Every Five Years
2015: Last time Valpo went to the NCAA Tournament (out of the Horizon League). They came darn close to beating #4 Maryland. Keith Carter is still waiting for the ref that stood 5 feet away to upchuck the whistle he swallowed and call the obvious foul. Head coach Bryce Drew stewed in the locker room after the game, wondering aloud if there was any way to appeal the no call (when he settled down, I'm sure he realized how silly that was).
2020: Matt Lottich's crew became the first team in the history of Arch Madness to make it from Thursday's play-in round to Sunday's title game (and Valpo led that game midway through the 2nd half - 10 minutes away from an auto-bid that wouldn't turn out to be worth anything). They just barely beat winless Evansville Thursday night, then knocked off #2 Loyola in overtime, and beat #6 Missouri State in the semifinal.
2025: Roger Powell, Jr.'s crew became the first 11 seed to make it to the semifinals in the 3 year history of the 12 team bracket (and the 3rd team to make it from Thursday to Saturday - the last team not named Valpo to do this was Bradley in 1998). This time they smashed #6 UIC, then knocked off #3 Northern Iowa (it was a blowout until the Panthers made a huge run in the 2nd half), and came darn close to finally exacting revenge on #2 Bradley in the semifinal, losing by 5.
Every 5 years, Valpo reminds the world that theyare still capable of greatness. The seasons in between tend to be disappointments (2016 was arguably a really good year with a run to the NIT title game, and both 2016 and 2017 saw regular season titles in the Horizon League, but still below expectations).
The general mood around the Horizon League is a feeling of betrayal or just disappointment in Valpo's decision to join the MVC. The bridge feels burned.
The general mood in some parts of the MVC is buyer's remorse, feeling like the Valpo they got was not the one they were promised. For the few UNI fans who regularly fantasize about kicking Valpo out of the conference, I can only roll my eyes and think, "Yeah, that's never gonna happen." If Valpo can kick up a dust storm every 5 years, perhaps these folks will find some serenity.
In the meantime, like I always say, there's more to my March Madness than Valpo basketball. Good thing, because as I work on this, 8 of Valpo's players are in the transfer portal, and Cooper Schweiger, Valpo's all-conference player has committed to Wake Forest.
Arch Madness
Wednesday evening, 6 Valpo fans including yours truly gathered for a fine dinner at the Broadway Oyster Bar in downtown St. Louis just a few blocks south of Busch Stadium:
 |
| Lower left to lower right: Terry, Ken, Mark, Mel, Steve, Me |
For the first time in my life, I had Garlic Parmesan Fries, and let me tell you. They were to die for!
Thursday
Game 1 (Noon) - Sycamores (9) vs. Salukis (8)
These two teams only played once this season, and it was just 4
days prior to this matchup, at the Hulman Center in Terre Haute. The
Sycamores won by a lot and jumped out to nearly a 20 point lead in the
first half of that game. As for Valpo, they split with both, but in different ways. The Beacons were poised for victory over the Salukis at home, but let it slip through their fingers in the closing a couple of minutes. In Carbondale, later in the season, SIU built a huge lead in the 2nd half only to see Valpo storm back the way they did against Western Michigan back in December. Meanwhile, Valpo had to hang on for dear life early in the season to be Indiana State in overtime at home and got blasted like they usually do later at the Hulman Center. Interestingly enough, when Valpo made their run at Arch Madness in 2020, they missed having to play the Sycamores because the latter lost to Missouri State in the quarterfinals.
From the looks of this game, I'd say Nagy and company learned a valuable lesson from that game. During a media timeout in the first half, Scott Nagy told Adam Emmenecker that the mistake they made in the previous game was spreading out their defense too much. "I'd rather they shoot 3s than continually drive the paint on us," said Nagy. At half time, Nagy said, "It's a good thing we are scoring a lot, because we're not guarding anyone." So, apparently, that lesson learned was not as effective as he hoped it would be.
The half time score was SIU 47 ISU 43. Lots of offense, lots of poor FT shooting, and a few spectacularly failed dunks for good measure. Obviously not a lot of defense.
One of the timeout fan contests is called "60 for 6" or something like that. The emcee asks a fan 6 questions, some are factual, some are just an opportunity for you to specify a preference. During the first half, one of the questions posed to a Sycamores fan was "Name any beer", and in the land of Busch,
this Sycamores fan had the stones to yell out "Coors Light!" Much
respect, sir.
The Salukis came out on fire in the 2nd half. Every time Ali Dibba
drove for a successful but contested layup, a Salukis fan several rows behind me would yell out loud and clear, "Ali
Dibba!"
They built up a 12 point lead, but a few minutes later, Indiana State
stormed back to make it a nail biter. The lead changed hands several
times down the stretch, with no lead more than a couple of points. The
Sycamores took a 1 point lead on a goaltending call with about 14 seconds to
go, but the Salukis came down and scored on a rebound off a missed shot with
4.1 seconds left. ISU decided not to run Pacer, so of course their shot
failed miserably.
This was a much more competitive game than last year's 8-9 game.
Final: SIU 86 ISU 85
Game 2 (Afternoon): Bears (12) vs. Redbirds (5)
I was curious to see the battle of the big men in this game between Michael Osei-Bonsu for MSU and Chase Walker for Illinois State. Both of those post players gave Valpo absolute fits during the regular season.
The only possible problem is that both of them might need a lot of
rest. They both subbed out before the first media timeout. The separation in seeds coincides with the fact that Illinois State beat Valpo, while the Beacons swept the Bears.
Early on, this game was a rock fight. It took a significant portion of the first half before the Redbirds were able to achieve some separation. In fact, in the early going the Bears led 7-1 before Johnny Kinzinger drained a 3 from the top of the key. At the
under 8 media timeout, they led 18-17. From my seat, it sure looked like the foul-calling rubric was "no autopsy, no foul." This is a phrase very common among NHL commentators. It's pithy and sharp and I like it.
Eventually, the Redbirds pulled away for a 38-23 halftime lead, including an
outstanding fast break layup at the buzzer by ISU's Ty Pence.
Missouri State treaded water in the 2nd half for a few minutes, but Illinois State slowly pulled away further. The Bears didn't seem to lack effort. They just didn't have enough to keep up. With about 4 and a half minutes left, the Redbirds gained a statistically safe lead, and were never threatened the rest of the way.
Chase Walker and Michael Osei-Bonsu did finish in a statistical dead heat with each other, but this is not 1-on-1 we're playing here.
Final: Illinois State 70 Missouri State 54
Game 3 (Evening): Aces (10) vs. Racers (7)
I missed most of the first half due to my own stupidity. Suffice it to say going to and from dinner, I twice missed my MetroLink stop and had to get off and wait for the next train going in the other direction. It didn't cost me extra money because I always buy an all-day pass for the same price as a round-trip ticket, but I still felt foolish. The only consolation, if you want to call it that, was I got to ride in the same MetroLink car that President Bill Clinton rode in 1994.
:
Both teams swept Valpo. The Beacons have yet to best the Racers in Missouri Valley conference play, while it seems like they either sweep the Aces or are swept by them every year. This year, Roger Powell, Jr. became the 2nd Valpo head coach to be ejected at the Ford Center.
This game was not really a blowout, but Murray State stayed in control throughout much of the game, building an insurmountable lead in the 2nd half, though Evansville never really went away. The Aces have a big front line that can
score both inside and oDown the stretch, the Racers got hot from behind the arc and put the game
away.
Final: Murray State 74 Evansville 53
Game 4 (Night): Beacons (11) vs. Flames (6)
Something lit a fire under the Beacons because they dominated most of this
game. UIC didn't make a single 3 in the first half. I feared
they would find it in the second half and erase the 16 point halftime lead
Valpo had. But the Beacons did not falter, even under intense full
court pressure. By the 5:30 mark, Valpo led by 27 - a statistically
safe lead - and it was clear this just wasn't UIC's night. According
to the Valpo radio pbp team, this was by far the best 40 minutes of defense
Valpo has played all season.
Early in the 2nd half, I saw something I have never seen before: off a steal, a UIC player launched a 3 and kicked his leg out to try to induce a foul against the defender. The shot went in, but the ref waved off the 3 and called the offensive foul. I've heard a lot about shooters (most famously J.J. Reddick) who perfected that play, but I never heard of a ref actually calling the offensive foul. Watching it later, when they showed the replay, it was wicked obvious.
During the 2nd half (I was listening to the Valpo radio pbp) UIC was at the end of the shot clock and one of their guards threw up a desperation shot that totally cleared the backboard and Todd Ickow called it a "Potsie shot" referring to an episode of Happy Days involving a basketball game. I didn't remember such a thing, and I had some trouble finding a reference that would explain it, until I googled "Potsie shot" with the quotes around it. Found a recap of the episode "They Call it Potsie Love" (Joanie has a crush on Potsie and dreams of marrying him) which seems to be the episode. I found the full episode online and Richie comes home from the basketball game and tells Joanie he scored 18 points. "That's great. How did Potsie do?" "Well, he shot a free throw over the backboard," Richie said, laughing. "Wow..." Joanie said dreamily. Mystery solved.
Valpo 67 UIC 50
Friday
Game 5 (Noon): Salukis (8) vs. Bulldogs (1)
Valpo always seems to give Drake a hard time, even though they usually finish far below the Bulldogs. In MVC play, Drake finished at least 4 seeds ahead of Valpo every year except 2020 (Valpo was 7th, Drake 8th). Drake is currently 11-4 against Valpo, but every game was tense. Even Drake fans aren't sure how to explain this.
Drake likes to grind it out on offense. SIU had developed a reputation under Brian Mullins for the same kind of offense, but Scott Nagy brought with him from Wright State a more upbeat offensive style. It often takes awhile for Drake to assert their dominance (they forever have trouble with Valpo, even though they almost always win). They did pull away for a lead of 11 at the half. Of course, Damian Mayo suffered a concussion in their win over Indiana State, and Davian Sykes had to sit much of the first half with two fouls. That may have had something to do with it.
The second half saw SIU close the gap to 6, but Drake responded with an run
to push it back to 12. The only SIU big who could thrive in the paint was Jorge Moreno. Everyone else kept getting their pocket picked before
they got a shot off.
Drake band played the first MCU song of the tournament: "Blitzkrieg Bop"
(Spiderman: Homecoming).
Drake 70 SIU 53
Game 6 (Afternoon): Redbirds (5) vs. Bruins (4)
Valpo split with Belmont, but in this case, both home teams won in blowouts. Frankly, the blowout at Valpo was shocking to me. That was Valpo's first MVC win over Belmont.
For the second time in their first three years in The Missouri Valley,
Belmont clocks in at the 4 seed. In their first two seasons in the MVC, they lost in the quarterfinals - 2 years ago in a titanic battle with Indiana State. Last season they were the 5 seed and lost to #4 UNI.
I was curious to see how the Redbirds would handle Tyler Lundblade, who is an absolute 3 point sniper for Belmont (even when they lost by a ton at Valpo, he torched them from behind the arc). Interestingly enough, he hit one 3 early on, and then was quiet for most of the game. It turned out Carter Whitt was the one who went crazy and could not be contained.
I also was curious to see how Belmont would handle Chase Walker in the paint. Mostly, I was expecting a competitive game. What we got instead was a Belmont blowout in the first half. Chase Walker was mostly neutralized, and ISU was extremely ineffective on offense. The halftime score: Belmont 41 Illinois State 18. WOW.
The second half saw the Bruins extend that lead a bit, and it started looking
like last night's final game. But then Chase Walker woke up, the
Redbirds got fired up and cut the lead down to 11 with about 90 seconds to go,
but Belmont put a stop to the run.
Final: Bruins 76 Redbirds 63. Yes indeed the Bruins finally made it to the
semifinals.
Spied on my way out of the Arena: Harry Schroeder having a confab with former
Sycamores head coach Greg Lansing and former Salukis beat writer Todd
Hefermann (either that or former Redbirds beat writer Jim Benson).
Game 7 (Evening): Racers (7) vs. Braves (2)
Bradley started with a 9-0 run, but by the time I made it back from dinner it was
15-14 Braves. The rest of the half was pretty tight. Naturally,
the Bradley fanbase was the prolific presence so far, outside of Drake.
Half: Racers 28 Braves 27
The stalemate continued into the early part of the second half. Then,
the same thing happened as in the first half: the fouls were Bradley 8 Murray
State 3. Within the blink of an eye, the fouls evened up. Bradley
used this to build a decent lead. Murray answered back until the Bradley
lead hovered around 6.
Down the stretch the Racers fought gamely, but just couldn't get there.
Final: Braves 70 Racers 62
Game 8 (Night): Beacons (11) vs. Panthers (3)
Valpo won the only regular season game between these teams. It was in
Valpo and Jacob Hutson was far from 100% after an injury in their previous
game.
So, I figured this was going to be a different game. Indeed in the
beginning it sure seemed to be, with UNI leading 11-3. Other than 1 All
Wright 3, Valpo was 0 for from the field. As with last night, Valpo's
tenacious defense kept them within range.
Then they flipped the switch and started raining 3s, and kept up their defense
(caveat: there's no stopping Tytan Anderson. You better believe he got
his).
Halftime: Valpo 45 UNI 32
Valpo won the first five minutes to lead 56-37. Then UNI flipped the
switch and went on a 20-0 run before Valpo finally answered.
In the midst of all this, Pete Thamel reported that Steve Prohm stepped down
as coach of Murray State.
That's one.
Meanwhile, the final 5 minutes were intense. I and my companions had
moved diagonally across the arena to be seated behind the Valpo bench.
After the second of two flagrant 1s were called against Valpo, Coach Powell,
in a fit of frustration gestured to Valpo fan section behind him to get up and
get loud. We did. And his guys gathered their mojo and weathered
the storm with some stellar defense and just enough offense to win the final 5
minutes 8-6. The final 8 seconds are still kind of a dream: after Tytan
Anderson missed his bonus free throw and Valpo missed a dagger 3, UNI fed
Tytan on the wing and a titanic confrontation ensued between him and Cooper
Schwieger. Somehow, the latter managed to get the better of him without
fouling, sending his layup attempt into the Panther pep band section like it
was an undercooked stake (h/t Neal Ruhl). With 2.9 left, both layup
attempts bounced harmless off the backboard and the Valpo players and us fans
were going wild (and hoarse, in my case) and Trey Campbell flat on his
back in despair.
Final: Valpo 64 UNI 63
As we walked the concourse to the car, someone behind me started a "VU!" chant
and I joined in. I passed some guy in a Bradley blazer smiling, taking
it all in, and I pointed at him and said, "We're coming for you!" He
smiled and nodded as if to say, "Bring it on."
Around halftime one of the hosts of the March To The Arch podcast tweeted:
My son - “Is Valpo like good now?”
— Baker (@MarchArchBaker) March 8, 2025
After the stunning upset, he followed up with:
Maybe? https://t.co/ED2XNuIpit
— Baker (@MarchArchBaker) March 8, 2025
Needless to say, I could hardly sleep that night. Or, as the
author of The Victory Bell put it:
We Sleep In May. https://t.co/qxeNd41nlF
— Paul Oren (@TVBOren) March 8, 2025
Well, I only got one rendition of The Avengers theme song, but there's always Hoops In The Heartland...
Saturday
Game 9 (Afternoon): Bruins (4) vs. Bulldogs (1)
Belmont means business. Jonathan Pierre and Tyler Lundblade hit 2 3s between them. Of course, Bennet Stirtz was unstoppable, but the Bruins led 30-21 at the half.
Drake started the second half with an 8-0 run before Sam Orme ended it with contested put back off a rebound. Drake eventually tied it up on a Stirtz (who else?) 3.
Drake started to assert some dominance, but the thing about them is they do everything deliberately and they commit their share of turnovers, so it gives the other team plenty of opportunities to catch up, which Belmont did with a Tyler Lundblade 3 on a curl around a screen to tie it up at 46 all with about 4 minutes to go.
The next stretch saw a little bit of everything. Belmont's coach got teed up (maybe because he was sick of the favoritism Drake was getting?), but the T didn't hurt them further because both shooters split free throws (Stirtz was going to the line for 2 shots anyway). Bennet Stirtz canned a shot that was ruled out because of a shot clock violation. Belmont tied it up on the next play, with 2 minutes to go.
Drake went up by 2, Pierre missed a 3 from the wing, Drake scored again, Lundblade missed from the corner. Then Belmont got a steal and proceeded to run the helter skelter play which ended in a turnover. That was pretty much it.
Final: Drake 57 Belmont 50
Game 10 (Evening): Beacons (11) vs. Braves (2)
Possibly Valpo's best game all season against Bradley. Certainly better than the game at the ARC. Similar in character, but much closer, and Duke Deen did not quite take over.
Similar to the game against UNI, Valpo suffered - on balance - an unkind whistle. They did get a kind whistle once or twice, and Cooper Schwieger does have a tendency to get away with traveling most of the time. But Valpo couldn't make these fleeting benefits pay off, while Bradley capitalized over and over again.
It was a titanic struggle where the 11 seed went toe to toe with the 2 seed, all game long. It was only marred by a brutal injury to Darious DeAvairo with the score tied at 65, in an encounter with Darius Hannah which (in the finest Valpo tradition) earned the diminutive Beacons guard a foul to go with an injury that ended his career. The foul call almost earned his father-figure coach an ejection for losing his cool. Fortunately, the veteran officiating crew showed restraint.
Hannah split the free throws, but Valpo had no more left after such a gutting moment (they did generate good shot chances but came up empty every time). Bradley only scored 4 more points, and the game wasn't in the bag until about 15 seconds left.
A horrible ending that doesn't diminish an outstanding story. Multiple Drake and Bradley fans expressed words of admiration and respect for Valpo's performance.
One nice side story for Valpo this weekend (forgetting for a moment that Valpo is unable to send its own pep band to this event): For the 2nd year in a row, Lutheran High School's pep band morphed into a Valpo Beacon's pep band. Last year they were still learning our fight song, etc. This year, they played the role to perfection.
Sunday
Game 11 (Title): Braves (2) vs. Bulldogs (1)
Packed house with two prolific fanbases who love to stand up. Fun.
First half was a close battle. Both teams answered each other's runs. At the end of the half, Drake began a run that would extend in the second half, until the Bulldogs established dominance.
There was one play in the 2nd half that typified the game. Bradley fought for an offensive rebound. I didn't see what happened because the Bradley fans in front of us make a better wall than a window. I did glance up at the video board in time to notice Darius Hannah crashing into the floor seats. After lengthy review we ended up a common foul on Drake (I think Bradley was notyet in the bonus), a flagrant 1 on Drake, and a Technical foul on Bradley. The Bradley player shooting the flagrant foul free throws missed both. The Drake player split the Technical foul free throws, and Drake got the ball in the front court.
Anyway, Drake kept extending their lead gradually until the game was out of reach.
Drake 63 Bradley 48 - so much for dreams of two bids Valley.
ATT: All Wright, Duke Deen, Darius Hannah, Tavion Banks, Bennet Stirtz (MVP).
Horizon League WBB Semifinals
As usual, I met up with my Green Bay friends at our usual mezzanine perch.
 |
| From 2023, though Shari (2nd from left) was not able to join us |
Indiana Farmer's Coliseum is now called Corteva Coliseum. Something else new this year: you can buy an all day parking pass for 15 dollars. In the past you had to pay 10 dollars each time you entered. This is especially important on Tuesday when there is a four hour window between the end of the women's title game and the doors opening for the men's title game, and there's really not enough to do on the fairgrounds in between. There is the fan zone, which has a modest lunch menu, a spacious but somewhat drab lounge with a few big screen TVs hooked up to the ESPN app, a basketball hoop, a bean-bag toss, and a radio booth where a radio show happens occasionally. Mostly there are about 15 to 20 people just milling around. It's no Ballpark Village, that's for sure. So, it was nice on Tuesday to go eat a late lunch at a sports bar, and return without having to pay another 10 dollars.
Monday
Noon: Colonials (4) vs. Phoenix (1)
Don't let the chalk fool you. 3rd place is 14-6, 4th place is 10-10. The top 3 teams won almost 50 percent of the games.
Another thing that was different this year: all the pep bands were perched up in the grandstand 200 level, while the student sections and cheerleaders remained on the floor. It did look like they upgraded the student section bleachers behind each basket, which may or may not be a coincidence.
Surprisingly, when I made it to my seat, RMU was up 17-12 at the end first quarter. The Phoenix flipped the script to lead 33-22 at the half. A lot of missed layups.
Second half started to look like the first quarter, but Green Bay was able to maintain their grip on the game and they won 67-53.
The transition from Kevin Borseth to Kayla Karius (one of his former players) was pretty darn smooth. The Phoenix finished 19-1 in conference, with their only loss coming at Oakland.
Afternoon: Vikings (3) vs. Mastodons (2)
Purdue Fort Wayne finished 18-2, Cleveland State 14-6. PFW's only losses were both to Green Bay.
The Dons meant business. They shot 62% from behind the arc in the first half. The Vikings weren't shabby (46%) but the couldn't keep up. PFW's center had her way in the paint. At one point, PFW led 40-22, but CSU managed to cut to 13 at halftime.
The Vikings made a few mini runs in the second half, but PFW kept them at bay. Their lead never went below 10. The Mastodons were just too much for them. As one Cleveland State fan put it on Twitter:
Unfortunately our opponent morphed into the 2015-2016 golden state warriors. I don’t know how you guard 10/15 from three when all of the 10 were 6-7 feet behind the line. Been a long time since I’ve seen a shooting display like that in any level of basketball. https://t.co/r3hLE7zfc1
— Jon (@pronkville08) March 10, 2025
Horizon League MBB Semifinals
Evening: Grizzlies (6) vs. Colonials (1)
I was able to talk to Neal Ruhl for a bit, but Greg Kampe didn't emerge from the locker room until 3 minutes before tip, so I only had time to say hi to him, wearing this T-shirt (which brought a smile to his face):
The RMU band has REALLY loud drums. Rumor has it there have been noise complaints from the next county (sarcasm alert).
Speaking of bands, every band so far at this event has been up in the stands, like so:
Never seen that before. The cheer squads are on the floor, as usual.
Come to think of it, I wonder if that is why the drums sounded so loud. I noticed it later when I walked past the YSU band. But I didn’t notice it this afternoon.
As for the game itself, it was an absolute nail biter. Not a great game. Not a horrible game. A very competitive game with a bunch of outstanding plays and a bunch of frustrating mistakes. Perhaps by far the biggest mistake of all belongs to Coach Kampe, who inexplicably called timeout just when his player was driving for an uncontested layup with 4 seconds to go in regulation and the score tied. In the post-game radio interview with Oakland radio play by play man Neil Ruhl, Kampe owned the mistake.
The play he drew up was a lob to the basket that Baru Navilarua couldn't haul in. RMU's attempt went awry because of an Oakland deflection, sending us to overtime.
Overtime was a frustrating push-pull of Oakland empty possessions and RMU missed opportunities to put the game away. Every time Oakland came up empty, RMU turned it over, missed FTs, or just empty possessions. Problem is, RMU clung to a 3 point lead, and the Grizzlies could never tie it up.
RMU 79 Oakland 76 in overtime.
Thank you RMU pep band for giving me my favorite pep band song: another rendition of The Avengers theme song.
(Late) Night: Penguins (3) vs. Vikings (2)
The Cleveland State band is the smallest so far. Reminds me of 2008 when the CSU band got stranded on their way to Hinkle Fieldhouse, except for one lone trumpet player.
This game was a slog. Tons of missed FTs and shot misses. A Staveskie 3 made the halftime score YSU 22 CSU 21. A bit on the ugly side. Cleveland State did lead for most of the 2nd half, but the Penguins grabbed the lead in the final minute and won by 2, 56-54.
Tuesday noon WBB: Mastodons (2) vs. Phoenix (1)
These two teams brought their shooting shoes today. And of course the rugrats brought their shouting voices. The stands and the concourse are filthy with these screaming kids.
As of 3:51 both teams were shooting upwards of 50% from the field and PFW ws 64% from behind the arc. Most importantly, the game is basically even and might go right down to the wire.
Halftime score: tied at 40 apiece.
Naturally, we have to have Simon Says Guy for students vs. teachers. It is a sight to behold to watch human beings getting a kick out of humiliating themselves when they get eliminated. Whoever this guy is, he is a national treasure.
Green Bay had most of the leads in this game, but they've been unable to sustain them. I would say Green Bay is having better success in the paint than the Mastodons, but the latter are on fire from behind the arc to make up for it... so far, anyway.
Looking at the team stats I see I'm wrong. Both teams are doing about the same in the paint, but Green Bay is shooting both more and better from the free throw line, which means they are getting to the line more by being more aggressive than the Mastodons.
Green Bay made another run to take a 7 point lead at the end of the 3rd quarter. It looked like PFW got away from their game plan a little.
Tuesday Evening MBB: Penguins (4) vs. Colonials (1)
Red vs. Red - at least in the stands. Hard to tell who anyone is rooting for unless they are cheering some fortuitous event on the court.
The Colonials started out red hot. The Penguins started out ice cold, something that became a serious issue for YSU to address. Fortunately, they heated up a bit, and RMU cooled off.
Halftime score: RMU 34 YSU 29
Gabe Dynes is unfair. On defense he swats away everything that comes his way and effortlessly rebounds over everybody. On offense he is the perfect alley-oop target and can still rebound over everybody.
As it turns out, that was not nearly enough to remove YSU from the NMTC list.
Final score: RMU 89 YSU 78
All Tournament Team: Allen Mukeba, Nico Galette, Josh Omojafo, D.J. Smith, Kam Woods (MVP)
Traveling Wednesday
The drive to Evansville is only 2 and a half hours. Checkout was 11am in Indy, check in time is 3pm in Evansville, so I ended up having a few hours to kill, though I miscalculated a bit, since in local time terms, the drive was actually only 1 and a half hours (Indiana is a deeply weird state). I found a Buffalo Wild Wings (my go to hangout choice since they have wifi). I sat down, plugged in, and noticed that almost every TV in the place was tuned to Notre Dame vs. North Carolina in the ACC Tournament. My server told me there is a lot of Fighting Irish fanbase down here. Interesting.
Hoops In The Heartland
Thursday noon: Braves (9) vs. Beacons (8)
Bradley has some significant size advantage in the paint. If they could hit more of their layups when their bigs get loose, Valpo would be in deep trouble, but actually, if Valpo hit more of their shots, they might be running away with it.
Halftime score: Bradley 25 Valpo 23
Bradley finally gained separation and became the first team to start to run away with it.
In the midst of this dry spell, Paul Oren reported that Cooper Schwieger entered the transfer portal.
Nelson from Bradley (#0) was on fire and got loose 4 3s. She almost single handedly willed the Braves to victory in Peoria, only to have Leah Earnest drain a 3 at the buzzer to give Valpo the win.
Valpo tightened up their defense a little, and Bradley was error prone enough that this game was far from being out of reach.
They got close towards the end, but couldn't seem to get there. There was one frenetic sequence that was both hilarious and frustrating at the same time. Valpo stole the ball, only to lose it again, and almost immediately stole it back. There may have even two more steals in that sequence, I don't remember.
Final: Bradley 64 Valpo 58
Afternoon: Salukis (12) vs. Redbirds (5)
This one started out like the Arch Madness 5-12 game, but turned into a rout much more quickly for the Lady Redbirds.
Halftime: ISU 47 SIU 19. Ouch
I'm bummed out because of the Cooper Schwieger news and because for the 2nd time in 5 days, Valpo lost to Bradley in heartbreaking fashion, and this time there was no magical run to look back on. It was the 1st game of the entire tournament and they should have beaten them.
Meanwhile, the SIU Women's team might just be the most pathetic team of all 24 teams in the Valley, and their student section and their fans are having the time of their lives. Food for thought...
As the third quarter was coming to an end, the calculator in my head told me ISU had a statistically safe lead, so I left my seat and acquired an early supper so I didn't have to pay twice for parking today. They have entrees with fries, but they also have a decent dinner salad and a fruit cup. All expensive of course, but I'm also saving 20 bucks.
Final: ISU 88 SIU 48
Thursday evening: Aces (10) vs. Flames (7)
Walked past Evansville men's coach Dave Ragland talking on his phone. He smiled at my Valpo shirt. Not surprising - last year Ryan Pedon showed up to one of the ISU games to support the Lady Redbirds.
I gotta say, UIC's starting lineup video is really well done. At the end, their coach, after a dramatic pause, says, "We ARE Chicago's College team."
UIC seemed like the stronger, more physical team. Then again, there were a few times when UIC was poised to blow the Aces out of the arena. Each time, Evansville found a spark and kept themselves in range.
Towards the end of the 3rd quarter, Evansville not only held their ground, they gained significant ground, drawing within 4 at the end of the quarter. They went from staving off a blowout to seriously contending for the win.
They faltered in the final minute and lost their chance, but they really pushed UIC to the limit.
Final: UIC 72 Evansville 62
Night: Sycamores (11) vs. Panthers (6)
This game started out tight. By halftime, UNI had taken control of the game. The Sycamores fought back in the 3rd quarter, but they never got close enough to make the Panthers sweat. The only other thing I remember about the game is that UNI pep band didn't give me the Avengers theme song this year.
Final: UNI 87 ISU 73
Friday noon: Braves (9) vs. Racers (1)
Homecoming for the Racers and their fans. Until Murray State joined the Missouri Valley, they (men and women) played their Ohio Valley tournaments right here in the Ford Center. As a matter of fact, in this tournament, it was the Murray State fanbase that took over the place. Bradley had maybe a couple of dozen fans at the most. The game reflected the fan disparity. Murray State led by 20 at halftime and won by 36.
Final: Murray State 86 Bradley 50
Afternoon: Redbirds (5) vs. Bulldogs (4)
This was a classic battle that went right down to the wire. Anna Miller burned the Redbirds several times from the top of the key, and Katie Dinnebier banked a 3 to beat the shot clock. The Redbirds kept climbing back and even took some late leads which they just couldn't hold.
Final: Drake 75 ISU 69
Evening: Flames (7) vs. Bears (2)
Missouri State started out in dominant fashion, and led 22-10 with 90 seconds to go in the first quarter. The main problem for UIC is they seemed to have no way of stopping Lacy Stokes from driving to the hoop and scoring (with a few and-ones thrown in for good measure), until the Flames switched to a full court press. They made a dent in the deficit, but the Bears weathered the storm. UIC still had no answer against the Bears' assault in the paint. There might have been extra motivation for MSU in this game. Their only game during the regular season was a crushing loss at UIC, 69-62.
I was distracted by the typical bingo faux pas the MVC makes every year during their bingo contests (one of the numbers called out was "I-11". There is no such thing. 11 appears in the B column). When I looked up again, the Bears were suddenly up by 20.
Halftime: Missouri State 43 UIC 25
You could call the second half a holding action by the Bears. They kept the lead, but the Flames inched closer each 5 minute window until it started getting scary towards the end.
With 21 seconds left, UIC had the ball in the front court, trailing 75-70, but their shooter got trapped under the backboard and turned it over. That was pretty much it.
UIC was dead and buried twice in this game. They fought valiantly.
We'll save our goodbyes for another day, Bears.
Final: Missouri State 77 UIC 70
Night: Panthers (6) vs. Bruins (3)
These two split with each other, each winning at home. Belmont is of course, the other team that feels right at home here. They too played in the OVC until a few years ago.
Bruins got off to a cold start, staked UNI to an 8-0 lead before responding with a 6-0 run of their own. And the battle was on. I thought it was going to be a game of runs, but UNI got stuck on 18, while Belmont vaulted to 33, which was the halftime score.
UNI decided enough was enough and started the second half on a 16-6 run, at which point Bart Brooks called timeout, after which the Bruins reasserted themselves taking a 51-40 lead into the 4th quarter. Belmont was able to extend and maintain their lead until it was statistically safe at about the 1:15 mark.
Final: Belmont 64 UNI 46
Meanwhile no Avengers Theme song from the UNI band, yesterday or today. Thanks for nothing, Panthers.
Also, I sat with a nice young Belmont fan couple and their tiny well behaved infant. They would probably prefer the tournament be here every year because it's only about a two and a half hour drive from Nashville.
Saturday early afternoon: Bulldogs (4) vs. Racers (1)
These teams split, with each winning on the other's home court.
The Murray State fan section dominates the Drake fan section. Drake and UNI fans no doubt can't wait for next year when the tournament will be in their state (and the following year when it will be next door in Moline).
The first quarter was a statement for the Racers, they hit just about everything they shot and played pretty good defense for a 35-20 lead over the reigning champs. Murray State was in the bonus for at least half the quarter. At one point, coach Pullman was having a very animated discussion with one of the officials.
According to the young Racer fan trying to help his mom win the 6 in 60 contest, the new nickname of Kentucky is MURRAY STATE. I like it.
In the 2nd quarter, Drake got it down to a 10 point deficit, with the ball, but Murray State put their foot down and took a 16 point lead (59-43) into halftime. With 3 minutes to go in the quarter, Murray State was again in the bonus. But shortly thereafter, Drake joined them.
Murray State came down to earth slightly, but Drake fell off considerably from behind the arc. Katelyn Young was unstoppable with 24 points in the first half.
Turnovers: Drake 9 Murray State 2. Points off turnovers: Murray State 14 Drake 3
The Racers' lead extended to 22 (71-49) leading to a Drake timeout. After Murray State increased their lead to 24, they hit a cold stretch, and Drake went on a 7-0 run. That 17 point deficit pretty much stayed constant for the remainder of the 3rd quarter to make it 81-64.
At this point, it was time for Drake to resort to something new: Murray State has no answer for Dinnebier, so just let her cook every time (actually, this started toward the end of the 3rd quarter). Throw in a stretch of poor shooting for Murray State and some turnovers, and you've got Rochelle Turner's worst nightmare. This is of course the best time to have a 17 point lead, because you end up surviving the onslaught to win 96-90 in spite of Katie Dinnebier's 45 points. It did take most of the 4th quarter for Drake to bring the deficit inside double digits.
Late afternoon: Bruins (3) vs. Bears (2)
Our 3rd PoY contender, Lacy Stokes might be as popular on opponents' scouting reports as Katie Dinnebier.
Oh what a joy it is to sit close to a loud mouth Bears fan who has a complaint about every single whistle that goes against his beloved Lady Bears... FOR THE LAST TIME EVER. Something I most definitely won't miss next year, though at least he's not screaming out "I love you, Lady Bears!!!!" over and over again.
This game was a close one for much of the 1st half. 1st quarter finished with the score MSU 24 Belmont 22, and the biggest lead was 5, for a total of about 30 seconds. Belmont did take a 6 point lead midway through the 2nd quarter. But the half ended with MSU leading 42-41 when Lacy Stokes (who was her usual handful in this game) coaxed a foul call in the final seconds and sank both free throws.
In the 3rd quarter, Belmont asserted some measure of control and led for most the quarter, finishing with a 6 point lead. The 4th quarter consisted of MSU fighting back close to tying it up and Belmont holding them off just barely with timely defense until the final minute when they finally pulled away. In one particularly frustrating stretch, the Lady Bears drew 3 fouls over two offensive sets, and promptly missed 6 straight free throws. Belmont was in the midst of a cold spell with a 64-61 lead, and MSU could not seem to pounce on the opportunities. Finally, Belmont ended their cold spell with a layup. This pretty much spelled the end.
Final: Belmont 76 Missouri State 67
Good riddance (to the fans, not the team - the Lady Bears are the only MVC team during Valpo's time in the conference to win games in the NCAA tournament. They made the Sweet 16 twice. The only other team currently in the MVC to win NCAA tournament games during that same period is Belmont, and they made the 2nd round two years in the row while still in the OVC.
Sunday: Bruins (3) vs. Racers (1)
An OVC reunion - and on the court where they both used to compete for that conference's auto-bid (this is still the venue for those tournaments - last week). I like both teams a lot, so I was just hoping for a great game.
It took about 3 minutes before the first points were scored by either team. Some title game jitters, perhaps. Media timeout didn't happen until 3:08. Pace was very frenetic, and the play was fairly clean. Once the ice broke, I think the jitters were gone for both teams.
First quarter: 15-15
These two teams are fiercely competitive against each other. I get the feeling this rivalry has been a hot one for a long time.
Katelyn Young cracked 3000 career points during the second quarter and kept going. Murray State built up an 11 point lead, compelling a Bart Brooks timeout. I don't know that it helped much. The Racers were on fire at this point. Katelyn Young finished the half with 23 points (16th now on the all-time career scoring list, apparently next up is Sheryl Miller), but former Bradley Brave Halli Poock is 5 for 5 behind the arc for 15 points.
Halftime: Murray State 45 Belmont 29
In the 3rd quarter, Belmont managed to close the deficit to 9 and Haven Ford injured her finger and had to have the trainers attend to it. According to Jeremy Rose and Jeff Bidwell (Murray State pbp team), if it is just dislocated, they could pop it back in, tape it up and she could return. She did in fact return... for the 4th quarter. Belmont cut it all the way down to 3, before Murray State answered with a 6-0 run to close the quarter at 57-48.
By midway through the 4th quarter, the lead was back up to 17. Murray State made all the plays, even with Young batting a misguided pass to the corner for a Briley Pena 3 and another Belmont timeout. Young had been double teamed when a guard decided to try to feed it to her anyway. Tapping it to the corner was literally the only thing she could do.
Later on a busted play, Young was way out on the wing, 25 feet away and just matter of factly drained a 3. Next time down another 3 for one of her teammates (Poock I think). This made the score 79-58 with 2 and change to go and Belmont was done.
Final: Murray State 83 Belmont 62
ATT: Stokes, Dinnebier, Cheesman, Poock, Young (MVP)
First Four
By myself. My usual friends are otherwise occupied for various reasons, but I anticipate they will be back next year.
I decided to go the Pine Club anyway. I got there a bit later than usual and had a half hour wait, since I was by myself, dinner didn't take as long as it would have if my friends were eating with me. They seemed busier than normal for the First Four. Squeezed into the last parking spot between 2 large vehicles. After dinner, I was relieved to find no nicks. 
On my way to the Pine Club, Paul Oren reported that Valpo and WBB head coach Mary Evans have "mutually agreed to part ways."
While I was waiting for my table, some guy just walked up to me and asked, "Are you the guy from St. Louis?" Never ceases to amaze me when that happens.
St.Francis PA (16) vs. Alabama State (16)
"Root for the 16!" Steve exhorted when he told me he couldn't make it. Which one? It's sometimes hard to tell with Steve. But it does call to mind the debate over who should be sent to Dayton, the current half and half mix or 8 at large teams. The latter preference comes from the heart: 16s should be respected with immediate placement in the round of 64. My counterpoint is that 2 of the 4 16s will earn an extra unit for their conference.
I think maybe what Steve means is to celebrate that for one game each of the two nights, 2 16 seeds get the national stage all to themselves in a highly competitive game.
And it was a highly entertaining game. Fairly well played... for a game between 16 seeds, anyway. The ending was breathtaking: a hail mary/busted play that nevertheless ended with a layup.
Final: Alabama State 70 St. Francis PA 68
North Carolina (11) vs. San Diego State (11)
Boring. I did get to see Belmont transfer Cade Tyson play for the Tar Heels. For a minute or two, anyway. Got to touch the ball once.
But mostly, this was a depressingly one-sided affair. With 11:07 to go in the second half, UNC led 69-38 and since that was a statistically safe lead, I left.
I did get to move down to a folding chair just behind the second level during halftime, thanks to the kindness of an usher (I told him my seat was up in the 300 level in the middle of a mess of Tar Heel fans).
Final: North Carolina 95 San Diego State 68
On Wednesday, I strolled into the Pine Club at 4pm, and was immediately greeted with "welcome, Mr. Squire! Where would you like to sit?" This could easily go to my head.
By the way the place mat tells the story of this fine restaurant:
,
Thankfully, Ben and Brian were able to score tickets. A reply on Twitter told me that they were also eating at the Pine Club. We mostly missed each other, but I was able to find them for a chat.
Mount St. Mary (16) vs. American (16)
Matt Rogers for American is apparently a big deal. When he went down with an injury early in the first half, mid-major madness tweeted a sad tweet about it. He did come back later in the half and scored in the post, and seemed good as new. A few plays later, a Mount player drove on him and he crumpled to the ground again and this time he had to be helped to the locker room and was done.
The game was close at the time, but after he was out, the Mountaineers took control. They were up at one point by 19, but American did make a run to end up only losing
by 11.
During halftime, Ben, Brian, and I took a group picture. For the first time ever, I was able to post the picture so that it ended up on the video board (##MMSELFIE). That was satisfying. I have tried in the past and it never shows up. Of course, one of the dilemmas is actually getting the post to finish. If you're using the guest WIFI, so is everyone else in the place - and we are talking about thousands of fans. If you're using your own data network, you may not get enough bandwidth there either. It comes and goes, you have to keep trying.
Final: Mount St. Mary 83 American 72
Xavier (11) vs. Texas (11)
I sat in the midst of a whole bunch of Xavier fans, and just behind a pair of Texas fans (one of whom I think put some chew in his mouth before the game - ewwwww) - behind the Texas basket (we were on the 200 level). The Texas band and cheerleaders were on the left side of the basket at the 100 level, along with a bunch of Texas fans, but there were plenty of Xavier fans closer to the floor, mostly on the right side of the basket.
In other words, a recipe for trouble, especially since the Xavier fans behind me were extremely loud and whiny - typical boisterous fans, in other words. There was a guy behind me who yelled out at one point that childish taunt, "I'm blind, I'm deaf, I want to be a ref!" The Texas fan in front of me turned around and gave the guy a dirty look. Fortunately, nothing further happened. I didn't turn around to look, but my guess is the Xavier fan didn't even notice the dirty look. The Xavier fans behind me all booed every time in the 2nd half when a whistle went against them. Every fan base has these fans, but the more prolific the fanbase, the more annoying it becomes.
As for the game, Texas seemed to be in control, and ex-Sycamore Jayson Kent (Texas) seemed to be fairing better than ex-Sycamore Ryan Conwell (Xavier). The latter got into foul trouble in the first half. But midway through the second half, the worm began to turn. Down the stretch, a final push put the Musketeers (shortened to "Muskies" by the exuberant Xavier fans who marched the concourses after the game) on top, and they actually built an insurmountable lead.
Final: Xavier 86 Texas 80
This is again the end of the odyssey for me.
