Today In The Valley (Jan. 7)
Drake (11-4; 2-1) vs. Indiana State (3-11; 1-2)
7:00 p.m.
Knapp Center; Des Moines, Iowa
The Bulldogs return to central Iowa following a 67-60 road win on Sunday in Carbondale over Southern Illinois. The win marked their first successful trip to Little Egypt since 1996. In addition to the usual contributions from Josh Young (14 points, 7 rebounds) and Jonathan Cox (10 points, 11 rebounds), Drake got some help from Craig Stanley (17 points), Josh Parker (12 points), and Adam Templeton (8 points, 9 rebounds). In particular, Templeton busted his behind for 6 offensive boards and set the tone with his hustle and what the Des Moines Register calls “scrappiness”.
Indiana State comes to the Knapp Center losers of two straight in conference play (following a MVC-opening win in central Iowa against UNI) and 13 of their last 17 against Drake. The New Year has proven to be the same old story for the Sycamores; following a 79-61 New Year’s Eve loss against Creighton, the Sycs dropped a 65-59 contest at home versus Evansville. They led at halftime and were riding the positive energy supplied by wearing the powder blue 1979 Larry Legend-style uniforms. Alas, they couldn’t sustain the advantage and dropped to 1-2 in Valley play.
Two of the league’s most impressive offensive players are on display at the Knapp Center tonight. Drake’s Young and Indiana State’s Harry Marshall are the key contributors for their respective teams. Marshall has some lost time to make up for after his first-semester suspension for academic issues, but he’s averaged 16 points in 6 games this semester while also dishing 3.8 assists per contest. Young averages 17.7 points per game (tops in the MVC) and is arguably one of the smoothest players in the MVC.
Picks
Creighton Otter: Drake
Panon: Drake
Dance Cam Guy: Drake
~ Creighton Otter
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Wichita St. (6-8; 0-3) vs. Southern Illinois (5-9; 0-3)
7:00 p.m.
Koch Arena; Wichita, Kansas
Two of the cellar dwellers early in the MVC season are teams you might least expect to see at the bottom of the barrel. Both the Salukis and Shockers are in the midst of head-scratching seasons, although SIU’s fortunes are a bit more difficult to understand than those of the Shox. While neither team is veteran-laden by any stretch of the imagination, SIU at least has its seasoned floor general (Bryan Mullins) and long-time coach Chris Lowery calling the shots. Greggggggg Marshall and WSU, a collection of newcomers and inexperienced D-I players, are still trying to feel their way through the Valley.
SIU lost their previous game at home versus Drake. Again, the early returns in MVC play have been shocking for the Salukis: they’ve played two of three conference games at home and lost them both (the other being a 59-51 defeat against UNI). And while there are some bright spots, namely the play of freshman Kevin Dillard and the continued emergence of sophomore Carlton Fay, the distractions associated with losing games (and players) have built on themselves in a negative fashion.
The Shox are just not very good right now. Their offensive production is not consistent enough for them to be a threat night in and night out. In an embarrassing 78-54 road loss to Northern Iowa, WSU shot just above 35% and committed more than 20 turnovers. According to Paul Suellentrop, one of the consequences of their effort was a 2 a.m. practice held by Marshall for his young team when they arrived in Wichita following the UNI loss.
If recent history is any measure, WSU will find themselves on the wrong end of the scoreboard tonight, too. They’ve lost four straight against SIU, in addition to 17 of their last 20. But then again, most teams have not had success recently against the Salukis. It seems as though if there were a season for each and every team in the MVC to change their fortune against the Egyptian Dawgs, this would be the year.
Picks
Creighton Otter: Southern Illinois
Panon: Wichita State
Dance Cam Guy: Wichita State
~ Creighton Otter
---
Evansville (10-3; 2-1) vs. Missouri State (7-7; 0-3)
7:00 p.m.
Roberts Stadium; Evansville, Indiana
Even after Evansville survived their non-conference schedule with just a pair of losses, they can’t take for granted that this kind of momentum will carry over to conference play. They still have to come out each night with the mindset that the team in the other jerseys could easily beat them.
For instance, at Indiana State this past weekend the Sycamores raced out to a 10-point halftime lead. The veteran Purple Aces were able overcome that deficit and post a 6-point victory. It’s not only the ISU game that concerns coach Marty Simmons; life will be difficult on the road, away from Roberts Stadium. In their only Valley loss they were blown out in the first half at Illinois State, and succumbed to a 30-point loss in Normal. Those two poor starts came in away games, where teams like Evansville can ill afford to start games cold.
Missouri States comes into the game limping. They have lost their first three conference games and four in a row overall. After sustaining a concussion, Chris Cooks is ready to suit up. The Bears are 7-3 when their senior leader is in the lineup. They lost home games to Bradley and Drake. A road game should be quite the challenge for the Bears. Coach Cuonzo Martin will have his team ready defensively. The X-factor will be their offense. Will Cooks be able to bring enough offense for this team to pull off the upset, especially if he only plays in 4- to 5-minute spurts?
Picks
Creighton Otter: Evansville
Panon: Evansville
Dance Cam Guy: Missouri State
~ Panon
7:00 p.m.
Knapp Center; Des Moines, Iowa
The Bulldogs return to central Iowa following a 67-60 road win on Sunday in Carbondale over Southern Illinois. The win marked their first successful trip to Little Egypt since 1996. In addition to the usual contributions from Josh Young (14 points, 7 rebounds) and Jonathan Cox (10 points, 11 rebounds), Drake got some help from Craig Stanley (17 points), Josh Parker (12 points), and Adam Templeton (8 points, 9 rebounds). In particular, Templeton busted his behind for 6 offensive boards and set the tone with his hustle and what the Des Moines Register calls “scrappiness”.
Indiana State comes to the Knapp Center losers of two straight in conference play (following a MVC-opening win in central Iowa against UNI) and 13 of their last 17 against Drake. The New Year has proven to be the same old story for the Sycamores; following a 79-61 New Year’s Eve loss against Creighton, the Sycs dropped a 65-59 contest at home versus Evansville. They led at halftime and were riding the positive energy supplied by wearing the powder blue 1979 Larry Legend-style uniforms. Alas, they couldn’t sustain the advantage and dropped to 1-2 in Valley play.
Two of the league’s most impressive offensive players are on display at the Knapp Center tonight. Drake’s Young and Indiana State’s Harry Marshall are the key contributors for their respective teams. Marshall has some lost time to make up for after his first-semester suspension for academic issues, but he’s averaged 16 points in 6 games this semester while also dishing 3.8 assists per contest. Young averages 17.7 points per game (tops in the MVC) and is arguably one of the smoothest players in the MVC.
Picks
Creighton Otter: Drake
Panon: Drake
Dance Cam Guy: Drake
~ Creighton Otter
---
Wichita St. (6-8; 0-3) vs. Southern Illinois (5-9; 0-3)
7:00 p.m.
Koch Arena; Wichita, Kansas
Two of the cellar dwellers early in the MVC season are teams you might least expect to see at the bottom of the barrel. Both the Salukis and Shockers are in the midst of head-scratching seasons, although SIU’s fortunes are a bit more difficult to understand than those of the Shox. While neither team is veteran-laden by any stretch of the imagination, SIU at least has its seasoned floor general (Bryan Mullins) and long-time coach Chris Lowery calling the shots. Greggggggg Marshall and WSU, a collection of newcomers and inexperienced D-I players, are still trying to feel their way through the Valley.
SIU lost their previous game at home versus Drake. Again, the early returns in MVC play have been shocking for the Salukis: they’ve played two of three conference games at home and lost them both (the other being a 59-51 defeat against UNI). And while there are some bright spots, namely the play of freshman Kevin Dillard and the continued emergence of sophomore Carlton Fay, the distractions associated with losing games (and players) have built on themselves in a negative fashion.
The Shox are just not very good right now. Their offensive production is not consistent enough for them to be a threat night in and night out. In an embarrassing 78-54 road loss to Northern Iowa, WSU shot just above 35% and committed more than 20 turnovers. According to Paul Suellentrop, one of the consequences of their effort was a 2 a.m. practice held by Marshall for his young team when they arrived in Wichita following the UNI loss.
If recent history is any measure, WSU will find themselves on the wrong end of the scoreboard tonight, too. They’ve lost four straight against SIU, in addition to 17 of their last 20. But then again, most teams have not had success recently against the Salukis. It seems as though if there were a season for each and every team in the MVC to change their fortune against the Egyptian Dawgs, this would be the year.
Picks
Creighton Otter: Southern Illinois
Panon: Wichita State
Dance Cam Guy: Wichita State
~ Creighton Otter
---
Evansville (10-3; 2-1) vs. Missouri State (7-7; 0-3)
7:00 p.m.
Roberts Stadium; Evansville, Indiana
Even after Evansville survived their non-conference schedule with just a pair of losses, they can’t take for granted that this kind of momentum will carry over to conference play. They still have to come out each night with the mindset that the team in the other jerseys could easily beat them.
For instance, at Indiana State this past weekend the Sycamores raced out to a 10-point halftime lead. The veteran Purple Aces were able overcome that deficit and post a 6-point victory. It’s not only the ISU game that concerns coach Marty Simmons; life will be difficult on the road, away from Roberts Stadium. In their only Valley loss they were blown out in the first half at Illinois State, and succumbed to a 30-point loss in Normal. Those two poor starts came in away games, where teams like Evansville can ill afford to start games cold.
Missouri States comes into the game limping. They have lost their first three conference games and four in a row overall. After sustaining a concussion, Chris Cooks is ready to suit up. The Bears are 7-3 when their senior leader is in the lineup. They lost home games to Bradley and Drake. A road game should be quite the challenge for the Bears. Coach Cuonzo Martin will have his team ready defensively. The X-factor will be their offense. Will Cooks be able to bring enough offense for this team to pull off the upset, especially if he only plays in 4- to 5-minute spurts?
Picks
Creighton Otter: Evansville
Panon: Evansville
Dance Cam Guy: Missouri State
~ Panon
posted by Creighton Otter at 7:15 AM
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