Horizon League Opener!

We are still about a month away from Conference action dominating the schedule, but the Crusaders get a taste of how they and Butler will be. These teams have a history of playing some thrillers and the fact that Valpo won their first match against Butler as conference foes last time out means the Crusaders have equal footing mentally.

Butler (4-3) has had a rough early season losing their opener to Evansville and struggling against a Gardner-Webb team that was struggling themselves. The game should feature a good inside battle between Andrew Smith and Kevin Van Wijk as both are a key for their teams. On the outside Ronald Nored guarding Erik Buggs will be the other key area for both teams.

Keys to the Game for the Crusaders:
Offense:
They must make their 3's
KVW has to rebound from his disaster of an outing against Ohio St.
Must continue rebounding edge.
They must keep pushing the pace.
Force fouls and get to the line.

Defense:
Force Nored to make some shots
Put Smith on the bench
Speed up the tempo with pressure
No second chance points
Out hustle the hustlers

All in all it's going to be a close contest that is going to come down to free throws and hustle plays. Valpo must knock Butler down and keep them down because this is a team that has experience and will make comebacks if they are not kept down.

Hank and I will both be at the game and the Alumni event beforehand, don't be afraid to stop by and say hello!