On The Horizon

Jim Squire

Mid-Majority Chat Block, Episode 710--The Mid-Majority

[Comment From Derick Derick : ]
With the Horizon being as wide open as it seems to be this year, does it help or hurt the league's chances of getting multiple bids into the NCAA tournament this year?
Friday January 14, 2011 4:17 Derick
4:19

It's not only wide open, but there are some very, very good teams there with a single tragic flaw. This is usually the time of year when we ponder the true "quality" of a league; the national punditz and the Selection Committee want to see dominance, because that's all they have time and attention for. From our perspective, league races like this are absolutely nuts, and are awesome. Give me four or five teams that can all beat each other, and them them fight it out to the single-bid death in March. A lot of people don't see it that way.
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[Comment From gmoore21566 gmoore21566 : ]
Ps Kyle, got to see St Mary's a couple of times last week on the U and Pixelvision. They are sooo much fun to watch. Beautiful ball movement, plus they shoot terrifically too. Apparently they take a ridiculous amount of 3s during a short period of time during practice and have to hit a certain ratio. Very cool.
Friday January 14, 2011 4:50 gmoore21566
4:53

I've said this a lot, but what Saint Mary's does is so different and so beyond what most teams do -- so exact and so precise -- they're really difficult to understand. Folks who love Olympic and European ball know. It's a team that forces you to learn how to watch them. No hyperbole: last year's Gaels team was the best I've seen in seven years of doing this. Better than all the Butlers, the SIUs, Davidson, anybody. If that Sweet 16 game was played anywhere else, they win. I'm convinced of it. Gigantism killed them last year.
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[Comment From Mike M. Mike M. : ]
Any thoughts/predictions for the Horizon League Octagon of Doom series this weekend as all four of the 4-1 teams meet twice on Fri/Sun as the Indiana schools travel to the I-75 corridor schools. (Besides PAIN!)
Friday January 14, 2011 5:16 Mike M.
5:19

Only pain. woohahaha. Eli Holman is out for Detroit tonight serving his crotch-punch suspension, so that improves the chances for the Glue Sticks (Howard and Smith) to go beastmode on Minnerath and Lowe. UDM's guards are fast, but not as patient as Butler's. The Wright-Valpo game is going to be great. Both score in bunches, and my scoring in bunches I mean bunches of #superhoops. Don't be surprised if Wright is in first at the end of the weekend.
Friday January 14, 2011 5:19
5:19

[Comment From Rob Rob : ]
During the Butler-Cleve St. game they showed that halftime game on TV. It looked awkward. The announcers were a bit stumped...called it the elephant game.
Friday January 14, 2011 5:19 Rob
5:20

Probably because their contracts prohibited them from calling it "the giant penis game."

Mid-Season Progress Reports: Grading the Class of 2010, Top 25 Players--Hoopniks

#22. Ray McCallum – Detroit
Height Weight Position High School (State) PTS REB AST BLK STL
6′-1″ 185 PG Detroit Country Day (MI) 15.8 5 4.6 .2 1.7
Grade/Comments
A. After spurning other high-major offers, McCallum decided to play for his father at Detroit. To date, he has been fantastic for the Titans. He’s the leading scorer and assist man from his lead guard spot, and ranks second on the team in rebounding. He boasts a healthy assist to turnover ratio, and most importantly, the Titans are largely winning their games. Heady stuff for a freshman point guard, most definitely.

Checking in on… the Horizon League--Rush The Court
The Other 26: Week 9--Rush The Court

Falling

* Cleveland State (15-3, 4-2)—The Vikings look to be a notch below the upper tier teams of the league. After winning their first 12 games, Cleveland State had a rough weekend this past losing to Butler and Valpo.
* Loyola Chicago (10-8, 1-6)—Similar to Cleveland State, Loyola Chicago looked like they could be a force in the Horizon League, but have lost all their games to the top five teams in the Horizon. They began the year 7-0, and their first loss was only by two points to Butler
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Noteworthy “W’s”

* Butler 79, Cleveland State 56—In what would have been a major statement win for the Vikings, Cleveland State laid an egg against Butler, rather than rising to the challenge. Role player Andrew Smith had the biggest game of his young career for Butler as he scored 22 points on just nine shots, while pulling down 10 rebounds as well. After such a bad loss to Butler, the Vikings then what onto lose their next game against Valparaiso.
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Important Upcoming Games
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* Detroit vs. Butler (Jan. 14), vs. Valparaiso (Jan. 16)—What a huge weekend it is for Detroit basketball. The Titans get the rare chance to show their abilities against Butler with ESPNU covering the game on Friday night; the winner will have at least a share of first place in the Horizon League. Just two days later for Detroit, they entertain Valparaiso, who currently sits at 4-1 in the league. If Detroit can emerge from the weekend unscathed, they have to be the early favorite to win the league.

College Basketball On TV For January 14, 2011--Blogging the Bracket

Valparaiso Crusaders at Wright St. Raiders, ESPN3 (7 p.m. ET)
Since Butler has a national profile, this matchup of 4-1 Horizon League teams has been a bit ignored. The Raiders, in particular, have a lot to play for as they host the Bulldogs on Sunday.
KenPom.com prediction: Raiders 64-60, 62 poss.
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Butler Bulldogs at Detroit Titans, ESPNU (9 p.m. ET)
The Bulldogs hope their trip to Detroit and Dayton goes a bit better than their last excursion, when they were hammered by Milwaukee. For many, this will be the first opportunity to see Titans' guard Ray McCallum, Jr. since early this season.
KenPom.com prediction: Bulldogs 75-69, 68 poss.

Home court bias and the Horizon League--ChicagoNow.com
Friday's Pregame Beat: Previewing your college hoops weekend--Ballin' is a Habit

BEST STORYLINES

Friday

* 7:00 pm: Valpo @ Wright State; 9:00 pm: Butler @ Detroit: All four of these teams are tied atop the Horizon League standings at 4-1.
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Sunday

* 1:00 pm: Valpo @ Detroit; 7:00 pm: Butler @ Wright State: Those Horizon League games from Friday? Butler goes from Detroit to Wright State while Valpo heads the other way.

The NC-Double-Eh Schedule - Jan. 14--HQ Raptors
Big games abound for mid-majors--College Basketball Blog

Tonight

Butler at Detroit, 9:00 p.m. ET, ESPNU: At this point, we have come neither to praise Butler nor to bury them (perhaps they are zombies?). They're just too unpredictable this season. The reason this matchup should be fantastic to watch is the presence of freshman star Ray McCallum, Jr., who is playing point guard at Detroit under the auspices of a coach who just happens to be his father. The kid is an NBA prospect, so this should be well worth your time.

Northwestern at Michigan State highlights big day in Chicago--ChicagoNow.com

Loyola vs. Milwaukee:

* When / where is it: 1 p.m. central at U.S. Cellular Arena in Milwaukee, WI
* What does it mean: This is the Horizon League Game of the Week and also Loyola's last chance to prove it's not going to just fold in conference play. This is a game the Ramblers have to have. That said, Milwaukee is playing some of its best basketball of the season right now and the Panthers appear primed for another blowout.
* Key Players: Ben Averkamp - He scored a career-high 19 points against Green Bay and against Milwaukee he'll be just as important. Anthony Hill - Really anyone can strike at anytime for the Panthers, but Hill is their most erratic player. Against UIC he scored 18 points in 21 minutes. If he has similar production against the Ramblers it'll be game over.
* Ken Pomeroy says: Milwaukee 69-68 (57%)

UIC vs. Green Bay:

* When / where is it: 11 a.m. central at Resch Center in Green Bay, WI
* What does it mean: UIC is still searching for the elusive first conference victory. Any conference win has to be considered a good one and Green Bay is the type of team the Flames might be able to pick off. Still, this is going to be a tough game for UIC. Oh, and if you're wondering about the early start time. It's so all the cheeseheads can get home to watch the Packers.
* Key Players: Rahmon Fletcher - The Phoenix point guard is their leading scoring at 16.5 points per game. He also averages 2.8 assists per game. Paul Carter - He's averaging 14.9 points per game and 8.0 rebounds per game and should find life a little easier against Green Bay than he did against Milwaukee.
* Ken Pomeroy says: Green Bay 72-63 (83%)