Too early order of finish

[siudawgs]

Listened to every one of the MVC coach interviews the Valley posted this week. A few quick thoughts:

- I'm leaning toward UNI as my pick to win the league. Sounds like Hutson is in excellent shape/having a great summer, and I think their mix of returnees/newcomers/coaching is as intriguing as anyone's in a year without a dominant team on paper. In some order, I think UNI, SIU, Bradley and Murray look like they have the inside track at top-4. (I realize most will pick Bradley to win the league, and they might. Murray and SIU will both be ultra athletic, but I think SIU will be better-coached than Murray).

- Outside of those 4, I'd go with Illinois State, Drake, UIC and Valpo as the next group, and I think ISU is probably the best of that bunch. They will shoot it a lot better this year and Kinziger is going to be First Team All-Valley. We'll see what kind of inside play they get ... if that exceeds expectations, they will surprise.

- Like I mentioned before, there is no clear-cut last place team on paper like there often is, but I'd guess it'll come from one of Indiana State, Evansville, Belmont and Missouri State. Graves made it clear this is a laying the foundation-type year and they will give the young guys opportunities, so I'd probably lean that way, but Belmont, Evansville and Mo State all lost a ton, and didn't replace it as well as several of the other Valley teams.

I realize every team lost a lot of players but why is SIU considered the best of the group of people who are starting from scratch?

I can't speak for how others will view SIU relative to the rest of the league this year, but personally I am pretty optimistic based on the combination of high-end Valley athleticism (particularly at the 2/3/4 spots), size (8 of the 13 scholarship players are 6-6 or taller), some proven scoring punch (transfers Dibba, Sykes and Elliott are all established DI scorers) and grit/defensive toughness (Davis and Mayo being two guys who I expect to set the tone as two-way, high-motor guys).

Personally, and others may put less stock in this, I also give SIU intangible points for coaching (Nagy is a winner and has a solid staff in place IMO) and homecourt edge compared to the UICs and Valpos of the world.

10 of SIU's 13 scholarship guys are newcomers so I get they're far from a sure thing to be good, but with as much roster turnover as there is around the league, I feel pretty good about SIU's prospects relative to most.

[ReZyNeZy]

]

I can't speak for how others will view SIU relative to the rest of the league this year, but personally I am pretty optimistic based on the combination of high-end Valley athleticism (particularly at the 2/3/4 spots), size (8 of the 13 scholarship players are 6-6 or taller), some proven scoring punch (transfers Dibba, Sykes and Elliott are all established DI scorers) and grit/defensive toughness (Davis and Mayo being two guys who I expect to set the tone as two-way, high-motor guys).

Personally, and others may put less stock in this, I also give SIU intangible points for coaching (Nagy is a winner and has a solid staff in place IMO) and homecourt edge compared to the UICs and Valpos of the world.

10 of SIU's 13 scholarship guys are newcomers so I get they're far from a sure thing to be good, but with as much roster turnover as there is around the league, I feel pretty good about SIU's prospects relative to most.

What do you mean by homecourt edge in comparison to Valpo? I may be misunderstanding, but if you are referring to his time at Illinois or Edwardsville, wouldn't Powell also have the same homecourt edge? He was on the staff at Valpo while Bryce Drew was the HC and came back.

[siudawgs]

]

I can't speak for how others will view SIU relative to the rest of the league this year, but personally I am pretty optimistic based on the combination of high-end Valley athleticism (particularly at the 2/3/4 spots), size (8 of the 13 scholarship players are 6-6 or taller), some proven scoring punch (transfers Dibba, Sykes and Elliott are all established DI scorers) and grit/defensive toughness (Davis and Mayo being two guys who I expect to set the tone as two-way, high-motor guys).

Personally, and others may put less stock in this, I also give SIU intangible points for coaching (Nagy is a winner and has a solid staff in place IMO) and homecourt edge compared to the UICs and Valpos of the world.

10 of SIU's 13 scholarship guys are newcomers so I get they're far from a sure thing to be good, but with as much roster turnover as there is around the league, I feel pretty good about SIU's prospects relative to most.

What do you mean by homecourt edge in comparison to Valpo? I may be misunderstanding, but if you are referring to his time at Illinois or Edwardsville, wouldn't Powell also have the same homecourt edge? He was on the staff at Valpo while Bryce Drew was the HC and came back.

I mean SIU is likely to have 5,000+ engaged fans for a random Valley game, whereas Valpo's gym tends to be pretty sleepy. Maybe Powell will change that to an extent if they become more competitive.

There's a reason teams like Bradley, SIU, Murray, etc., over time, are tough to beat on their home courts whereas other teams who don't draw as well drop more home games. In fact UIC is lucky to have 50 percent of the crowd cheering for them at some of their games.

[ReZyNeZy]

I would hope he does. In years past the arc was actually one of the most threatening environments in the country. While those days are past I feel as if attendance needs to improve for VU to justify their new basketball arena.

[BEARZ77]

Can't really make a case for Mo State,as with a number of teams, we have a lot of unknowns and moving parts. But I have seen this team about 5 x and it has the pieces to be very competitive, so I'd be somewhat surprised by anything below a top half finish. We do have one of only 3 current coaches who have won this league and I think that means something. We brought in a number of low profile but complementary pieces , 3 top level jucos, and have 4 guys who have been right at double digit scorers previously in D1 . I really like our freshmen , think Baldwin and Valentine are future studs and King is a very versatile 6'4 guy, but none of them will need to start . Baldwin has been nursing a stress fracture surgery so will be bit behind once practice starts again. Likewise likely 6'5 juco starting pg Downing-Rivers had MCL surgery in the summer and is also still rehabing. This team is a bit thin on the blocks , but has good length and athleticism across the board and some depth. They will be physical, defense oriented, but have a couple really solid shooters as well.

[BigMacAttack]

No predictions here. I would expect that teams that retained their head coaches will fare better than teams who changed coaches. Let's see how November and December play out.

[Aces44]

I would hope he does. In years past the arc was actually one of the most threatening environments in the country. While those days are past I feel as if attendance needs to improve for VU to justify their new basketball arena.

Are you saying fans were being robbed outside the ARC?

[ReZyNeZy]

Are you saying fans were being robbed outside the ARC?

I think you know that isn't what I meant, nor do I appreciate you trying to make that kind of a claim. In its prime, the ARC was one of the best environments in the country and would even go over capacity for big ticket games. These aren't just my words, but the words of various CBB veterans who experienced VU in the late 90s and early 00s. I suggest looking up old footage of games such as the Lutheran Miracle or games against Butler to see what the ARC could do in its prime.

[E-Villan]

Are you saying fans were being robbed outside the ARC?

I think you know that isn't what I meant, nor do I appreciate you trying to make that kind of a claim.

You might want to loosen up on those pearls before you give yourself carpal tunnel. I am certain everyone knew it was a joke besides you.

[Aces44]

Are you saying fans were being robbed outside the ARC?

I think you know that isn't what I meant, nor do I appreciate you trying to make that kind of a claim. In its prime, the ARC was one of the best environments in the country and would even go over capacity for big ticket games. These aren't just my words, but the words of various CBB veterans who experienced VU in the late 90s and early 00s. I suggest looking up old footage of games such as the Lutheran Miracle or games against Butler to see what the ARC could do in its prime.

I was joking, but to be fair; I don’t give a rip if you appreciated it or not.
No MVC team has ever been nervous to play in the ARC, not in the 90’s, the early 00’s, or today.