Bleacher Report Article on Bryce

[valpo04]

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/970553-valparaiso-crusaders-bryce-drew-brings-new-attitude-to-valpo-basketball

On Saturday afternoon in Indianapolis, in only his eight game at the helm, Bryce Drew accomplished something his father couldn't in nine tries over his legendary tenure as Men's Basketball Coach.  Bryce took the Crusaders into Butler's Hinkle Fieldhouse and walked out with a win.

Saturday's win is indicative of a change of mindset throughout the program, both in terms of X's and O's and mental approach.  Bryce has done a 180 in on both sides of the floor, and game planning seems to be influenced heavily by his experience in the NBA. Gone is Homer's beloved 2-2-1 set, as Bryce has proven more willing to use a man defense, regardless of the situation.

Additionally, the offense has smoothly transitioned from operating on the perimeter (focusing on guards like Brandon Wood) to running inside-out (with the focus moving Valpo's strong interior players, Kevin Van Wijk and Richie Edwards).

In the early stages of his tenure as Men's Basketball Coach, Bryce has instilled a mental toughness in his team that I haven't seen in nearly a decade of following the Crusaders.  Valparaiso fought back from a pair of seven-point deficits in front of a hostile Butler crowd, something I have a hard time believing even the talented 10-11 squad could have done.

[sliman]

Interesting article, but a few things might be a little off the mark.  It's probably not accurate to refer to Homer's "beloved 2-2-1" since he always preferred to play man defense, but would shift to a zone (often a version of the Southern Utah match-up zone) when he thought the situation dictated it.  Although we were more guard oriented in Homer's final seasons as a coach, we were far from perimeter oriented much of his coaching career when we had big men inside; in fact, his teams often were criticized for lack of outside shooting.  I agree, however, that Bryce has this team displaying a level of mental toughness that is encouraging.

[StlVUFan]

In my opinion, Homer played at least as much man-to-man the last couple of years as he did zone.  The writer's knowledge of the program is a little outdated, methinks.

[Crusader03]

In my opinion, Homer played at least as much man-to-man the last couple of years as he did zone.  The writer's knowledge of the program is a little outdated, methinks.

I agree with you...it seemed a little out-dated.

That said, I think there is a notable difference in the mindset of the players.  I think there was more talent last year, but this year's team is better...I attribute that to coaching more than anything.