Crusaders Conquer Vikings

This game was over early as Valpo jumped to an early 17-4 lead and Cleveland State did not manage to get any closer than 12 the rest of the way. Valpo is now in sole possession of the conference lead and they hold the tie breaker over the Vikings by virtue of the season sweep. This also marks the first time that Valpo has ever swept the Vikings in Horizon League play. The biggest story of the night however, is the injury to Kevin Van Wijk in the 1st half that is being reported as a minor knee sprain. He was able to put a little weight on the leg at the end of the game to join a huddle which is a good sign.

If anyone still has doubts that Ryan Broekhoff is the favorite to win Horizon League MVP they need only look at tonight's performance and the way he put the team on his back. Just check this stat line: 24 points, 10 rbs, and 6-9 behind the arc. He had 11 points in the first 5 minutes of the game when Cleveland State only managed 4. Richie Edwards was a nice complement tonight scoring 20, 6 rbs, and shooting 4-7 behind the arc. Valpo did commit 16 TO's to Cleveland State's 10 which would have been a death blow had Valpo's D not been so good.

For the Vikings Jeremy Montgomery scored 15 and had 6 rbs on 5-17 shooting. Most of his points came after the outcome was decided. Cleveland State just looked out of sorts all night. It appeared to be a mix of poor shooting on their part as they missed a lot of easy put ins at the basket and also the Valpo D did a nice job making the Vikings shoot bad shots. They shot 25% from the field to Valpo's 42% which is the stat of the game. This is going to be a team we will see again come league tournament time and to beat them for a 3rd time will be a tall order as this team is much better than they played on this night.

Hrvoje Vucic had better be ready to step up if Van Wijk has to miss anytime. The prognoses post game is that they do not believe he did any damage to his ACL, but they are going to evaluate him. Good thing Richie Edwards is hitting his three's because that will allow us to spread the floor out so the guards can penetrate the lane.

Dinks and Dunks... Rowdy had a nice jam in the closing minutes of the game... Valpo seemed to relax at the end of both halves which allowed CSU to make a run, however Coach Drew seemed to learn from his first half mistake and put the Crusaders back on the attack at the 5 minute mark in the second half... This is CSU's lowest game total since March 2, 2004 when they scored 36 against Detroit.

Next up is Youngstown State on Saturday at 7 pm EST.

A PPS Statistical Preview for Thursday

This is as unbiased as it gets here.  I've used my PPS formula on the major players for both teams in this Thursday's game and also calculated both teams' PPS (Player Productivity Score) for the whole season.  Here are the results.

Valparaiso                              Cleveland State
VanWijk     0.85370                        Grady            0.73134
Broekhoff  0.83146                        Brown           0.59184
Edwards    0.60597                        Kamczyc        0.50212
Harris        0.51000                        Harmon         0.46647
Kenney      0.44134                        Montgomery 0.42922
Bogan        0.30781                        Pogue           0.40123
Boggs        0.23373                        Lee                0.22955
Buggs        0.23214

Valpo Team 0.51562                      Cleveland State Team  0.46458


Here is what I see based on the statistics.  Valpo is the more efficient team as a whole.  VU plays more guys on a regular basis.  However, three of Valpo's starters are scoring out at less then 0.31.  Based on these numbers Valpo should win a close one, however, I wonder what effect the fact of the low scores for Valpo starters will play. 

Obviously the major key to a Valpo Victory will be how they handle the full court pressure from the Vikings.  If Valpo can keep their turnovers at or under 15 hereby limiting the number of extra shot attempts for CSU they should have a real chance of pulling this one off. 

Prediction: I think the fact that Brown is injured and will probably be limited at best is greatly beneficial for Valpo.  If Valpo keeps those turnovers under 15 and gets the averages from KVW and Rowdy they win.  I can't pick against Valpo in the biggest game of the year.  Valpo wins a dousy 76-74.
                      

Game Wrap Up: Bench mob

Valpo only played 8 guys tonight, only got a combined 8 shot attempts for star players KVW and Rowdy, were a minus 6 on the offensive boards and turned it over a whopping 23 times.  All of these things and Valpo still managed to come out victorious.  It was a pretty boring game, but I'll take a boring win over an exciting loss anyday.

The bench guys came in and really carried the team with a combined 30 points.  Richie Edwards seems to have found his grove offensively.  He led four Crusaders in double figuers with 16.  KVW managed 13 and from what I heard puked on the bench (do managers clean that up?).  Matt Kenney scored 11 and Ryan managed to get into double figures with 10 by converting free throws at the end of the game.

Richie has played very well these last two games and four minutes.  He is hitting some three pointers, making good shot decisions, rebounding better, and playing physical defense with some of the biggest fellas in the league.  His improved play could prove huge these last few weeks of the season.  Valpo shot the ball well, when they got shots.  They hit 8-17 from behind the arc and only missed two shots from inside the three point line.  This solid shooting percentage combined with some real good defense on WSU (29.6% from the field) is what allowed Valpo to win this game.

I'm very encouraged by the defensive play the last few games.  I thought Valpo did a nice job against an offensively challenged Milwaukee team, played about as well as you can against Detroit in that second half, and just locked down the Raiders.  Valpo hasn't been known this season for their defense, but they have really improved in that area lately.  Besides the defense and the improved play from Edwards, the fact that the team didn't have to rely on Kevin or Ryan tonight to carry the load was nice to see.  I know Wright State is not a world beater by any means, but to win without Ryan or Kevin meeting their averages is great.  What isn't great was the turnovers, 23 on the night.  You can't this and win very often.  Erik Buggs has stepped on the sideline/baseline three times now in the last two games.  He is better then this and will need to play like he is capable this next weekend.  For Wright State, Julius Mays continued his All HL campaign with 20 points.

Player of the Game: Richie Edwards - 16 points, 6-7 from the field, 2-2 from three point range, 4 rebounds, 2 blocked shots

POTG Runner Up: Matt Kenney - 11 points, 2 big threes, 4 assists

Up Next: Valpo goes on the road for the last and biggest road trip of the conference year.  The first stop is against league co-leader Cleveland State on Thursday night. 

Please be sure to click the Cuts and Shaves link and check out Valpo fan Matthew Carter's barber shop.  If you are in the area stop by for a cut, shave, and some VU hoops talk.

Game Wrap Up: No Hustle Detroit

Hustle, hustle, hustle.  Run back on defense, get those lose balls, dive on the floor....these are the things that won Valpo the game, well these plus another poor coaching performace by Coach McCallum. I think the turning point of the game occurred when Ray McCallum missed a layup then walked back while Rowdy finished on the other end.  I'm not even sure McCallum made it to half court before Ryan scored.

The first half was filled with highlight real dunk after highlight real dunk by Detroit.  The most impressive was this Doug Anderson posterization of KVW.  Valpo found themselves down nine in a high scoring first half 36-45.  The second half started similar with a Ray McCallum alley oop jam.  From there on out, Valpo locked down in their zone defense and proved that team work and hustle will win out over one on one play and walking on defense.  Detroit managed to put 5 guys in double figures McCallum, Simon, and Holman all had 14 while Anderson had 12 and Calliste finished with 10.

Detroit did not change much after the half and made no obvious adjustments during the second half.  The Crusaders were hot from behind the arc draining an impressive 12-22.  Ryan Broekhoff led the way with a career high 26 points (including 6-6 from three), 5 rebounds, and 3 steals.  Will Bogan picked up right where he left off against Detroit hitting his first three attempts from outside.  He is 10-13 against the Titans from outside.  Richie Edwards had a real solid game posting 16 points and played real physical defensively inside against Holman.  KVW chipped in 10 points, converting some big free throws with just under a minute to play after a dumb foul by Holman.

This win, combined with YSU's loss at UIC puts Valpo in a virtual tie a top the league standings in a great position to grab up one of those double byes. 

Player of the game: Ryan Broekhoff - 26 points, 5 rebounds, 3 steals and at least a handful of hustle plays that made the difference in this matchup.  This may be the game that seals his HLPOY status.

POFG Runner Up: Richie Edwards - 16 points, 5 rebounds, and a great decision making and defensive effort on Holman.

Up Next: The Crusader will seek revenge on Wright State on Saturday night at 7pm.  Be there for the game and the HOF inductions!