Official 2016-17 MVCfans.com Prediction - 9th Place

[Cdizzle]

Aces are a possibility here but for some reason I find myself picking Loyola.

I voted for Bradley, just because I think the Aces will finish 8th. Just my opinion.

Seems reasonable.

I have no idea what to make of Loyola. They've had so many injuries to key guys. But even when they've been mostly healthy they've been very up and down. And they have Moser for a coach, who also seems to do some good things and some bad things.

[Blers]

Aces are a possibility here but for some reason I find myself picking Loyola.

I voted for Bradley, just because I think the Aces will finish 8th. Just my opinion.

Seems reasonable.

I have no idea what to make of Loyola. They've had so many injuries to key guys. But even when they've been mostly healthy they've been very up and down. And they have Moser for a coach, who also seems to do some good things and some bad things.

Last year was just a mess of Loyola losing heart breakers and having no on court leadership to rally the troops. We lost a buzzer beater to Bradley, and within the last 15 seconds or so against Missouri State and Evansville (after fighting back from 20 down). The team lost a lot of mental toughness in the CBI teams seniors; and Porter openly challenged his seniors to step up over the course of the season. Eventually Jeff White assumed that role somewhat, and they ended the season with a strong showing against WSU. It was a rollercoaster sweeping UNI but losing to Bradley, Drake, and an abysmal loss to Cleveland State in non-con. This year I expect more consistency and hard nosed play. Clayton Custer and Ben Richardson have grown to be vocal leaders on and off the court. They’ll bring back some grit to a team that sorely lacked it at times last year. Doyle not having to carry the PG role will also hopefully take some pressure off; as when Doyle plays relaxed he’s at his best. Plus out new recruits look the part; Chastain and Aundre Jackson especially. I think 5’s a solid spot for LU at this point. But I would understand why many in conference still see them as a Thursday team.


As for the nine spot I have to take Evansville only because they have a lot more hurdles to overcome with all of the losses they’ve suffered. Meanwhile Bradley’s arrow is clearly pointed up.

[Aargh]

Call me crazy but this team can be just as good as last year. This team will be very athletic and expect Tralore to get a lot of minutes in the middle. It's up to Marty how he plays them. If he plays the same motion offense it will not work with this team. This team needs to play uptempo. We will be fine.

OK, I will.

I voted before I saw Simmons was injured. I may have to raise my expectations for Evansville, since he's out.

[Ricardo del Rio]

Well, I can see why those who know little about the Aces, would vote them ninth. I follow them closer than other non Aces fans, and I don't know that much about them either. From what I have heard, and read, I think that the Aces do have some talent. Based on what I saw last year, I believe that Jaylon Brown was one of the three best point guards in the Valley. There is some thought that he might be moved to shooting guard this year, as a local boy from Evansville Reitz, is capable of playing point, and is a force in disrupting an opponents offense. I am always very skeptical of freshmen point guards though. Duane Gibson can also play point, and has been around for five years after missing last season with a bad knee. Ryan Taylor, a transfer from Ohio U, will be the 3 player, and has the tools to remind us of DJ Balentine, but that remains to be seen. Solomon Hainna, a 6'6" 25 year old JC transfer is supposed to be a very good rebounder for his size, and knows where the basket is also. He probably will be the 4, with Willie Wiley as a backup. Wiley had some good moments last year, but played so little it was hard to get an opinion of him. 7'1" Sergei Vucetic, and 6'8" David Howard will get most of the 5 action. Vucetic saw little action last year playing behind Giddy, but I thought he should have seen more action, and I understand he spent all summer gaining weight, and improving his moves around the basket. He also can hold his own on the defensive end of the court. Howard showed some good moves last year, but didn't play as consistently as I would have liked.

If these guys can fit into Marty's system, they might be better than you think. If not, they could give Drake some competition for last. My gut tells me they will be a Thursday team, my heart hopes for better than that. Without seeing the new guys actually play the game, it is a bit hard to say how they will do.

Lotta "maybes" in there.

[Ricardo del Rio]

Call me crazy but this team can be just as good as last year. This team will be very athletic and expect Tralore to get a lot of minutes in the middle. It's up to Marty how he plays them. If he plays the same motion offense it will not work with this team. This team needs to play uptempo. We will be fine.

Yes 75, I did overlook Dalen Traore, a 6'9" 230 lb JR JC transfer from the Ivory Coast. He will see plenty of action at the 5, and possibly could be the best of the bunch. I won't call you crazy because I don't know you, but in my wildest dreams I don't see the Aces being as good as last year. Don't expect the same respect from three or four WSU posters to this forum. Most of them are the poorest winners i have ever seen.

Yes, there are some poor losers amidst our crowd too.

[Ricardo del Rio]

Call me crazy but this team can be just as good as last year. This team will be very athletic and expect Tralore to get a lot of minutes in the middle. It's up to Marty how he plays them. If he plays the same motion offense it will not work with this team. This team needs to play uptempo. We will be fine.

OK, I will.

I voted before I saw Simmons was injured. I may have to raise my expectations for Evansville, since he's out.

I am sure Simmons is a nice kid, but he is not a basketball player.

[glm38]

Call me crazy but this team can be just as good as last year. This team will be very athletic and expect Tralore to get a lot of minutes in the middle. It's up to Marty how he plays them. If he plays the same motion offense it will not work with this team. This team needs to play uptempo. We will be fine.

OK, I will.

I voted before I saw Simmons was injured. I may have to raise my expectations for Evansville, since he's out.

I am sure Simmons is a nice kid, but he is not a basketball player.

By all accounts he's a great kid. Wonderful student and teammate. I do think he can play the game. But he's not a starter in D1 at our level in my opinion. His niche IMO would be as a spark plug off the bench or moving to D2 he could be a primary player. I wish him a speedy recovery as I'm sure everyone on this forum does.

[Cdizzle]

I do think he can play the game. But he's not a starter in D1 at our level in my opinion.

The fact that he is kind of indicates the actual 'level' going on.

[BuBrave2006]

Okay Bradley fans, what's your answer?

We had two people on the all freshman team last year. The only people we lost are the ones we ran off. The biggest jump in improvement is from Freshman to Sophomore year. Wardle actually had a year (as opposed to a month) to recruit players and only needed to take 5 or 6 instead of an entire roster, several of which have created a lot of buzz (Jojo and Brown mainly IMO). We should be tough to beat at home and the valley as a whole is weak enough for us to maybe steal a game or two on the road.

I think somewhere between 6-8 Valley wins is a very realistic and achievable goal this season, probably putting us somewhere around 6th or 7th on par with Indiana State, and finishing ahead of Drake, Evansville and Loyola IMO.

[Cdizzle]

Okay Bradley fans, what's your answer?

We had two people on the all freshman team last year. The only people we lost are the ones we ran off. The biggest jump in improvement is from Freshman to Sophomore year. Wardle actually had a year (as opposed to a month) to recruit players and only needed to take 5 or 6 instead of an entire roster, several of which have created a lot of buzz (Jojo and Brown mainly IMO). We should be tough to beat at home and the valley as a whole is weak enough for us to maybe steal a game or two on the road.

I think somewhere between 6-8 Valley wins is a very realistic and achievable goal this season, probably putting us somewhere around 6th or 7th on par with Indiana State, and finishing ahead of Drake, Evansville and Loyola IMO.