 2003-06 247]

Not a lot of outstanding things this year... except #6 performance on the court.

Darius DeAveiro Assists

2021-22  68
2022-23  50
2023-24  130
              ----
              248

From the Record Book:
15. Milo Stovall 1998-02 295
16. Jared Nuness 1997-02 290
17. Tim Hostetler 1974-78 284
18. Greg Tonagel 1998-04 280
19. Daniel Sackey 2018-2021 269
20. Darius DeAveiro 2021-....    248

dropping off...
20. Ron Howard 2003-06 247


Congratulations to Darius for breaking into the top 20... as a JUNIOR!   

$1 for every student in the student section goes into a pot.

One student will be chosen at random to take a half-court shot.  If it goes in, they win the pot.  If it doesn't.  the money rolls over. to the next game on Valentine's day against UNI.

$172 in the pot, carryover to the UNI game on Valentines' Day...

[DeAveiro -120.5 assists (3.88/GM) 130 5.2 OVER]

IT's been a while...   so I thought I'd refresh the stats lines... gotta give props to Pgmado for his selection of the O/U categories.  Some of these are spot-on...

Edwards - 15.5 points and rebounds   201+130   13.24   UNDER
Palm - 5.7 rebounds per game   65 in 20   3.25   UNDER
Barrett - 0.9 3ptrs per game played   3/10   .33   UNDER
Weatherspoon - 41.6% from the floor   46/134   .343   UNDER
Ajiboye - 1.5 Blocks and Steals/game   20+15   1.40   UNDER
DeAveiro -120.5 assists (3.88/GM)   130   5.2   OVER  SEE NOTE BELOW
Williamson - 1.5 assist per turnover   23/22   1.05   UNDER
Schweiger - 11.25 points per game   306   12.2   OVER
Stafford - 16.5 points per game   359 (22gm)   16.32   UNDER
Team Field Goals Attempted 60.5/gm   1519   60.76   OVER
All Newcomer Team for MVC - 0.5   N/A      
All League Team 1st, 2nd, 3rd - 0.5   N/A      
Valley Road Victories - 1.5   1   (Remaining possibilities:  @Missouri State, @Murray State and @Northern Iowa)   
Final Standing in Valley - 10.5   N/A      
Total Wins - 10.5   N/A      

Here are the top ten Assist seasons in the Valpo Record book...

1. John McIlvain 1982-83 197
2. Ali Berdiel 2003-04 185
3. John McIlvain 1983-84 165
4. Bryce Drew 1995-96 164
5. Scott Anselm 1988-89 163
6. Bryce Drew 1994-95 162
7. Keith Carter 2015-16 161
8. Nick Edwards 2022-23 160
9. Bryce Drew 1997-98 155
10. Ali Berdiel 2002-03 146...       

Darius has 130 with 7 games to go, he's averaging 5.2 assists per game, if he keeps that up, he will vault up to #2.  I see that 8,7,6,5,4,3 are all in increments of 1.   Now that's a weird stat.


Anyway... The 2024 Over Under Leaderboard through Belmont2 is

Vu84v2 and historyman have a score 7
vok22, alaskacrusader19, valpoPal all have 6

Vu84v2 missing on Barrett and Schwieger; and missed on DeAveiro, which is now a lock.
historyman missing on Ajiboye and Schwieger; and missed on DeAveiro.

BUT! Could somebody just Lock or Delete this whole thread and start one for Belmont? 

I was going to do it at Half-time... but waited until my National Pizza Day delivery occured.

it's there now...

[Put your coaching hat on. Who Ya Gonna Double Team?]

We are inviting everyone back... Raitis will have a following for sure...

We are Lifetime 9-5 against the bruins, but we are 0-3 when playing them as an MVC opponent.

We all remember the December game... started like a few others...

Belmont started the game red hot from 3-point territory, hitting three 3-pointers over the game's first 90 seconds to jump out to an immediate 9-0 lead on Saturday afternoon at the Curb Event Center in Nashville, Tenn. The Valparaiso University men's basketball team went toe-to-toe the rest of the way in a road Missouri Valley Conference contest, matching the Bruins 68-68 over the game's final 38:30 of a 77-68 setback. Isaiah Stafford (Bolingbrook, Ill. / Crispus Attucks [John A. Logan / Southern Indiana]) poured in a game-high 21 points, while Cooper Schwieger (Overland Park, Kan. / Blue Valley Southwest [Link Year]) tallied up a career-high 18.

The Beacons never went away, but they never got over the hump either. Six was the closest they would get in a game that eventually saw the Bruins prevail by nine.

Belmont is 6-7 in the Valley...tied with Evansville, Murray State and Missouri State.... one game behind SIU and UNI; one game ahead of Illinois State.

Belmont has LOST 6 road games in a row.  They are 8-0 vs. Q4 opponents this season.  They beat Murray State in the Old OVC matchup on Wednesday 69-64.

Here's the Belmont Preview of the game.  OK... Put your coaching hat on.  Who Ya Gonna Double Team?

Belmont University men's basketball returns to game action Saturday at Valparaiso.

The Bruins limited Murray State to 36 percent shooting and forced 12 turnovers in earning a 69-64 victory Feb. 7.

Belmont ranks 42nd nationally in effective field goal percentage and leads the Missouri Valley Conference in steals per game.

Ja'Kobi Gillespie had a career-high 24 points, eight rebounds, five assists and two steals vs. Murray State. The Greeneville, Tennessee native ranks among league leaders in scoring, assists and steals. He tied the Curb Event Center record with seven steals vs. Berry.

Gillespie is the only player in college basketball averaging at least 16 points, four assists and 2.5 steals per game.

Cade Tyson has 18 double figure scoring games this season and ranks second in the MVC in 3-point field goal percentage in league games. Tyson ranks among league leaders in scoring, field goal percentage, free throw percentage and 3-point field goals.

The Monroe, North Carolina native scored a career-high 31 points Dec. 16 and had a career-high three blocked shots vs. UIC. Tyson is on pace to threaten Nick Muszynski's program standard for fewest games played to 1,000 career points.

Malik Dia has recorded 19 consecutive double figure scoring games, including 22 points, five rebounds and five assists vs. [rv/rv] Indiana State. The 6-9 forward scored a career-high 32 points vs. Drake. He posted his second career double-double of 18 points and 10 rebounds vs. Arkansas State.

The Murfreesboro, Tennessee native ranks Top 3 in the MVC in points, field goals and free throw rate. Dia is averaging 17.5 points per game this season.

In fact, Gillespie, Tyson and Dia comprise a trio that places Belmont as the only NCAA Division I program with three players averaging at least 16 points per game.

Jayce Willingham has provided versatility and steady play for the Bruins this season. The graduate student from Jasper, Alabama has 10 double figure scoring games including a double-double of 10 points and 10 rebounds vs. Lafayette. Willingham had 14 points, four rebounds and a season-high four steals vs. UIC. Willingham had a season-high five assists twice this season.

Isaiah Walker had a career-high 13 points vs. Drake and 11 points and five steals vs. Arkansas State. The Wyoming, Ohio native has been a mainstay this season, recording 30-plus minutes in 17 games. Walker had a season-high eight rebounds at Northern Iowa and has multiple assists in 15 games.

Brigham Rogers has made a significant frontcourt contribution as a freshman. The 6-9 forward from Woodstock, Georgia had a season-high nine points vs. Arkansas State. Rogers has provided a physical presence and huge effort plays this season, including a career-high four blocked shots Jan. 23. He is sixth in the MVC in blocked shot rate.

Keishawn Davidson has 67 career double figure scoring games, including a season-high 22 points at Missouri State. The Murfreesboro, Tennessee native has a team-high 93 assists this season and ranks second in the MVC in assist-turnover ratio. He is averaging 10.8 points per game on 37 percent 3-point shooting in conference games.

He ranks 14th in career assists (593) among active players NCAA Division I players.

Kyler Vanderjagt has provided perimeter depth for the Bruins this season. The Grand Rapids, Michigan native has scored in 13 games this season, including 28 points during a three-game stretch in November.

Win Miller has seen increased playing time and has scored in six consecutive game appearances. The Birmingham, Alabama native is shooting 70 percent from 2-point field goal range this season and posted a career-high 17 points Nov. 14. He has made a 3-point field goal in three of his last five games.


For this game, as Brandon wrote it up...Fans are encouraged to wear gold as part of Love Valpo weekend, where supporters and alumni celebrate their love of Valpo. Free pom-poms and Love Valpo posters will be available, plus the first 500 fans will receive a free Valpo shoe charm. Part of the department's All-Sports Reunion Weekend, this game will celebrate the Valpo Athletics Hall of Fame Class of 2024, which features Raitis Grafs '03 (men's basketball), Jon Robisch '64 (men's basketball/baseball), Jordan Rutkowski '12 (softball) and Ozzie Young '96 (football).

Maybe we'll see another Fan Wave... that was pretty cool at the last game.

And, for those not following along on Facebook.  New Student Incentive starts Saturday.   

$1 for every student in the student section goes into a pot.

One student will be chosen at random to take a half-court shot.  If it goes in, they win the pot.  If it doesn't.  the money rolls over. to the next game on Valentine's day against UNI.

Only 3 home games after Saturday...

Sycs are 20.5 favorites.

Any other information necessary?

We owe them one...let's see what's happened in the past few games.

They beat us 78-75
Lost at Drake... 97-48.  Ouch
Lost at UNI... 70-63
Beat Illinois State at home 58-54
Beat UIC at home 77-60

and their next game is at home against Bradley

Against us, Toumi with 13, Bailey with 13, Strawbridge with 11 and Thomas with 10.  50% from the field, 62.5% from 3 (10 of 16) and 14 of 19 from the line.  They had 32 points in the paint, 17 points off turnovers and 8 second chance points.

Valpo led by Stafford with 31, DeAveiro and Schwieger with 12 each, Williamson with 10.   We shot 44% from the field, 11 of 27 from 3, and 8-11 from the line.  We had 26 points in the paint, 22 points off turnovers and 20 second chance points.

We out-rebounded them 32 to 31.  Both teams had 14 turnovers.

In their last game against UIC, Humrichous was limited to 16 minutes scored 15 points on 6-11 from the line and 5 rebounds and 4 assists.   All 9 suited guys had at least 15 minutes of playing time... they went 25-33 from the line!  UIC was called for 23 fouls, The aces had only 10.

It's Beach Party day at the ARC.  Three fans will go home with $300 Southwest Airlines Gift Cards.  I don't know HOW they will be "won"...but you will have to be present to accept them.

We got this.    to quote a great caption.

The odds makers must have read truth219 post... the line has fallen to 19.5

The Saab 2000 got the team to Des Moines on Tuesday evening... so the "Travel Plans" worked well this time.

The 20.5 spread, with a 145.5 o/u sounds about right.   For the year... we are 12-7 Against the Spread... so we're doing better than the odds makers are thinking we will...
We are 9-11 on covering the o/u.


Drake is 11-9 against the spread and 10-10 on covering the spread.

I'm hoping we don't get jazzed by the rambunctious crowd ... It would be great if we can keep this to single-digits.

They are 11-0 at home
They have Tucker Devries, Darnell Brodie

Be Fun to watch the Schwieger vs Overton game-within-the-game. 
In the last matchup,
Overton (6'5") with 10 points, 3 boards (2OR, 1DR),  No assists, No Turnovers, No Blocks, one steal, 25 minutes, 2 fouls
Schwieger with 13 points, 6 boards (3OR, 3DR), two assists, no turnovers, no blocks, no steals, 29 minutes and 4 fouls

Vs. UNI, DeVries went for 29, Brodie went for 11 and 8 boards (foul Trouble only played 23 minutes); Overton went for THREE points and 7 boards in 29 minutes.

They went 11 of 27 from 3pt range and 18-23 from the line (UNI was 14 of 28)

The other thing Drake had?   6,424 people on the Knapp Center... at 5pm on Saturday.  (they had over 4,000 vs. Indiana State on a Wednesday a few weeks ago)

Our hope for this game:  They are looking ahead to Saturday @ Indiana State.  The Syc's may try for another sellout at Hulman (they sold out Hulman yesterday-8,223-thanks to some corporate block-purchase-ticket-giveaway)...

Anyway... they beat us 83-65 back in December at the ARC.  We are a better team than we were back then. They haven't missed a beat.

oh, the forecast is 39 and sunny in Des Moines on Wednesday

so, here's what we're up against this afternoon...

Not sure what to say about their starting line up... only one player has started all 20 games...Donovan.   They basically have a rotation that goes 6-8, 6-8, 6-9...

Here's their take on the win over Drake on Wednesday

SPRINGFIELD – Missouri State got a career-high 36 points from Alston Mason, including 29 after halftime, to help lead the Bears to a thrilling, 83-80, double-overtime win over visiting Drake here Wednesday.

The Bears 11-9 (3-6 MVC) trailed by 16 points late in the first half and matched the third-largest deficit overcome for victory in program history. The Bears needed every second of the second period to close the double-digit gap as Nick Kramer's jumper from the right baseline with 1.0 seconds to go, tied the game, 65-65, to force overtime. Kramer had 5 points and 5 rebounds on the evening, and his clutch follow-up at the end of regulation marked two of 20 second-chance points for MoState on the night.

In overtime, Drake's Conor Enwright scored the first four points to set a blistering pace, but a Mason 3-pointer got the Bears back within one. MoState's defense then racked up three straight stops before Cesare Edwards gave the home club a two-point lead, 71-69, on a traditional three-point play with a minute to go after a slick pass from Mason.

Drake's Darnell Brodie then scored on a layup with 18.6 seconds left in the first overtime to knot things up. Both teams had the ball from there, but MSU's defense locked up Enright on a potential game-winner for Drake (16-4, 7-2 MVC).

In the second overtime, Edwards and Donovan Clay pushed the Bears ahead by four in the first 90 seconds as the home club went to the rack to make it 75-71. Atin Wright drew Drake within one on a pair of free throws before Kevin Overton knocked down his only three of the night for the Bulldogs to put the guests ahead, 76-75.

Edwards responded with one of the biggest shots of the night, a 3-pointer from the left side, that restored order and gave MoState a two-point lead with exactly two minutes to go. Brodie made one-of-two free throws to keep Drake close on its next trip, but Mason's layup at the 1:19 mark gave the Bears a three-point cushion, 80-77.

Down the stretch, Wright made it a one-point game with 66 seconds left, but Edwards scored at the 42-second mark to make it 82-79. The Bulldogs would turn the ball over on their next possession and later Overton's potential game-tying three missed with 28 ticks showing. Damien Mayo Jr. cleaned up the miss and the Bears held on for a thrilling and needed home victory over the Valley co-leaders.

The win marked the 100th win at Missouri State for Bears' head coach Dana Ford who improved to 100-75 in his sixth season in Springfield.

Edwards finished with 12 points and six rebounds to join Mason as the Bears' only double-figure scorers.

Chance Moore accounted for three of MSU's 9 blocked shots on the night, while Mason destroyed the Great Southern Bank Arena record for field goal attempts, making 13-of-28 shots on the night, including 5-of-11 from long range.

Donovan Clay, who eclipsed 800 career rebounds in the victory, tallied 8 points and team-highs 8 rebounds and 4 assists, but he also drew the game's toughest defensive assignment. He held Valley Preseason Player of the Tear Tucker DeVries scoreless in the second half and all of overtime as the standout DU guard went 0-for-4 from the field over the game's final 30 minutes with three turnovers.

DeVries's 18 first-half points pushed him to a double-double on the night as he also gathered in a game-high 10 rebounds. Brodie matched DeVries for team-high honors with 18 points, while Enright and Wright scored 12 apiece with Enright adding a game-high 6 assists.

For the ball game, Missouri State was 33-of-83 (.398), shattering the arena record for field goal attempts. The Bears were also 11-of-28 (.393) from long range and 6-of-12 (.500) at the line with a 53-42 rebounding advantage and just 11 turnovers and 9 blocked shots.

Drake finished 30-of-71 (.423) overall, 8-of-23 (.348) from distance – just two threes after halftime – and 12-of-18 (.667) at the foul line.

In the first half, the Bears traded blows with the Bulldogs for the first 11 minutes, navigating through six ties and six lead changes to a 23-23 deadlock at the 9:01 mark. But the Bulldogs caught fire for the next seven minutes while MSU missed its next 15 shots.

The 16-0 Drake run included seven points from DeVries and resulted in a 39-23 Bulldogs lead with 2:14 to go in the opening period.

MoState was able to shake the woes on back-to-back treys by Moore and Matthew Lee to trim the deficit to 10. But DeVries knocked down a triple from the mid-court logo at the buzzer to push the visitors ahead 42-29 at the intermission.

Tried to correct it, too  Didn't take except for my single post. I think the originator can change the title and icon on the original post.

got it... it worked... thanks

Correction.  Game 21.  Xan the admin update the topic?  Thx

We need a win. 

That's my indepth analysis on a late Friday night.

MoSt coming off an unlikely win at home against Drake.  I hope they celebrated... a lot.

Ol whatshisname coming back to the arc for the last time.

I love a challenge on a foggy rainy dreary night... after a peaceful amtrak train ride back from Carbondale this morning

Lets look at the production from players listed on the MVC rosters as FRESHMAN.  This does not include Redshirt-Freshmen.

name, points per game, rebounds per game

DRAKE (has 4 on the roster that have not played this year:  Bath, Fried, Johnson and Price)
Overton   12.3   3.3   also has 24 assists
Garland  5.4   3.0   also has 49 assists

UIC (one DNP:   Khaled)
Ojukwu   1.3   1.3
Welch    2.0   0.8

UNI  (one DNP:  Rubin)
Pock    4.8   0.9
Taylor   1.4   1.4

MoSt  (one DMP:  Hill)
Bey   4.8   0.9

Murray St  (one DMP:  McCrear)
Rice  0.0   0.4
Boatright  0.0   0.4

Indiana State (one DNP:  Bean)
Daughtry   3.6  2.0
Borst   2.3   1.7
Shetlar   2.0  1.1
Kiudulas  0.3  2.2

Belmont  (three DMP:   Scharnowski, Orme, Rogers)
Miller  2.8  0.7
Robbins   2.0   0.0

Evansville  (one DNP  Tesch)
Bailey  10.0   2.9   18 assists, 40% from 3, 80% from the line
Hughes   7.8   4.5   23 assists
Jackson 2.8   0.8
Myers   1.8   1.0
Candler  1.0   2.5
Day   1.2   1.3
Aigner   1.6   1.2

Bradley
Burch    5.3   2.5
Atlasan   5.2   1.4

SIU
Sharp   1.0   0
Davis   3.8  3.0

Illinois State
Ponce   1.1   0.8
Kinsiger   6.1  2.0
Walker   2.4   2.2   
Blake    0.0   0.0   played a total of 59 seconds for the season

And Now... The Freshmen for YOUR Valparaiso Beacons...(one DNP:  Scroggins)

Cooooooooooper Schwieger    11.6  5.8  also has 21 assists and 20 blocks and 9 steals
Jahari Williamson   8.6   1.7
Sherman Weatherspoon IV   5.1   1.0
Kaspar Sepp   4.7  4.5

=== so the beauty contest in ppg + rpg     and then appending minutes per game:

Schwieger - Valpo  11.6   5.8   =  17.4    28.7 minutes per game for 20 games, started all of them
Overton - Drake  12.3  3.3  = 15.6   29.9 minutes per game for 20 games, started all of them
Bailey - Evansville  10.0   2.9  =  12.9   19.1 minutes per game, for 19 games with ONE start
Hughes - Evansville   7.8   4.5  = 12.3   20.7 minutes per game, for 20 games with 6 starts
Williamson - Valpo  8.6   1.7  = 10.3   18.6 minutes per game for 18 games with 3 starts
Sepp - Valpo   4.7   4.5   = 9.2    21.3 minutes per game for 16 games with 9 starts
Garland - Drake   5.4   3.0   =  8.4    20.2 minutes per game for 20 games with 2 starts
Kinziger - Ill State  6.1   2.0   =  8.1  19.9 minutes per game for 20 games, NO starts

Burch Bradley is 7.8
Atlasan for Bradley is 7.6
Davis for SIU is 6.8
Bey for MoSt is 6.2
Weatherspoon for Valpo is 6.1

I did find it interesting how many Rostered Freshman are being "Scroggined" by the other schools... with Drake having 4 of them!; Bradley and SIU have played everyone who's suiting up... and Mr. Blake from Illinois State has his 59 seconds of fame.  (for comparison, Joe Vick has just over 5 minutes)

So... what's happened to these teams since we hosted them on the 10th.

Salukis got pounded by Drake at home
Salukis became unglued in the second half and lost to Bradley at home
Salukis lost to UNI in Iowa on Saturday on national TV

That Bradley game was something else... SIU had a 21 point lead at the half... and then...

It was a hot start for the Salukis from the opening tip as they were able to jump all over the Braves, knocking down their first six shots from the field to go up 16 points early. Forward AJ Ferguson was a key part of Southern's early success as the Houston native was aggressive driving to the rim with nine points in the first six minutes.

The Salukis finished the first half shooting 59 percent (16-27) from the field and 7-for-14 from behind the arc while holding Bradley to just 33 percent (9-27) shooting. Johnson and Ferguson led Southern with 12 points in the first half. Johnson along with Trent Brown and Troy D'Amico each knocked down a pair of 3-pointers as SIU went into the locker room with a 45-24 lead.

With Bradley on an 11-1 run midway through the second half and within eight points, D'Amico would knock in a 3-pointer from the top of the key to end the Braves run and push the SIU lead 58-47 with 10:18 left to play.

The Braves would continue to chip away at the SIU lead until Connor Hickman put the Braves on top for good with an and-one layup with just under a minute left in the game. BU's Duke Dean was strong down the stretch, scoring eight of Bradley's points over six minutes before eventually tying the game at 67 with a layup. Dean also connected on a pair of 3-pointers during the 13-4 run.

SIU was led by Johnson with 18 points, seven assists, and four rebounds. Ferguson finished with 15 points on 5-of-7 shooting while Clarence Rupert had 10 points and seven rebounds.
=============
and the UNI game on Saturday went like this...

Southern Illinois had a chance to tie it with under five seconds left but Xavier Johnson's 3-point attempt was off, and the Salukis dropped their third-straight game on the road at Northern Iowa, 61-57.

It was a defensive slugfest from the start inside McLeod Center as both teams combined for 23 points at the midway point of the first half with UNI holding a 12-11 advantage.

Trailing 28-24 with two minutes remaining in the first, the Salukis closed the half on a 6-1 run to take a 30-29 lead into the locker room. SIU would get inside scores from Clarence Rupert, AJ Ferguson, and Troy D'Amico during the run continuing to pound the paint where SIU held an 18-12 advantage.

Ferguson and Rupert picked up the Saluki offense with 10 points apiece as SIU leading scorer Xavier Johnson was held scoreless (three attempts) for the first time this season in the first half. Rupert was a menace on the glass with eight rebounds in 15 minutes of action in the first. 

Johnson would get on the scoreboard early in the second half and finish with 17 points including the last eight points for the Salukis.

SIU came out of the locker room in the second half and built a five-point lead at 41-36 following a putback dunk from Scottie Ebube. UNI would put on the defensive pressure though, holding SIU scoreless for the next six minutes to regain the lead and allow the Panther crowd to get back into the game.

Down eight with under a minute, SIU would get back-to-back 3-pointers from Johnson before his potential game-tying three with five seconds would not fall and the Panthers would convert a free throw to close out the win.

Johnson would lead SIU with all 17 of his points coming in the second half -- shooting just 5-for-18 from the field. Ferguson finished with 12 points for SIU while Rupert was the only other Saluki in double-digits with 10 points.

Three UNI players scored in double-figures led by Bowen Born who led the Panthers with 16.
===========

X-avier (for those reading this aloud) Johnson came into the Valpo game #2 in all of D1 basketball in ppg at 24.3...  he didn't make his first basket until there was 5 minutes in the first half, while he did end up with 22 points... including 10-10 from the line.  he was 5-13 from the field; it was Ebube (Eh-Boo-Bay, again, for those reading this aloud) and Ferguson who's drives to the basket really upset our apple cart.

We've done OK at the Banterra Center, and Quatro's Pizza is the real deal, and of course Insomnia Cookies... OK, Fine.  I'm sold.  I'll be in Carbondale.  hopping on the cleverly named Amtrak train... the "Saluki" from Homewood at 9am Wednesday morning; and the Return trip on Thursday morning, leaving C'dale at 7:30am.   $60 round trip. 

Lets keep this ship right side up.

Gee, it wasn't that long ago...  NOW, we have another chance to improve the seeding for Thursday in the Enterprise Center....

Saturday's valley schedule:

Evansville 2-5  @ Drake
Missouri State 2-5 Hosts Illinois State
Illinois State 2-5 at Missouri State
UIC 1-5
Valpo 1-6

(Belmont at Bradley and SIU at Northern Iowa)

With a win, we become tied with UIC, the loser of MoSt /IllSt and presumably Evansville.


Not to pour salt in the open wound, but to recap the debacle in Chicago...

The Beacons didn't score for over seven minutes during which time UIC inched ahead with an 8-0 run. Stafford's bucket at 8:20 proved to be the team's final made field goal of the evening before the final 10 shots were off the mark. 
Valpo stayed in it late by holding UIC to just one made field goal in its final eight attempts including a Flames scoring drought of over two minutes to close the game.

We missed 40 shots on the game:  25 2-pointers and 15 3-pointers... and we missed 5 free throws.

Since they beat us... the Flames have:
Lost at UNI - 67-59
Lost at home to Bradley - 77-59
Lost at home to Murray State - 73-58


From the Valpo crackerjack athletics marketing guru...

Next Up in Valpo Basketball: The Valparaiso University men's basketball team will return home on Saturday to welcome UIC for a 3 p.m. tip at the Athletics-Recreation Center. The world-famous Pacers Power Pack will bring their high-energy halftime dunk show to the ARC. Before the game, all children 12 and under are invited to join a pregame basketball clinic hosted by the Valpo team and staff from 1-2 p.m. The clinic is free with a game ticket and all attendees receive a Valpo drawstring bag. In addition, free mini-basketballs will be given away to the first 500 fans and postgame autographs will be available.

The epitome of a youthful team:

The team's 78-75 loss at Evansville on Jan. 17 marked the fourth time this season that the Beacons have dropped a game decided by four points or fewer.     Dating back to last season, the Beacons have dropped nine straight games decided by four points or fewer with their most recent win by four points or fewer coming on Nov. 27, 2022 vs. James Madison.



We got this.   Do you like Red Kool-Aid?

[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1reFLS0simA]

Here's the url for the video

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1reFLS0simA

Go to about the 1:45 mark ...

Notice they got all of the pronunciations right !

ANOTHER Winnable game... Blah Blah Blah...

They have more wins than we do overall... but we are tied in the Valley

BUT, they have lost 5 straight...
@Cincinnati 76-58
Indiana State 87-73 at Hulman Center
Murray State 81-59 at Ford Center
Bradley 86-50 at Civic Center
Missouri State 74-64 at Ford Center

In their last game, they only had 14 points in the paint, 7 bench points and 8 fast break points.

They were 9 of 35 from 2-point range, 12 of 27 from 3pt range.  Rag's 5 starters all had over 30 minutes of playing time.

For the bad news, they have Joshua Hughes with 22 points, Antonio Thomas with 15 points... and Kenny Strawbridge and Yacine Toumi both with double-digit rebounds... both ended the game with 4 fouls.

Their statistical leading scorer, Ben Humrichous, 6'9 senior (16 ppg), has not played in their last 5 games.

They are averaging 4,768 at the Ford Center.

We are 25-72 against the Aces all time... despite that we have won the last 5 matches...

Several Bretscher's had Valpo swim records from the 70s, Connie's sons or nephews I believe. I also worked for her grandson or great nephew (he swam at Ohio State)  as a coach at a a small college in Vermont from 2014-2017, he mentioned their Valpo legacy several times!

...

Connie was married to Arnie Felton for about 40 years.  He was the valpo university dentist back in the day.

Rev Paul bretscher was married to Juanita for about 40 years.

Pail was the pastor at Immanuel Lutheran church and taught some theology courses.   

It was their kids who set the pool records.  Another son is a radio host in Columbus Ohio,  and is the PA guy for the buckeyes using a stage name.

Paul and Juanita had 10 kids.  They all went to valpo. 

Connie was a teacher at Immanuel fir years, and gave piano lessons...including to my two kids, 30 years ago.

Paul and Connie married about 20 years ago.