Monday, March 7, 2016

News On The Horizon 3/7/2016

The Morning Dish – Monday, March 7, 2016--Hoopville
Conference Tournament Round-up
...
Quarterfinal action in the Horizon League saw Green Bay beat Milwaukee 70-61 and Wright State beat Detroit 82-72.
...
Tonight’s Menu

Three more NCAA Tournament automatic bids go out tonight to highlight the action.
...
The Horizon League has semifinal action with Green Bay taking on top seed Valparaiso and Wright State taking on Oakland.
LATE NIGHT SNACKS: Three more NCAA tournament tickets punched--CollegeBasketballTalk
CONFERENCE TOURNAMENTS
...
The Horizon League tournament has been all chalk, and Sunday the three and four seeds advanced to the semifinal round. No. 3 Wright State took care of No. 6 Detroit 82-72, and they’ll take on No. 2 Oakland on Monday. In the other semifinal No. 1 Valparaiso will play No. 4 Green Bay, which beat No. 5 Milwaukee 70-61.
Horizon League Tournament: Second Round Recap--Mid-Major Madness
Mid-Major Madness Power 15: St. Mary's, Valparaiso on top--Mid-Major Madness
2. Valparaiso Crusaders (26-5, 5) t-2
...
Also Receiving Votes: BYU, Hofstra, Hawaii, Akron, ETSU, IPFW, South Dakota State, Northern Iowa, UNCW, Oakland, UC Irvine, UNC Asheville, Grand Canyon
Motor City Madness: Stifling defense powers No. 3 Wright State past hometown Titans--Press Row Sports
Mid-Major Rankings for the Week of March 7--The Catch and Shoot
1. Valparaiso (26-5, 16-2 Horizon). Last week: 2
...
21. Oakland (21-10, 13-5 Horizon). Last week: 24

Carlton Brundidge ends Detroit Mercy career on high note--The Detroit Free Press
Detroit falls to Wright State in Horizon League quarterfinals--The Oakland Press

Detroit Earns No. 4 Seed in 2016 #HLWBB Championship--detroittitans.com

Grieving Oakland guard Max Hooper intending to play on Monday--The Detroit Free Press
Windsor: Oakland star Kay Felder’s game grows by leaps and bounds--The Detroit Free Press
Oakland coach: Grieving Hooper flying back for Monday's game--The Detroit News
PREVIEW: No. 2 Golden Grizzlies will ‘Play for Chip’ in Motor City Madness semifinal against Wright State--Press Row Sports
Monday night lights: Oakland men’s basketball stares down semifinals of Horizon League Championship--Oakland Post
FELDER NAMED AS ONE OF FIVE FINALISTS FOR BOB COUSY AWARD--ougrizzlies.com

Illinois Rankings for the Week of March 7--The Catch and Shoot
12. UIC (5-25, 3-15 Horizon). Last week: 12

UIC was a trendy upset pick in the first round of Horizon League Tournament, but the Flames could not repeat their regular season upset of Wright State. The 74-43 loss concluded their season.
Chicago Weekly Awards, March 7--The Catch and Shoot
Freshman of the Week

Dikembe Dixson, UIC

In his Horizon League Tournament debut, Dixson recorded a double-double with 18 points, 11 rebounds and three steals. The young sensation finished the year with averages of 19.8 points and 7.3 boards per game.

Panthers Men’s Basketball falls in Conference Tournament to Green Bay--UWM Post

Bracketology: Bubble teams watching Monmouth hoping it wins MAAC--Eye On College Basketball
VALPARAISO: Valparaiso is also among this year's one-hit wonders. Unlike Wichita State and San Diego State, the Crusaders can't usually count on its league to help them out. Valpo made a trip to the Pacific Northwest this year to play the Oregon schools and put a scare into the Ducks before winning at Oregon State.

The fact that the league isn't good otherwise puts a lot of pressure on the Crusaders because every loss is damaging. They won the league, but lost twice to Wright State. That, along with losses to Ball State and Belmont outside the league means an at-large bid is unlikely.
Mid-major coaches on the rise--Today's U Sports
1. Bryce Drew (Valparaiso)

The Drew family has long been connected with Valpo Basketball. Bryce Drew’s father, Homer, was the head coach before taking over as the school’s athletic director, and his brother Scott served nine years as an assistant coach and one year as the head coach.

But out of the three, it is Bryce who has left the biggest mark on the program. It started when he was a player for Valparaiso, back in 1998 when he hit one of the most famous buzzer-beaters in NCAA Tournament history that propelled the Crusaders past Ole Miss as a No. 13 seed.

In 2005, Drew returned to the Valpo program as an assistant coach. Since taking over as head coach in 2011, he’s compiled a 119-47 record and led the Crusaders to four Horizon League regular-season championships and two conference tournament championships.

He’s also led the Crusaders to two NCAA Tournaments, and this season should be the third. The Crusaders are currently 26-5 and in the driver’s seat in the Horizon League. Even if the Crusaders don’t win the conference tournament, their resume is still likely good enough to earn them an at-large bid, further showing how outstanding of a job Drew is doing at Valparaiso.

Drew is still young (41 years old), which makes you wonder how long Valparaiso will be able to keep him if he consistently continues to have so much success.
Top 25 Rankings for the Week of March 7--The Catch and Shoot
25. Valparaiso (26-5, 16-2 Horizon). Last week: Not Ranked
@NKUNorseWBB claims No. 5 seed in #HLWBB Championship--nkunorse.com

WATCH: Donlon criticizes Horizon League, media following tournament win--The Catch and Shoot
Wright State coach Billy Donlon unloads on media, league--Dayton Daily News

Tom Archdeacon: WSU’s Demmings celebrated on Senior Day--Dayton Daily News

No comments: