Tuesday, December 21, 2010

News On The Horizon 12/21/2010

Stardate 43-20101220: Error 302 Object Moved--The Mid-Majority

And then there were the Butler Bulldogs, who destroyed Stanford 83-50 via Columbia Broadcasting with 1.26 points per possession and 31 percent field goal defense. Do you remember when Stanford was in the NCAA Tournament, like, every year? Yeah, we don't either. You might have received a different game that afternoon, like perhaps Illinois against UIC live from Chicago. Instead of being a television showcase for the Illini, it turned into the Robo Kreps show. As 13,117 looked on, the Flames held off IU 57-54 after leading nearly the entire game. (Sidenote: his real name is Robert. So if your name is Robert or Bob, you probably should switch to Robo right now).


ATB--Rush The Court

Tweet of the Night. This one was actually from late last night, but it was well worth it as Butler’s Ronald Nored presented the world with some humorous wordplay upon his arrival in Hawaii. In the future, he may want to check the spelling of the flowery garland presented upon one’s arrival to the islands (“lei”), though, lest he cause significant confusion that has the Butler media relations folks scrambling to explain his TMI faux pas.

Utah Jazz Extra: 5 road trip observations--Deseret News

2. Another Layden on the bench?

Gordon Hayward got his turn on the inactive list Saturday night, which probably disappointed the fan in Milwaukee sporting the "Butler misses Gordon Hayward" sign. Interestingly, the rookie sat between the coaching staff and his teammates during the Jazz's 95-86 win over the Bucks. Instead of a uniform, Hayward sported dark jeans, a button-up shirt with no tie, a navy blue jacket and white Polo sneakers. Combined with his attire, the 20-year-old's boyish looks almost gave the appearance that assistant coach Scott Layden, whom he was seated next to, was participating in a take-your-son-to-work day.

Butler's Howard named Horizon's player of week--The Indy Star
Butler's Howard named Horizon's Player of Week--The Indy Star
Dawgs head for Pearl Harbor--Indy Star Butler Insider
VF Podcast 004: Greg Anthony grabs the mic--Victory Firelight
Big Picture: Success comes inside-out--Victory Firelight
Bulldogs Face Utah At Diamond Head Classic--ButlerSports.com
Matt Howard Named Horizon League Player of the Week--ButlerSports.com

Bulldogs Run Past Coastal Carolina, 71-63--ButlerSports.com
Bulldogs Finish Southern Swing At South Carolina--ButlerSports.com

The Emery Board: Week 6 Well, that was fun--Ballin' is a Habit

Drop-Outs
...
Cleveland State: 12-1
First Loss: at West Virginia 74-63
Cleveland State's loss to West Virginia isn't a deflating one. The Vikings had a bunch of guys in foul trouble, and they couldn't stop Casey Mitchell. But the Vikings are set up to do big things in the Horizon League this year. Norris Cole is a stud and don't be surprised if it's CSU and not Butler representing the Horizon League in the Big Dance.

WVU Downs Cleveland State--MSNsportsNET.com
The Gary Waters Radio Show is coming to Parma--Let's Go Vikes!
Cleveland State still remains a top of the Mid-Major Top 25--Let's Go Vikes!
Video: CSU Viking Report With WVU Highlights--Let's Go Vikes!
Norris Cole Up for Bob Cousy Award--Let's Go Vikes!
Norris Cole Chosen As A Candidate For The 2011 Bob Cousy Award--csuvikings.com

Vikings Conclude Roadtrip at Ohio--csuvikings.com
Hard Work and Dedication Led Garland to 1,000 Points--csuvikings.com

Dixon Tabbed Horizon League Player Of The Week--detroittitans.com

Detroit Titans Mourn Loss of Former Student-Athlete Ben Green--detroittitans.com

Illini playing up, and down, to the competition--MICentralSports.com
This is the sort of Illini loss that makes you old and bitter.--Hail to the Orange
The 1-3-1 against Illinois--ChicagoNow.com
City report: UIC's Moore applies lessons from Big Ten days--The Chicago Tribune
Lax practices set stage for Illini loss--The Chicago Tribune
Men's Basketball Set to Face Oregon State in Corvallis Wednesday Night--uicflames.com
Howard Moore Podcast: Episode #6--uicflames.com

Women's Hoops Returns To The UIC Pavilion Tuesday--uicflames.com

Men's Basketball Travels To Texas-Pan American For Final Non-League Game Of 2010--LoyolaRamblers.com

Men's basketball: Change in plans OK with UWGB's Cerroni--Green Bay Press Gazette
Men's basketball: UWGB's Brown batters the Sioux, blocks school-record eight shots--Green Bay Press Gazette
Game #12: UWGB 72, North Dakota 68 Final--UWGB Basketball
Green Bay Hosts North Dakota Monday After Seven-Day Layoff--uwgbathletics.com
Green Bay Rallies Behind Brown's Record Night--uwgbathletics.com
Brown's Block Party Helps Phoenix Set Two School Records--uwgbathletics.com

Weekly Panthers report--Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Horizon League Power Rankings (Dec. 14 – 20)--PantherU
Were it my choice--PantherU

UWM women rally but fall in the end--Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Post-Game Wrap-Up: Milwaukee @ Toledo--Panther Blog Zone
Milwaukee Storms Back, But Toledo Prevails, 63-59--uwmpanthers.com

Notre Dame women handle Valparaiso--MICentralSports.com

Stardate 44-20101221: The One With Embedded Charts--The Mid-Majority

Game! Of! The! Night!


Valparaiso at Oakland
Athletics & Recreation Center - Rochester Hills, MI
7:30 EST

Not on your regular schedule, but an expected eventuality, is this intriguing little matchup between former Mid-Continent Conference pals. It's the championship game of the Lou Henson Award Tournament. What's the award? Here's a hint: it's like a long, sharp scoreboard. And both teams need wins. It's not as if the homestanding Golden Grizzlies (7-6, 2-0 Badlands) are going to get into the NCAA Tournament on the basis of their credentials, what with a 1-4 record against the RPI's top 50. But that single win was a December shocker against Tennessee, which alerted the nation at-large what we Other 25'ers have known for a while: Oakland's pretty good. Especially on the glass. Led by 6-foot-11 NBA scout magnet Keith Benson (18.3 ppg, 11.1 rpg, 3.4 bpg), the double-G's grab 56.4 percent of available rebounds (44th in Division I) and are 21st nationally in blocks per game at 5.5. And it's not just Benson: senior Will Hudson, at 6-foot-9, is chipping in 13.4 ppg and 6.8 rpg as well.

Valparaiso, a team whom last played Oakland back in 2007, are positioning themselves as potential sneaker-spoilers in a Horizon League that is developing a very solid midsection. There are no RLU's or accomplishments to match those of Cleveland State or Butler, but there was that 25-minute hang with Purdue a couple of weeks ago. And there's an 8-4 (2-0 HL) record against a top 100 schedule. It's a team with balanced scoring -- four average in double figures, led by point guard Brandon Wood (14.7 ppg, 2:1 ATO, 4.5 rpg). If there's anything wrong with the Crusaders, it's that they take too many threes and miss too many (Wood, for instance, is 15-for-53 on the year), and they top out at 6-foot-8, so they're going to get outrebounded a lot, especially by a team like Oakland. If they can somehow hold on to the ball tonight and get a few extra possessions, they might keep it close.

Previous Evening MAC Review: Misdirection--Hustle Belt

Valparaiso 74, Eastern Michigan 67 — The first game of the Lou Henson Award Holiday Tournament went basically like so many EMU affairs this year: Brandon Bowdry had a wonderful game (this time: 24 points, 10 rebounds, 13-of-15 FT) but few else were able to score freely. Darrell Lampley came the closest with 10 points and a couple of threes, but the team had 21 turnovers. Crusaders of any type, be they basketball or holy, are always gonna hop on you when 21 turnovers are present. They coulda had a crack at Oakland had they won this game, but the search for their first Division I victory trudges onward. Eastern Michigan's next game: Today vs. Rochester College (Division III/USCAA) in the Lou Henson consolation game

Around the region--The Post-Tribune
VU will face host Grizzlies in tonight's title game--The NWI Times
Valpo Ready For Two Games at Lou Henson Award Tournament--valpoathletics.com
Crusaders Defeat EMU, Advance to Lou Henson Award Tournament Final--valpoathletics.com

Bigger, stronger--The Post-Tribune
Crusaders deal with growing pains--The Post-Tribune
Marian Catholic grad Turner gaining confidence with experience--The NWI Times
Irish drill Valparaiso in Bruszewski's swan song--The NWI Times
Live from the ARC: No. 17 Notre Dame vs. Valparaiso (WBB)--Region Sports Extra
Valpo Closes Homestand Hosting #17/16 Notre Dame Monday--valpoathletics.com
Nationally-Ranked Notre Dame Downs Valpo Monday--valpoathletics.com

WSU better on the rebounds--Dayton Daily News
WSU proving steady at free-throw line--Wright State University Sports
Raiders Defeat Miami with Early Knock-Out Punch 66-51--RaiderRoundball.com
Eight men's, two women's games to be televised--wsuraiders.com
Five Questions: DJ Wyrick--wsuraiders.com

Lady Raiders tame Bearcats, finish road trip 4-1--The Guardian

YSU women fall in Holiday Classic--Youngstown Vindicator
Stetson's Late Run Carries it to 79-67 Victory over Youngstown State--ysusports.com
Women's Hoops Looks to Rebound vs. Winthrop--ysusports.com

YSU’s Slocum: ‘To me, this is Christmas’--Youngstown Vindicator
Men's Basketball Visits Kent State Prior to Christmas Break--ysusports.com

Detroit sophomore earns Horizon League Player of the Week Award--Horizon League Network

Butler's Howard Wraps Up Horizon League Men's Basketball Player of the Week Accolade--Horizon League Network
Detroit Titans Mourn Loss of Former Student-Athlete Ben Green--Horizon League Network

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