Horizon Notebook

Horizon League Notebook

by Cory Eve

Hearts on Fire

What do you think of that article title? Not only did I make a pun for a Valentines Day article, but I did using a song lyric from any number of the epic movies in the Rocky saga. Let’s stick with this theme of Valentines Day and Rocky by taking a look at some teams and people who deserve some love, and by looking at those less fortunate individuals and teams who aren’t feeling so rosy on this day for lovers.

Who Deserves Some Love?

1. Wright State Raiders – This is a team nobody was talking about heading into league play, and after beating Butler 77-65 on Saturday and Cleveland State 68-55 today, the Raiders are now 13-2 in the conference and one game ahead of the second-place Bulldogs. Going back to the Rocky theme, I think this team could be comparable to Sly in Rocky 3. Clubber Lang (Butler) completely decimates Balboa (Wright State) in the first meeting, but Stallone comes back with a vengeance to take the title. They have won eight straight games, which makes them the hottest team heading into the Horizon League Tournament. If the Raiders can get a win on the road next Thursday against Youngstown State, then they will be guaranteed at least a share of the regular season league championship. Wright State not only deserves flowers, but let’s go ahead and give them a box of chocolates too.

2. DeShaun Wood – I know I’ve been writing a lot about this guy, but I still feel like he does not get the love he deserves. He is the best player playing on what is currently the best team in the league. All of the focus on the Horizon League guard play has gone to Butler’s duo of A.J. Graves and Mike Green, and they deserve the praise they are getting; however, Wood is having quite a season of his own. He leads the league in scoring at nearly 20 points per game, and he also averages five rebounds, close to four assists, and two steals per game. He may not win it, but I believe Wood is the conference player of the year, and without him, the Raiders would not be in first place. The nation and the Raiders owe a lot of overdue love to DeShaun Wood.

3. Ryvon Coville – The big man for the Detroit Titans deserves some love even though he is playing on one of the bottom teams in the Horizon. Coville has been one of the bright spots for a team that has been in the shadows of the league all season. He has averaged a double-double this season by scoring 13.5 points per game and grabbing a conference-leading 10.5 rebounds per game. He’s very efficient on the offensive end of the floor, shooting nearly 56 percent from the field. Coville also gets it done on the defensive side of the ball in blocking nearly two shots a game. If nobody else is willing to do it, then I will give Coville some love on Valentines Day.

Who Needs a Hug?

1. Cleveland State – It’s been a very rough season for the Vikings all year long. They are currently in the midst of a five-game losing streak, which has left them dwelling the cellar of the Horizon League at 2-12. With the exception of a few games, this team is not getting blown out every night. Five of their 12 losses in conference play have been by five points or less, so it makes the losses even more heartbreaking for the Vikings and nobody likes to see broken hearts on Valentines Day. I suggest we give the Vikings some of those candy hearts because they do not quite deserve a big gift since they have lost so many games, but everyone needs some love, especially today.

2. Avery Smith – Wisconsin-Milwaukee’s leading scorer at 15 points per game has only scored a total of 20 points in his past three games, and the Panthers have lost all three. During this three-game skid, Smith is 9-29 from the field. This is the third time this season the Panthers have been on a losing streak of at least three games. Smith and all the Panthers need a hug or some other sort of love to get them back on track if they plan on doing anything in the Horizon League tournament.

3. Detroit Titans – It’s been a struggle all year long for the Titans, who are currently tied for second-to-last in the league at 5-9. After today’s loss to Youngstown State, Detroit has lost four straight games after reaching a respectable .500 in the conference. The defense for the Titans has been the leading cause for this past losing streak, as they have given up nearly 74 points per game. During their four-game slide down the Horizon standings, the Titans have been allowing their opponents to shoot an average of 49 percent from the field. If the teams you are playing are hitting nearly every other shot, then you are not going to win most of those games. The Titans need hugs.

Horizon Notebook

Horizon League Notebook

by Cory Eve

Two-Horse Race

With only five games remaining in the conference season, the Horizon League championship is going to come down to two teams, the No. 9 Butler Bulldogs and the Wright State Raiders. Since it seems pretty certain only these two teams have a chance at the regular season title, let’s take a second to see where they come from, but more importantly, let’s look at where they’re going. I don’t believe the experts saw the championship coming down to either of these teams.

Let’s start with the Bulldogs, who exploded onto the national scene this year, and they did it early in the season. They started off the season winning the NIT Season Tip-Off, which was loaded with top 25 teams, and most people did not have them coming out of the first round. However, the Bulldogs had other ideas as they beat Notre Dame, Indiana, Tennessee, and Gonzaga en route to the title.

The Bulldogs have rolled through conference play, losing only at Illinois-Chicago. Not only have they won ten of 11 conference games, they’ve been doing it by an average margin of 14 points. Memphis of Conference USA may be the only team in the nation to dominate their conference more than Butler has. They’ve won with great leadership from their guards, A.J. Graves and Mike Green, and the role players filling their roles to perfection. They maximize their possessions by only turning the ball over nine times a game, and they play great defense, allowing up only 53 points per game in conference play. They’re also very hard to comeback on because they hit their free throws: Butler shoots 75 percent from the line as a team.

Now let’s talk about the Wright State Raiders, a team a lot of people around the country do not know about. They did not start off the season as hot as the Bulldogs did; in fact, they only thing they did consistently was play inconsistent basketball. The Raiders were a very average 5-6 team in their first eleven games, but after they took a 71-45 thrashing at the hands of LSU, they were ready for a change.

Since the embarrassing loss to the Tigers, the Raiders have won 12 of 14 games and moved to within a half game of first place Butler in conference play. They’ve been led all season by their senior leader and conference player of the year candidate, DeShaun Wood. Wood has averaged 19 points, nearly five rebounds, and four assists per game this season. The Raiders also have a good balance of youth and experience. They have two seniors, one junior, one sophomore, and two freshmen averaging nearly 20 minutes a game. The team models Butler in that they only turn the ball over 12 times a game, and they shoot 74 percent from the foul line.

Although Butler demolished Wright State 73-42 in their first meeting, their next game against each other is at the Raiders’ home on Saturday. Expect the Raiders to come out and play with a lot of passion and enthusiasm, and expect Butler to stay calm and play the style of basketball they have all season. This game is going to come down to which teams’ clutch players can make clutch plays, and since Butler’s have been doing it all season (against better teams too), I have to give the edge to the Bulldogs despite being on the road. This game will decide who wins the Horizon League regular season championship.

Horizon Notebook

Horizon League Notebook

by Cory Eve

Ramblers Ramble Out, Raiders and Bulldogs Running Away

The Loyola, Ill. Ramblers may have missed their opportunity to make another run at the regular season Horizon League championship. Last Thursday, the Ramblers were only a game and a half out of first place when they took on the number one team in the conference, Butler, at home. Despite a fantastic performance by Blake Schilb, who finished with 27 points, 11 rebounds, and six assists, the Ramblers lost to the Bulldogs 70-66 in overtime. The key in the overtime was Loyola’s inability to find Butler guard A.J. Graves behind the three-point line. Graves, who finished the game with 26 points, hit three of his five threes in overtime, including the one that put the Bulldogs up for good with 55 seconds left to play.

The loss to Butler seemed even more devastating to the Ramblers because they followed it up with another home loss to the second place team in the league, Wright State. Schilb had another stat sheet-stuffing game on Saturday in scoring 14 points, grabbing ten rebounds, and dishing out four assists. Loyola just could not get it done down the stretch, missing their final five shots and allowing Wright State to score the game’s final eight points. The Ramblers have fallen to 5-5 in the conference and are three and a half games behind the first place Bulldogs. The news does not get any better for Loyola, Ill. Either, because four of their final six conference games are on the road. It appears their will be a new regular season champ in the Horizon League.

Just who that new champ will be is up for grabs. Everyone knows about the #11 ranked Butler Bulldogs (20-2, 8-1) playing well, but the Wright State Raiders are nipping at their heels. The Raiders have won three straight conference games and stand only a half game behind the Bulldogs. Wright State will get another chance at the first place Bulldogs at home on February 10th. They’ll be looking to avenge the 73-42 beat down Butler put on them at Hinkle Fieldhouse earlier this season. With their senior and leader DeShaun Wood playing as well, if not better, than anyone in the conference, the Raiders could be ready to make an upset run at the title. Hey, nobody thought the Hulkster could body slam Andre The Giant.

Keep an Eye on This Game

Butler Bulldogs (20-2, 8-1) v. Wisconsin-Milwaukee Panthers (8-16, 5-6)

Now if you were looking only at the records, then this game may look like a potential slaughter, but keep your shirt on because there is more than meets the eye. Yes, the game is at Hinkle Fieldhouse, and yes, Butler looks unbeatable now, however, the Panthers are playing better basketball, going 6-5 after a 2-11 start. They only lost to Butler by five earlier this season, and they already beat the 8-2 Raiders. If the Bulldogs look past the Panthers on Saturday, then they may be upset.

Horizon Notebook

Horizon League Notebook

by Cory Eve

After another hard-fought week in the Horizon League, the conference standings have flip-flopped more than someone walking along a sandy beach. Last week saw Wright State leading the way, but after the Raiders lost a tough game at Wisconsin-Milwaukee 73-69 (proving once again how difficult conference road wins are to achieve) they have fallen to second place. By dropping a game, the Raiders (12-8, 5-2) left the door open for the No. 11 Butler Bulldogs to grab the Horizon League reigns.

Butler had two punishing wins at home over the past week against Youngstown State and Wisconsin-Green Bay. Pete Campbell led the way against Youngstown State, scoring a season-high 17 points, including 5-7 from three-point range. The Bulldogs were 14-24 from three as a team, and even had a stretch of hitting seven consecutive from behind the arc in the first half against the Penguins. Mike Green also contributed to Butler’s 67-39 win over Youngstown State last Wednesday, scoring 16 points and grabbing ten rebounds. Butler also had an impressive 80-59 victory over Wisconsin-Green Bay on Saturday. The Bulldogs’ win over the Phoenix marked the return of leading scorer A.J. Graves to the starting line-up, and he did not disappoint, scoring 28 points. After their two wins this past week, Butler moved to 17-2 overall and to 5-1 in the conference, putting them atop the Horizon League.

Don’t look now, but last year’s league champions, Loyola, Ill., are making a run. After a win at Detroit last Wednesday, the Ramblers have moved themselves into third place in the conference with a 4-3 record, and they are only a game and a half out of first place. Their next game is a big one at home against Butler on Thursday. If Loyola, Ill. can hold serve at home against the Bulldogs, they would only be a half game out of first with 4 out of their next 5 games at home. Could the Ramblers be poised to make another run at the regular season conference championship?

After impressive wins over Butler and Loyola, Ill., Illinois-Chicago dropped two in a row to Wisconsin-Milwaukee and Detroit. The Flames moved from second the league to fourth over the past week. The good news for Illinois-Chicago is they are still 4-3 in the conference, and they have one game remaining with each of the top three teams in the league. The bad news, however, is that two of those games are at Butler and at Loyola, Ill.

Conference News and Notes

• After going 9-9 from the free throw line in Butler’s win over Wisconsin-Green Bay, A.J. Graves has now hit 63 straight from the charity stripe, which is the nation’s longest consecutive free throw streak.
• The Bulldogs 17-2 record is the school’s best 19 game start since 1928-29.
• Butler’s win over Wisconsin-Green Bay on Saturday was their 19th straight home victory.
• After scoring 26 against Cleveland State on Thursday and 21 against Wisconsin-Milwaukee on Sunday, Wright State guard DeShaun Wood has overtaken the conference scoring lead from Butler’s A.J. Graves. Wood is averaging 19.4 points per game, including 91 percent from the free-throw line and nearly 44 percent from three.

Horizon Notebook

Horizon League Notebook

by Cory Eve

Tis the Conference Season

It’s already two full weeks into the conference season, and three teams have jumped out to impressive starts. Wright State, Illinois-Chicago and Butler are off and running.

Let’s start with Illinois-Chicago. The Flames have started 4-1 in conference play, including back-to-back six point wins against league-favorite Butler and last year’s league champions Loyola, Ill. Guard T.J. Gray led the way for Illinois-Chicago, averaging nearly 14 points while shooting 53 percent from the three-point line. Leading scorer Othyus Jeffers has also played solid in the Flames’ five conference games averaging about 15 points and eight rebounds per game. What’s most impressive is that all of this has come after coach Jimmy Collins took a leave of absence Dec. 23. The loss of Collins seems to have ignited and poured gasoline on the Flames.

The Wright State Raiders are also off to a 4-1 start in league play and are in first place. They’ve notched wins against Loyola and Illinois-Chicago en route to first place at this point in the season. Like he has all season, DeShaun Wood has led the Raiders, averaging nearly 18 points per game. He scored 32 in an 81-55 win vs. Loyola last week. In addition to his scoring, Wood has averaged almost four assists, four rebounds and a steal a game during conference play. Wright State has helped itself in their four Horizon League wins by only turning the ball over 11.5 times a game and shooting nearly 48 percent from the field.

Butler is off to a good conference start, too, going 3-1 in the first four league games. After a win against Wright State Jan. 6, Butler had established its best 15-game start in school history, going 14-1. Butler continues to win by protecting the basketball, playing good defense, shooting well from the free-throw line and playing fundamentally sound basketball as a team. They’ve turned it over only 10 times a game, given up only 51 points per game and shot 74 percent from the line in their four conference games. It’s like this team is full of throwback 40-year-olds who play better fundamentals than anyone. Everyone knows those guys – they set perfect picks, play hard-nosed defense, make all of their free-throws and use the bank to perfection whenever they have the chance. Despite their loss to Illinois-Chicago, the Bulldogs remain the favorite to win the Horizon League.

League News and Notes

• After missing Saturday’s game against South Dakota State because of dental surgery, Butler’s leading scorer, A.J. Graves, should be back for the Bulldogs’ conference game Jan. 16 against Youngstown State.
• After making both of his free throw attempts last week against Illinois-Chicago, Graves has now hit 54 straight from the charity stripe. He is shooting a NCAA Division I best 98.8 percent (82-of-83) from the line.
• Illinois-Chicago coach Jimmy Collins is in good condition and still resting after successful surgery Jan. 6 to repair swelling in the main blood vessel in his abdomen. School spokesman Mike Cassidy said Collins will not return until he has fully recovered, and associate head coach Mark Coomes will continue to coach.

Horizon League Notebook

Horizon League Notebook

by Cory Eve

Coaching Shake-up in the Horizon

Jimmy Collins, who holds the record for all-time wins at Illinois-Chicago, took a personal leave of absence from the team on Saturday citing personal reasons. There is no specific timetable for Collins to return, and associate head coach Mark Coomes has taken over the head coaching role for the time being. Collins has taken the Flames to the NCAA tournament three times in his 13 years as head coach and compiled a record of 168-146.

It’s up in the air how this will affect the Flames who are now 6-8 after a home loss to Illinois State on Saturday, but right now they are struggling. The Flames are currently on a three-game losing streak with losses to Ole Miss, Penn, and Illinois State. The future does not get any easier for the Flames either because three out of their next four games are against the three top teams in the league, Wright State (5-5), #15 Butler (12-1), and Loyola (Ill.) (9-4). It’ll be interesting to see if the absence of Collins sparks the Flames or drenches them with a fire hose.

Despite what has happened to Illinois-Chicago over the past week, the other teams in the Horizon League played a little better basketball. The league posted a record of 7-6 in the past week which is just a smidgen better than the 1-7 record it had in the previous week. Youngstown State got a good win over a Kent State team that only lost to Duke by seven points at Cameron Indoor Stadium, and even though they lost, Wisconsin Green-Bay played a tough game at #25 Michigan State and only lost by 12. Although they did not play a pretty game, Butler continued to win as they beat the Evansville Aces 76-65. Even the struggling Detroit Titans notched a win for the Horizon League in the past week.

Who’s Hot

1. A.J. Graves, Butler:
Graves has put up 47 points in his past two games against Purdue and Evansville. In those two games, he shot a combined 50 percent from the three-point line (7-14), 100 percent from the free-throw line (14-14), and 54 percent from the field (13-24).

2. Dashaun Wood, Wright State:
Although Wright State is only 3-2 in their past five games, it is to no fault of Dashaun Wood. The Raiders guard has scored at least 17 points or more in all of their past five games, and is averaging 21.2 points per game over that five game span.

3. Ryan Evanochko, Wisconsin Green-Bay:
Let’s not forget about the guys that distribute the ball either. The Phoenix’s guard has recorded 26 assists and only seven turnovers in his past three games, including a Steve Nash-like performance with 16 assists against Chicago State in a winning effort. That’s nearly a 4-1 assist to turnover ratio over the past three games.

4. Quin Humphrey and Kreston Roberts, Youngstown State:
The best duo in the Horizon League, and they do it every single game. Quin Humphrey is the second leading scorer in the Horizon League averaging nearly 18 points per game, and he has not had a game less than 10 points this whole season. He’s scored over 20 points five times and over 15 points nine times. He’s also averaging just above six rebounds a game to go along with his scoring. Kreston Roberts is averaging just over 17 points per game, including an average of 23 points per game over his last five games. Kreston has only scored less than 10 points twice, and that was in the first two games of the season. The other teams in the Horizon are going to have a tough time shutting down this duo the rest of the season.

Who’s Not

1. Josh Mayo, Illinois-Chicago:
The Flames’ second leading scorer has scored 23 points in his last three games, which is an average of about 7.7 points per game, nearly four points lower than his regular average of 11 points per game. Although four points may not sound like a lot, Josh is only shooting 30 percent (6-20) from the field in the past three games, and Illinois-Chicago has lost all three contests.

2. Wisconsin-Milwaukee (2-11):
After a loss to Sam Houston State on Friday, the Panthers have now lost seven straight games, and they have the top two teams in the Horizon, Butler and Loyola (Ill.), coming up in their next four games.

Horizon League Notebook

Horizon League Notebook

by Cory Eve

Butler and Loyola (Ill.) Class of the Horizon

At this point of the season it’s usually too early to tell who the best teams in the league are and who are the worst, but in the case of the Horizon League, two teams are head and shoulders above the rest right now. Butler and Loyola (Ill.) have been playing better basketball then anyone else in the Horizon League, and they continued to do so over the weekend. The rest of the league struggled over the past week, going only 1-7 with Illinois-Chicago notching the only other win.

Butler pulled out another impressive win over the weekend in beating a much improved Purdue team. Once again, Butler got the win by playing a complete team game. Although they were out-rebounded by Purdue 38-23, they only turned the ball over 13 times, and they held Purdue to just over 40 percent shooting for the game. Butler’s guards led the way in scoring again with A.J. Graves putting up 25 points and Mike Green scoring 18 points respectively.

Game after game the Bulldogs, who are now 11-1, put on a display on how to win with sheer fundamentals and great guard play. This is a team who turns the ball over only 10 times a game, which means they are getting more opportunities to take shots. They also get to the line and hit their free-throws better than anyone else in the league. Butler shoots nearly 81 percent (A.J. Graves is shooting an incredible 98 percent) as a team from the line, and how many times do we see teams blow leads at the end of the game because they cannot hit the free ones. One would be hard pressed to find a team in the top 25 right who plays better team basketball than the Bulldogs do. Attributing the great Rocky Maivia of the WWE, each player on this team “knows their role and shuts their mouth”. The guards score and assist more than they turn it over, and the bigs rebound and play defense. Is it really possible most experts had this team finishing fourth in the league?

Other than Butler, Loyola (Ill.) is the only other team in the Horizon playing pretty good basketball. Last year’s first place team is now 8-3 after an impressive win on Saturday over a Northern Iowa team who is from the second highest RPI rated conference in the nation, the Missouri Valley. Loyola (Ill.) has a balanced attack with three of their five starters averaging over ten points per game. They are the highest scoring team early on in the Horizon League averaging just over 74 points per game, and they shoot nearly 48 percent. Like Butler, they do not turn the ball over very often averaging only 13 turnovers per game. Anytime a team does not turn the ball over and makes shots when they have opportunities, they are going to be tough to beat. Just ask Ohio State, who only beat Loyola by 12 points.

Who’s Hot

1. Butler Bulldogs (11-1): With the great guard duo of A.J. Graves and Mike Green leading the way in scoring, and the rest of the team fitting into their roles, they are the team to beat in the Horizon League.
2. Loyola (Il) (8-3): With all five of their starters returning from last year’s first place team and off to a good start this year, expect Loyola (Il) to have a say in who wins the Horizon at the end of the year.

Who’s Not

1. Detroit (2-7): The Titans already have two separate three-game losing streaks this season including a loss to the Texas A&M-Corpus Christian Islanders. With teams like Kansas on the agenda in the next few weeks, things are not looking good for the Titans.
2. Wisconsin-Milwaukee (2-10): The record speaks for itself.

Horizon League Preview

Horizon League 2006-07 Preview

by Nils Hoeger-Lerdal

The 2006-07 Horizon League season will be unpredictable and unfamiliar. For each of the past seven seasons, Butler or Wisconsin-Milwaukee have claimed the conference title. This year should be different because both teams lost a lot of talent, while the traditional chasers return much of theirs. It feels strange not to pencil in the Bulldogs or the Panthers as league champ. The new debate is which team will snatch the reins.

The Loyola Chicago Ramblers, led by Preseason Player of the Year Blake Schilb, are the heavy favorite. They return almost every contributor from last year’s 19-11 squad. After Loyola, though, the Horizon League is less defined. Wisconsin-Green Bay, Wright State, Detroit and Illinois-Chicago all bring back talent, and it’s hard to bet against the programs at Butler and Wisconsin-Milwaukee. A handful of teams will beat up on one another to determine positioning in the conference tournament, which is nothing new. Last season, five teams finished the conference season with 8-8 records.

Two new coaches will patrol the Horizon League sidelines this season after Brad Brownell left UNC-Wilmington for Wright State and Gary Waters joined Cleveland State after coaching Rutgers. Many of the star players, however, will be familiar. First team all-conference performers Schilb, DaShaun Wood (Wright State) and Quin Humphrey (Youngstown State) return. They are joined on the preseason first team by Brandon Cotton (Detroit) and Ryan Evanochko (Wisconsin-Green Bay).

Whichever star leads his team to the Big Dance figures to represent the Horizon League well. A Horizon school has won an opening round game in six of the last 10 NCAA Tournaments, and two teams have advanced to the Sweet 16. Schilb and Loyola seem poised to make that run this year.

Preseason Awards

1st Team All-Horizon
Senior guard Blake Schilb, Loyola Chicago
Senior guard Quin Humphrey, Youngstown State
Senior guard DaShaun Wood, Wright State
Junior guard Brandon Cotton, Detroit
Senior guard Ryan Evanochko, Wisconsin-Green Bay

2nd Team All-Horizon
Senior guard Majak Kou, Loyola
Sophomore forward Leon Young, Loyola
Junior guard A.J. Graves, Butler
Junior forward Othyus Jeffers, Illinois-Chicago
Sophomore forward J’Nathan Bullock, Cleveland State

Player of the Year: Blake Schilb, Loyola
Newcomer of the Year: Mike Green, Butler
Freshman of the Year: Vaughn Duggins, Wright State
Defensive Player of the Year: DaShaun Wood, Wright State
Coach of the Year: Brad Brownell, Wright State
Most Improved Player: Terry Evans, Wisconsin-Green Bay
Coach on the Hot Seat: Jerry Slocum, Youngstown State

Projected Order of Finish

1. Loyola Ramblers (19-11, 8-8)
Projected Starters:
Sophomore guard J.R. Blount
Senior guard Majak Kou
Senior guard Blake Schilb
Sophomore forward Leon Young
Senior forward Brandon Woods

Key Games:
Nov. 10 vs. Princeton in the BCA Classic
Dec. 5 at Purdue
Dec. 16 vs. Northern Iowa
Feb. 10 at Wisconsin-Green Bay

In just two seasons, coach Jim Whitesell has transformed the Ramblers from a sub-.500 team to the conference favorite. Of course, it helps when you have Blake Schilb, a two-time Horizon first-teamer and the preseason player of the year. Schilb possesses both inside and outside skills, and he is a good rebounder and a terrific passer.

In addition to Schilb, the Ramblers return all but one contributor from last season’s 19-11 squad. Rangy guard Majak Kou, an all-conference and all-defensive performer, averaged more than 1.5 steals and blocks per game. He’ll team with sophomore J.R. Blount to form a formidable backcourt. The Ramblers also return some frontcourt beef, which will be reinforced by freshman Andy Polka.

The only question mark with Loyola is the team’s defense, which was the conference’s worst last season. But all signs point to this squad as the team to beat in the Horizon League. Anything short of 20 wins and an NCAA berth will be a disappointment.

2. Wright State Raiders (13-15, 8-8)
Projected Starters:
Senior guard DaShaun Wood
Sophomore guard William Graham
Freshman guard Vaughn Duggins
Senior forward Drew Burleson
Junior forward Jordan Pleiman

Key Games:
Dec. 2 vs. Detroit
Dec. 27 at LSU in the Hispanic Collage Fund Classic
Dec. 5 at Bradley
Jan. 10 vs. Loyola

Wright State may have the conference’s newcomer of the year, but he won’t take one shot this season. New coach Brad Brownell, who led UNC – Wilmington to two NCAA appearances in four seasons, is onboard to reverse the Raiders’ tradition of underachievement. The talent to do so is there. All-conference guard DaShaun Wood is back for one more year. Last season he ranked in the top five in both scoring and assists and led the Horizon in steals. Returning alongside Wood is a solid stable of big-bodied rebounders and a team dedicated to defense.

The Raiders hope that freshman gunner Vaughn Duggins, one of Brownell’s former UNC-Wilmington recruits, can kick start Wright State’s offense, which ranked last in the league last season. Look for this squad, led by Brownell, to settle in come conference season and make some noise.

3. Wisconsin-Green Bay Phoenix (15-16, 8-8)
Projected Starters:
Senior guard Ryan Evanochko
Sophomore guard Ryan Tillema
Sophomore forward Terry Evans
Senior forward Josh Lawrence
Sophomore forward Mike Schachtner

Key Games:
Nov. 15 at Wisconsin
Dec. 23 at Michigan State
Feb. 10 vs. Loyola

If Wisconsin-Green Bay struggles this season, lack of experience can’t be an excuse. The Phoenix return all five starters, including three who started and gained valuable experience in their freshman campaigns. They also boast a consistent senior scorer and leader, and they certainly should improve on last season’s 15-16 mark. That senior leader is guard Ryan Evanochko, who ranked second in the league in assists to go along with his scoring ability. The sophomore quartet of Ryan Tillema, Terry Evans, Mike Schachtner and Cordero Barkley provide a solid balance of inside scoring, three-point shooting and athleticism.

The biggest concern for coach Tod Kowalczyk’s group is rebounding, an area in which they struggled last season. They will be tested early in the season with visits to Wisconsin and Michigan State, but the Phoenix catches a break by not having to travel to Chicago to face conference favorite Loyola. The Phoenix could challenge for a conference title if they can take care of Loyola at home.

4. Illinois-Chicago Flames (16-15, 8-8)
Projected Starters:
Sophomore guard Josh Mayo
Junior guard Othyus Jeffers
Senior forward Jovan Stefanov
Senior forward Danijel Zoric
Sophomore center Scott VanderMeer

Key Games:
Nov. 19 vs. Bradley in the Chicago Challenge
Dec. 19 at Mississippi
Feb. 24 at Loyola

Trend alert: Illinois-Chicago, another 8-8 conference squad from last season, returns four starters and figures to improve on that record this winter. However, the three teams predicted to finish ahead of the Flames didn’t lose Justin Bowen, an all-conference member. His loss leaves them without a dependable scorer, although there are several viable options. Guard Josh Mayo and wingman Othyus Jeffers were among the league’s best newcomers last season. It’s their responsibility to step up and replace Bowen.

One advantage that Illinois-Chicago has that most Horizon League teams generally lack is size. With three starters who are 6-9 or taller, the Flames could force an uncomfortable style and present awkward match ups for many league rivals. Their success may depend on their ability to control the tempo through their size.

5. Detroit Titans (16-16, 8-8)
Projected Starters:
Junior guard Jon Goode
Senior guard Brandon Cotton
Freshman guard Eulis Stephens
Sophomore forward Chris Hayes
Senior center Ryvon Covile

Key Games:
Dec. 5 at Xavier
Dec. 28 at Kansas
Jan. 2 at Wisconsin-Green Bay
Feb. 24 at Butler

The 2006-07 Detroit backcourt may be the strongest in coach Perry Watson’s 13 years at the school. Brandon Cotton, a one-time Michigan State freshman, ranked fifth in the conference in scoring last season, despite playing most of the season with pins in his hand. Jon Goode, the Titans’ best three-point shooter, also returns to the starting five. Perimeter play will not be an issue.

But size will be. Detroit sports an inexperienced and rather small frontcourt, but the Titans will welcome back center Ryvon Covile, who missed last season with a knee injury. If the guards play to their potential and offset the frontcourt deficiencies, Detroit could land in the top third of the league.

6. Wisconsin-Milwaukee Panthers (22-9, 12-4)
Projected Starters:
Freshman guard Roman Gentry
Sophomore guard Ricky Franklin
Freshman guard Charlie Swiggett
Junior forward Paige Paulsen
Junior forward Sam Mauldin

Key Games:
Nov. 15 at Michigan
Nov. 19 vs. Northern Iowa
Dec. 13 at Wisconsin
Jan. 6 at Loyola Chicago
Feb. 24 at Wisconsin-Green Bay

In his first year, coach Rob Jeter took the Panthers to the second round of the NCAA Tournament, where they lost to eventual champion Florida. In his second year, some think leading them to the second round of the Horizon League tournament could be difficult. Seven contributors, including all five starters and three all-conference players, are gone. In fact, only 15 percent of the team’s scoring returns. It’s a bleak situation, but transfers Paige Paulsen (Northern Illinois) and Sam Mauldin (Birmingham Southern) could ease the transition. Look for a slow start in which Jeter might have to remind his players that Joah Tucker, Boo Davis and Adrian Tigert will not walk through that locker room door.

7. Butler Bulldogs (20-13, 11-5)
Projected Starters:
Junior guard A.J. Graves
Senior guard Julian Betko
Junior guard Mike Green
Senior forward Brandon Crone
Senior forward Brian Ligon

Key Games:
Nov. 13 vs. Notre Dame in the NIT Season Tip-Off
Dec. 16 at Purdue
Dec. 30 at Wisconsin-Milwaukee

Butler is the most unpredictable team in the Horizon League. On one hand, they lose Brandon Polk, last season’s conference player of the year, along with starters Avery Sheets and Bruce Horan. On the other hand, the Bulldogs have consistently been at or near the top of the Horizon League during coach Todd Lickliter’s five campaigns. Much of the burden falls on junior guard A.J. Graves and Towson transfer Mike Green. Butler’s teams usually play smart and are always well-coached, evidenced by their miniscule 8.8 turnovers per game and stingy 60.4 points allowed per game last year. Those numbers, if they stay low, give Butler a chance in every game. But will they have enough offense? That’s nearly impossible to predict. In a league that should be much more balanced from top to bottom, it’s hard to see Butler in the top half.

8. Youngstown State Penguins (7-21, 4-12)
Projected Starters:
Junior guard Byron Davis
Senior guard Quin Humphrey
Senior guard Keston Roberts
Junior forward John Barber
Junior forward Colin LaForme

Key Games:
Nov. 22 at Michigan
Nov. 24 at Ohio State
Dec. 30 vs. Loyola
Feb. 24 at Cleveland State

Quin Humphrey isn’t likely to get Youngstown State out of the Horizon League basement on his own, but he’ll do his best. Last season, he became the second Horizon player to lead the conference in scoring and rebounding, but the Penguins still finished 7-21. Although that record should improve this year with the addition of New Mexico State transfer Byron Davis, it won’t be good enough to do damage in league play. Guard Keston Roberts is a nice player, but Youngstown State has no depth and will often be stretched thin in the frontcourt. And let’s not forget their defensive liabilities: they ranked last in the league in scoring defense. Ten or 11 wins seems about right.

9. Cleveland State Vikings (10-18, 5-11)
Projected Starters:
Senior guard Carlos English
Senior guard Raheen Moss
Senior guard Victor Morris
Sophomore forward J’Nathan Bullock
Senior forward Patrick Tatham

Key Games:
Dec. 5 at Kansas State
Dec. 9 at Ohio State
Dec. 17 at Central Michigan

Ten-year coaching vet Gary Waters has the glamourless task of turning around a struggling Cleveland State program. Waters has taken Kent State and Rutgers to postseason play, and the Vikings hope he will bring stability to a team that returns four starters. Forward J’Nathan Bullock, one of the four, had a solid freshman season and is the most talented player on their roster. They will start four seniors, but only one, guard Raheen Moss, averaged in double figures last season. Freshman guard Joe Davis and forward Triston Crawford, who sat out last season with eligibility issues, will be welcomed, but they won’t be enough to change Cleveland State’s fortunes. They’ll be looking up all year.

Summary

The Horizon League will be one of the most hotly contested mid-major conferences in the land this season. Each one of the top seven teams has the talent to play like league champions, and it will be a test of endurance to win the league. Many of the stars are back, a few new transfers and freshmen should contribute, and two new coaches bring new styles to the conference. As Wisconsin-Milwaukee and Butler fall from their permanent perches atop the standings, opportunities abound for hungry, less-familiar schools to claim a conference title and NCAA berth. Wisconsin-Green Bay has waited for 10 years for a chance to dance again, Wright State hasn’t made the trip in 13 seasons, and Loyola’s drought dates back to 1985. Each one enters this season thinking it could end its suffering. That hope, combined with the star power of the league and the prideful traditions of Detroit, Wisconsin-Milwaukee and Butler, provides juicy storylines and surefire excitement in one of the most underrated leagues in the country.

Horizon Recap

Horizon League 2005-06 Season Recap

by Nick Dettmann

The Horizon League had familiar company at the top with the rest of the league pretty much wide-open.

The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Panthers won the regular season championship for the third straight season and reached the league tournament title game for the fourth straight season. The Panthers then went on to win the league tournament championship to gain its second straight NCAA tournament berth.

The team UWM beat, the Butler Bulldogs, finished second in the regular season standings and were awarded a berth into the NIT. The Panthers got the 11th seed for the NCAA tournament and Butler drew Florida State for its NIT game.

UWM beat 6th-seeded Oklahoma in the first round of the NCAA tournament while Butler was defeated by the Seminoles. The Panthers advanced in the NCAA tournament for the second straight season. The reward? The Florida Gators. UWM was no match for the eventual national champion Gators.

The off-season has already brought out some coaching changes within the league. Mike Garland stepped down after a brief and unsuccessful tenure with the Cleveland State Vikings. Garland was 23-60 in his three seasons at CSU. Also, Paul Biancardi stepped down at Wright State.

Both coaches have already been replaced. Cleveland State hired former Rutgers and Kent State coach Gary Waters. Waters, who was most recentlythe head coach at Rutgers for the last five seasons, went to the postseason six times in the last 10 seasons. And, Wright State hired former UNC-Wilmington head coach Brad Brownell as the new coach at WSU. Brownell was 83-40 in his four years at UNCW.

Player of the year: Brandon Polk, Sr., Butler
Coach of the year: Todd Lickliter, Butler
Newcomer of the year: Othyus Jeffers, So., Illinois-Chicago

All-League team
First team
Brandon Polk, Butler
Blake Schilb, Loyola
Joah Tucker, UW-Milwaukee
DaShaun Wood, Wright State
Quin Humphrey, Youngstown State

Second team
Brandon Cotton, Detroit
Justin Bowen, UIC
Ryan Evanochko, UW-Green Bay
Boo Davis, UW-Milwaukee
Adrian Tigert, UW-Milwaukee

All-Newcomer Team
Othyus Jeffers, UIC
Josh Mayo, UIC
Leon Young, Loyola
Mike Schachtner, UW-Green Bay
Keston Roberts, Youngstown State

All-Defensive Team
Torvoris Baker, Detroit
Majak Kou, Loyola
Terry Evans, UW-Green Bay
Adrian Tigert, UW-Milwaukee
DaShaun Wood, Wright State

UW-Milwaukee Panthers (22-9 overall, 12-4 conference)
Team MVP: Joah Tucker (17.2 points per game)
Top scorer: Tucker
Top rebounder: Adrian Tigert (6.9 per game)
Assist leader: Chris Hill (3.0 per game)

Starters leaving
Tucker
Boo Davis
Hill
Tigert

Key players returning
Jason McCoy

Butler Bulldogs (20-13, 11-5)
Team MVP: Brandon Polk (19.3 points, 59% FG percentage)
Top scorer: Polk
Top rebounder: Brandon Crone (5.0 per game)
Assist leader: Avery Sheets (3.8 per game)

Starters leaving
Sheets
Bruce Horan
Brandon Polk

Key players returning
Brandon Crone
Brian Ligon

UW-Green Bay Phoenix (15-16, 8-8)
Team MVP: Ryan Evanochko (15.8 points per game, 5.2 assists)
Top scorer: Evanochko
Top rebounder: Terry Evans (5.5 per game)
Assist leader: Evanochko

Starters leaving
None – Phoenix had no seniors on the roster this past season

Key players returning
Evanochko
Mike Schachtner
Josh Lawrence
Ryan Tillema
Evans

Loyola-Chicago Ramblers (19-11, 8-8)
Team MVP: Blake Schilb (19.1 points, 3.9 assists per game)
Top scorer: Schilb
Top rebounder: Leon Young (7.2 per game)
Assist leader: Schilb

Starters leaving
Chris Logan

Key players returning
Blake Schilb
J.R. Blount
Majak Kou
Tom Levin
Kye Pattrick

Detroit Titans (16-16, 8-8)
Team MVP: Brandon Cotton (17.5 points per game)
Top scorer: Cotton
Top rebounder: Torvoris Baker (7.5 per game)
Assist leader: Jon Goode (3.3 per game)

Starters leaving
Baker
Ben Green
Chuck Bailey

Key players returning
Cotton
Goode

Illinois-Chicago Flames (16-15, 8-8)
Team MVP: Justin Bowen (14.7 points, 6.8 rebounds per game)
Top scorer: Bowen
Top rebounder: Othyus Jeffers (7.6 per game)
Assist leader: Jeffers (3.0 per game)

Starters leaving
Bowen

Key players returning
Jeffers
Josh Mayo
Jovan Stefanov
Danijel Zoric
Robert Bush

Wright State Raiders (13-15, 8-8)
Team MVP: DaShaun Wood (17.9 points, 4.7 assists per game)
Top scorer: Wood
Top rebounder: Jordan Pleiman (6.7 per game)
Assist leader: Wood

Starters leaving
None; no seniors on roster last season

Key players returning
Wood
Drew Burleson
Pleiman
William Graham
Tyrone Scott

Cleveland State Vikings (10-18, 5-11)
Team MVP: Ije Nwankwo (11.0 points, 5.2 rebounds per game)
Top scorer: J’Nathan Bullock (11.3 per game)
Top rebounder: Patrick Tatham (6.0 per game)
Assist leader: Carlos English (4.6 per game)

Starters leaving
None

Key players returning
Bullock
Nwankwo
Raheem Moss
English
Tatham
Victor Morris

Youngstown State Penguins (7-21, 4-12)
Team MVP: Quin Humphrey (19.2 points, 8.3 rebounds per game)
Top scorer: Humphrey
Top rebounder: Humphrey
Assist leader: Derrick Harris (5.3 per game)

Starters leaving
Harris

Key players returning
Humphrey
Keston Roberts
Jack Liles
John Barber
Colin LaForme
Dwight Holmes

Horizon Semifinal Recap

Horizon League Semifinals and John Parry

by Bill Kintner

MILWAUKEE – Before the first Horizon League Semifinals between number two seed Butler Bulldogs and the number three seed University of Wisconsin-Green Bay Phoenix, I sat down with Butler Athletic Director John Parry.

He talks about the Bulldogs, the Horizon League and the Horizon League Championship format.

Bill Kintner: What were your expectations when you came up here to Milwaukee?

John Parry: Anybody could win, when it is all said and done. Butler is hoping for the combination of wins and losses that make it so that we are hosting the finals on Tuesday in Indianapolis. I think when you look at the six teams here, any one of then could have come through the bracket and won it. Clearly Milwaukee has the edge. They are at home and have seven seniors, but hey, anything can happen.

BK: What were your expectations coming into this year, after losing a couple of guys during the off-season?

JP: On the good side, we had five returning starters, and they all worked very hard during the summer. Brandon Polk had major surgery on his shoulder. He spent a year shooting with his off-hand, so when he started play this year he was much more of a threat. He is much more multi-dimensional. The issue for us at the beginning of the year was players that could come off the bench and contribute. The two main guys were both coming off major knew surgery, Julian Betko and Brian Ligon, so we knew we were just an injury from being a not very good team. But this team got through it, pulled together and has been able to compete.

BK: Butler has had some major success over the last 20 years. Why is that?

JP: Good question! I think the university around 1990, when they hired Barry Collier, made a significant commitment to basketball that wasn’t there in the past. They put about $1.5 million into Hinkle Fieldhouse to really dress up the lower level, created the Dawg Pound for the students, created suites of offices and locker rooms. In addition we went to full scholarships or a full complement that the NCAA allows and a full complement of coaches. More money was also put into the recruiting budget. It took some time, no question about it. Barry Collier went through a transition of wanting to be a run and gun coach, to valuing the ball and defense. He got that from Dick Bennett and really turned it around and began to win in about 1996-97.

BK: You have hired two coaches, right?

JP: The year Barry left was 2000 and that was the year we lost to Florida in OT. I remember during the half time of that game the athletic director of Wake Forest said, “Gee, you have a nice team. Are they all seniors?” We had two seniors, two juniors, two sophomores, two freshman and two transfers sitting out. It was the perfect set of twos. He was shocked to learn we only had two seniors. So the next year we had all but two guys back. That carried us all the way through to the year 2003. But all of a sudden between red shirts and transfers we had seven seniors, which is kind of a bazaar combination. But in that time period we replaced a coach twice, but kept the system because the players are in place to win. It is easier to change coaches when you are 5-22 or if you just graduated a whole class. But kids, who are used to playing value the ball, distribute the ball, make the three-type ball, it is hard to change. Bruce Pearl was interested in this coaching position. I told him on the phone, “Bruce if I were 5-22, you would be high on my list because kids want to play the way you play, but we have a group of kids that have been winning 52-51 and I wouldn’t be showing any respect for them if I trashed everything they did by changing the style of ball they played.” We had Thad Matta, who I was convinced could recruit, but I wasn’t so sure about his coaching. It turns out he could do both. The Xs and Os expert on that staff was Todd Lickliter. So the question I had was would he be able to recruit? I think he has shown that he can.

BK: What is the criteria you use in evaluating a coach?

JP: There has to be a good fit with the institution. He has to understand the values and be able to accept the fact that at Butler we value small classes, that our players will go to class, you are not a number, you are a name. The admission process is not one that everyone has. We don’t always hear the answer we want on getting student-athletes in. They are willing to screen early so we don’t spend a lot of time on non-qualifying candidates. So you have to believe in the education, believe in the philosophy and the student athlete that Butler has. Beyond that it is all about character, it is all about leadership and you will find that Xs and Os are kind of far down the list. If you have all of those, you will find if the whole team is committed to that, then almost any system will work.

BK: You have had a lot of success with all your teams that compete in the Horizon league. Is that because of the philosophy you just outlined?

JP: The wonderful thing that happened in the mid-nineties is that every sport got an automatic bid. Before that it was only basketball, but the rest of the sports’ brackets have expanded now. Now whichever school wins the conference in baseball, soccer, volleyball, they are in the NCAA Tournament. That has been a wonderful thing in the terms of access to championships. So all of a sudden it looks like Butler has all these teams in the NCAA Tournament. They may have been as good in the early nineties but they couldn’t get in. You had to be at-large and there were limited at-large bids. That has been very helpful and it was paid for by the expanded CBS contract. Those brackets don’t bring any money in. We have 21 sports, but we don’t give athletic scholarships in seven of them – men’s and women’s indoor track, men’s and women’s outdoor track, men’s and women’s swimming and football. So those seven sports are running more like Division III sports.

BK: The Horizon League has been a very stable conference.

JP: Probably the most dramatic change in the last five years was the restructuring of the basketball tournament. Green Bay dinged Butler in the conference tournament – an eight seed beating a one seed. So that seemed to be hard to accept that we would put a team at risk like that. The championship ended up being Loyola and UIC played in Cleveland. A lot of the fans from Chicago were excited about the game until they found out it was in Cleveland.

BK: On a weeknight, too!

JP: Yes, so we made a couple of decisions. The best thing for this conference is to get multiple teams in the tournament. How can we do that? Let’s protect our top team. Ironically since then it has not been Butler, but that’s okay. The key philosophy was that all nine teams make it. That you don’t leave anyone out and you protect your top teams. The regular season now means a lot. I think it is a very creative solution. Even if you have 10 teams, then the three seed wouldn’t get a bye, I believe. I think my colleagues would agree. That way the championship always ends up at a home site, which you play for it all year and it assures you will always have a home crowd, which looks pretty good on ESPN. That was a fairly dramatic coming together with a lot of issues that started with looking at if we should leave the ninth team at home. We met with all the coaches in one room and they were like, “You can’t do that to me. What if I am the ninth team?” We got a spirit of cooperation that was fairly creative. I think you can credit Jon LeCrone with coming up with that plan. I don’t know where he got it from, but it is a heck of a plan.

BK: Did you have to drag any schools kicking and screaming or were you all on the same page?

JP: We were all on the same page. The only issue is last year John Planek (Loyola AD) said, “You know playing that Friday game in Milwaukee last year, there was nobody at the game. So is there anyway were could play at a home site on Friday?” That would push the semifinals to Sunday. There is a lot of cooperation and no animosity. To answer the larger part of your question, there was a time when people worried about a public/private divide. There is no doubt that we have different challenges in terms of how we get funding. Milwaukee may use tuition waivers and we are using funny money inside. But what has brought that all under control is the NCAA by limiting the number of scholarships and putting in some clear academic criteria, it has sort of leveled those issues. You can still only have 13 basketball scholarships. They can cost $34,000 or $15,000, but you only get 13 scholarships in the sport of basketball.

BK: What has led to the stability of the Horizon League?

JP: The positive Pollyanna answer is to say we are all on the same page and everything is wonderful. The more cynical answer is that most of the movement in the country in the last 15 years has been driven by football and we’re not a player collectively. The last school we lost was Northern Illinois and that was a football decision. They got bounced out of a league that they had and they needed to get into the MAC. It had nothing to do with us. The fact that we don’t have a 1-A football program where someone is either desirable or trying to solve a football problem helps us. That is the cynical side. People occasionally approach me at Butler and say, “We really ought to look at the Missouri Valley.” And I say, “It is a wonderful athletic league for basketball. But do you realize what towns we will be playing in? What the travel would look like?” We are in the right cities for Butler. For our alumni and our recruiting we like to be in Chicago, Dayton, Detroit, Cleveland and Milwaukee. The only city missing, I think, is St. Louis. We like as an institution to be in the major cities. Strictly basketball, could there be an upside to being in the MVC? I don’t know. Clearly the league is stronger. But we don’t fit the profile of Bradley in Peoria or Wichita State in Wichita. We are sitting in a metropolitan city. The league as an institution is about a lot more than where we play basketball. To our basketball fans it is a basketball decision. To our admissions and alumni office it is more of where they want to be. I can tell you that group wants to be in Chicago, Milwaukee, Detroit and Dayton. There isn’t a drive from any other part of the institution to get into another league.

BK: I know former President Bush spoke at Butler the other night in historic Hinkle Fieldhouse.

JP: That would be six presidents. Five Republicans and one Democrat have spoken at Hinkle.

BK: Sounds about right. You are sitting on a national treasure. What have you done to preserve the integrity of the structure, as you have tried to modernize it?

JP: If I had a lot of money, I want to do more with the restrooms.

BK: Well don’t replace the troughs!

JP: Well we would have to keep some.

BK: Good!

JP: We just don’t have enough of them. On each side of the upper levels there are about 1,500 seats in those two areas. Frankly they are rarely filled, but I like it when they are. I tried to think about what I could do up there. Maybe put a glass-enclosed lounge and it would be a study area when there is no basketball. It would be an entertainment area, like a club suite or party room that looked out onto the court. There would be nice seats right in front of it. I can tell you that when we put in the new scoreboards on the ends within thirty minutes people were saying we were destroying Hinkle Fieldhouse. You have whipped cream on your nose.

BK: Oh thanks! Is it off now? (whip cream from a cappuccino)

JP: Yeah, you got it. Yet after people got used to them they asked, “Why haven’t we had them all along?”

BK: Can you get chair-back installed where the Big Chill up in the Crow’s Nest?

JP: With some of the money we got from all of our NCAA success – which is not near as much as people think – we did put cushions on some of the bleachers. I think it was six rows along the side of the court and three rows all the way around. It was about 2,000 seats and we could sell them as reserve seats if we chose to.

BK: Thank you for taking a few minutes of your time to speak with me.

JP: You are welcome.

Butler 73, UW-Green Bay 51

Butler’s Coach Todd Lickliter wasn’t sure how his team would respond to the week they had off. So he decided to get away, come up a day early and stay on the Lake Michigan in Kenosha, WI. They practiced at UW-Lakeside and then drove up to Milwaukee on Friday.

Lickliter proved to be quite the travel planner as his Bulldogs pounded the UW-Green Bay Phoenix into submission 73-51 in the semifinal game on Saturday.

“You never know what a week will do, but I thought we needed it,” explained Lickliter. “I thought the freshness helped.”

Butler’s A. J. Graves scored a layup 27 seconds into the game that led to 12-2 run and Butler never looked back as they had the lead for the entire game.

By the time half time rolled around Butler (19-11) had built up a 21-point lead. They did it by breaking down the defense and shooting 59.3 percent, while holding the Phoenix to a poor 32.1 percent shooting percentage. From 3-point range Butler shot 50 percent (7-of-14). Graves was 3-of-4 and Avery Sheets was 2-of-3 from behind the arc.

In the second half things kept going Butler’s way, as the Bulldogs pushed the lead to their largest at 26 points on a 3-pointer by Graves to make it 51-25 with 16:41 left in the game.

The best the Phoenix could do was close the gap to 17 points at the 6:28 mark when Ryan Tillema made one of two foul shots.

Green Bay Coach Tod Kowalczyk thought when Butler got off to the quick start it hurt his team’s psyche and they just couldn’t bounce back. “They jumped out early and we had a hard time handling that,” explained Kowalczyk.

Butler was led in scoring by Sheets, who had 20 points on a 7-of-8 shooting performance. Graves tossed in 20 points and Brandon Polk scored 17 points.

For the game the Bull Dogs shot 50 percent (23-of-46) compared to 38.8 percent (19-of-49) for Green Bay (15-16).

Butler only turned the ball over seven times, while the Phoenix fumbled it 13 times, and that led to 22 points for Butler.

Green Bay was led in scoring by Aswan Ninatee with 16 points and Ryan Evanochko with 15 points.

Notes

• This is Butler’s eighth appearance in the league title game.
• The bulldogs defeated UWGB all three times this year and now lead the all-time series 21-13.
• Butler’s Bruce Horan extended his streak of consecutive games with a 3-point basket to 77, the second-best in NCAA history.
• Green Bay is now 11-11 in the Horizon League Tournament.

Wisconsin-Milwaukee 80, Loyola 66

After holding Wisconsin-Milwaukee’s Boo Davis to just seven points the last time they played, Loyola probably thought they had his number. That is, until he came out and scored the Panthers’ first 10 points of the game. By the time the game ended, he scored 20 points en route to an 80-66 Panther victory to advance to the Championship game against Butler.

“I just tried to come out right away and set the tone. Last game they held me to like seven points, so I came out and tried to be aggressive,” said Davis.

At the 12:01 mark in the first half, Loyola’s Tom Levin hit a 3-pointer to give the Ramblers their last lead of the game at 17-15. From that point on, Wisconsin-Milwaukee (20-8) kept building their lead until it hit 13 points at 32-19 with 4:57 left in the half.

The Panthers got the lead up to 18 points on a layup by Davis with 3:33 left in the game and that was their biggest lead. The closest Loyola (19-11) would get was within 10 points when Blake Schilb sank two foul shots to make it 38-28.

Wisconsin-Milwaukee coach Rob Jeter was worried coming into the game about the weeklong layoff. “For us to come off the break that we did and play a tough opponent like Loyola that won five-straight, I thought the effort was there and we played a solid game,” explained Jeter.

For Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Joah Tucker also scored 20 points and pulled down eight rebounds. Adrian Tigert chipped in 17 points and Davis also grabbed 10 rebounds.

The Ramblers got 22 from Schilb, 17 points from J. R. Blount and 12 points from Majak Kou.

Notes

• Wisconsin-Milwaukee advanced to the championship game for the forth-straight year.
• The Panthers are now 8-8 all-time in league tournament games
• This win gives them 20 for the season. It is their forth-straight 20-win season.
• 7,502 fans who watched the game made it the 7th largest crowd in Wisconsin-Milwaukee history.
• Loyola is 23-26 all-time in league tournament games, and they trail Wisconsin-Milwaukee 20-14 in the all-time series.

Horizon Quarterfinal Recap

Horizon League Quarterfinal Recap

by Bill Kintner

MILWAUKEE – The Horizon League Quarterfinals opened in Milwaukee at US Cellular Arena Friday with UIC facing Green Bay and Detroit taking on Loyola. These teams won games in the first round at campus locations to advance to Milwaukee.

Aside from these teams, their fans and administrators, there were players, coaches and administrators from the number one and two seeds; Milwaukee and Butler.

Between the two games I had a chance to sit down and talk with the Horizon League Commissioner Jon LeCrone.

Bill Kintner: This is the forth year of using this tournament format, how would you say it is working?

Jon LeCrone: This is our third year in a row in Milwaukee and they have done a marvelous job. I think it is the kind of format that may not be for everybody, but it works for us. All the feedback we get from our directors of athletics and coaches say they really like it. It is not perfect, I think things can always be improved, but it works for us at this point.

BK: Off the top of your head are there any improvements, that can be made to it?

JL: Interestingly enough we are talking about taking the games on Friday to the home courts. I am not saying we will do that. We have one or two athletic directors that are really interested in looking at that game. After tonight’s game (Quarterfinal on home courts) they would play Sunday and Tuesday at the highest ranked team’s court. I think right now there are no major changes in the works, but it is definitely working pretty well

BK: Are there any other conferences looking at this format?

JL: I think more conferences than we realize might do conference tournaments like this. I can’t tell you off the top of my head, but we have had a number of inquiries about how it has worked, how we got here, what our coaches and athletic directors think. Other conferences have brought all the teams together at a central location and it works for them. I think what is important is that we found something that works for us.

BK: Youngstown has been in the league now for five years. How has that worked out so far?

JL: They have been a great member of the Horizon league. To be able to get a team in that market has helped us solidify Northeast Ohio. They are a great travel partner for Cleveland. They have excelled in a number of sports, namely track. Their athletic program is growing. We knew when they came in and they knew when they came in, that having come from the Mid-Continent Conference, that they were going to be behind competitively. We are really excited about the new coaches they have for their basketball programs. We are really pleased in the direction they are going in.

BK: There are now nine teams in the HL, how is the hunt going for a tenth team?

JL: It’s going well. There is way more interest than people realize. Schools are calling us and inquiring as to how you get in and what the process is. It is a matter of timing. We don’t want to do anything that would disrupt other conferences. I think schools we might be interested in are already members of other conferences. So it is a delicate thing. We don’t want to get too far out in front of it or cause any problems for other conferences. So we have to patient, wait and see when the timing might be right. Mike Cusack (WSU Athletic Director) chairs the membership committee. We talk about everything from schools that might contact us or with regard to schools that we might have an interest in. It is an active committee and Mike has chaired it for a long time. We do talk quite often. But we will just have to wait and see. The membership committee is actively engaged in the work they do, which is to recommend or make recommendations on memberships issue to our executive council and to our board.

BK: Aside from being contacted by IPFW and South Dakota State about potential membership are there schools that we are contacting within the framework of what you previously said?

JL: I think you always have a list of schools that you would be interested in if at a point in time they felt they were ready for a move. So I think that is the extent of our activity of the membership committee. I think you also have a list of schools that if something would happen to any of your membership you could act quickly to remain at whatever number of schools you wanted to have.

BK: What is the criteria the HL looks for when considering potential new members?

JL: I think there are four key things in no particular order. There have to be an athletic fit. That means a school should have a similar athletic budget. Two, I think you have to have a geographic fit. You don’t want to be adding somebody two or three states away. Three, you have to have an institution that approaches athletics like everybody else in the league. And finally I think you have to have a fit in terms of competitiveness. You don’t want to bring in someone who may take a long, long time to get up to your level or if you bring in someone that is too far ahead then everyone else is playing for second place.

BK: Where does basketball fit into the mix?

JL: I think if we were to bring a tenth member on we would want someone who had some amount of sustained success in basketball. Basketball is certainly one of the key elements. With Youngstown they brought other things to the table. We thought they would have great potential in basketball and I think in the next two, three or four years you will see that.

BK: Last question. What do you expect this weekend?

JL: Oh, good basketball and a lot of fun.

BK: Oops, there is always a follow up to the last question. Did you see the HL being so competitive this year?

JL: There wasn’t the degree of separation in the League that we might have had in years past. But that is not a bad thing.

Quarterfinal Recaps

No. 3 UW-Green Bay 76, No. 6 UIC 66

UW-Green Bay pulled a Butler in the first game as they rained 3-point baskets on the Flames, making 11 in 22 attempts, and they shot 50 percent for the game, making 28 of 55 shots.

Green Bay Coach Tod Kowalczyk used Ryan Evanochko to get the balls to the open players. “We knew coming out that they were going to play us in a zone, probably for all 40 minutes which they did. The key to that zone was Ryan Evanochko. He did an unbelievable job of being aggressive,” explained Kowalczyk.

Green Bay’s Ryan Tillena was 6-of-9 from 3-point land and 7-of-11 for the game as he scored 22 points to lead the way. Also for the Phoenix, Terry Evans scored 14 points, Mike Schachtner had 12 points and Evanochko scored 11 points with 14 assists.

For the Flames (16-15), Jovan Stefanov scored 19 points, Justin Bowen put in 12 points and Othyus Jeffers chipped in 10 points.

The Phoenix (15-15) fought to get the score up to 38-29 at the half. In the second half, they got up by 15 points on a layup by Aswan Minatee with 52 seconds remaining in the game. The Flames scored the last five points to get the deficit back into single digits, and the Phoenix just dribbled out the clock for the last 10 seconds to advance to play Butler on Saturday at 4:30 EST.

Game Notes:

• Despite the loss UIC is 8-3 in its last 11 league tournament games.
• UIC’s Rocky Cullum hit 3-of-6 from 3-point range and finished the year making 13 of his last 20 tries.
• Green Bay is now 21-18 in the post-season and 11-10 in the league tournament.
• Green Bay leads the all-time series with UIC 40-32.
• This is the first post-season win for Tod Kowalczyk.

No. 4 Loyola 64, No. 5 Detroit 55

After being down 23-22 at the half, Loyola went on a 21-0 run that lasted 8:11 and ended when the Ramblers were up by 23 points when Detroit’s Jon Goode made a 3-pointer with 8:14 remaining in the game.

Loyola (19-10) won the war on the glass by pulling down 43 rebounds to 32 for Detroit (16-16). The Ramblers’ Majak Kou led the attack with nine rebounds.

“Rebounds were paramount for us. Look at Kajak, he had nine rebounds and didn’t have a great night offensively, but he had to guard (Brandon) Cotton and that’s a lot of energy there. When we rebound, we play well,” said Loyola coach Jim Whitesell.

Detroit’s Brandon Cotton got his 20 points but Loyola made him take 24 shots to get it. Ben Green also put in 16 points for the Titans.

For the game, Detroit shot 34.3 percent (22-of-64) and the Ramblers shot 43.4 percent (26-for-56).

A tired and frustrated Detroit Coach Perry Watson said, “The big thing was that it was a defensive letdown. It was one of a couple breakdowns in that first half that hurt us and didn’t let us pull away. We tried to minimize those breakdowns in the second half. Whether it was lack of intensity or lackadaisical, I don’t know.”

Brandon Woods led the Ramblers with 16 points. J.R. Blount put in 15 points while Blake Schilb got 12 points.

Loyola faces Milwaukee at 7 pm EST.

Game Notes:

• Loyola leads the all-time series with Detroit 66-44.
• The Ramblers are now 20-24 all-time in league tournament play.
• Woods’ team-high 16 points were a career high.
• Detroit falls to 23-23 all-time in the league tournament.
• Detroit fails to reach the semifinals for the first time since the 1996-97 series.
• Brandon Cotton surpassed 500 points for this season.

Horizon League Recap

Horizon League 2004-05 Season Recap

by Nick Dettmann

What a year for the Horizon League.

For the second time in three years, a team from the Horizon League reached the regional semifinals of the NCAA tournament, also known as the Sweet 16.

Two years ago, the Butler Bulldogs reached the round of 16 before falling to Oklahoma. This year, the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Panthers surprised everyone but themselves as they reached the Sweet 16 for the first time in school history. It was UWM’s first victory in the NCAA tournament in school history as well.

UWM thoroughly dominated their victories over Alabama and Boston College, teams that were said to be too big and too strong for the smaller Panthers. But UWM coach Bruce Pearl, his staff and his players worked magic by their effective press to hamper the Crimson Tide and the Eagles.

“The fact that the NCAA provides an opportunity to compete for championships is amazing,” former UWM coach Bruce Pearl said after his team’s victory over Boston College. “My time at the NCAA tournament is something I treasure. We are honored to be a part of it, grateful and very, very blessed.

“We may have given away some size but I don’t think we could have played any harder than we did and we feel fortunate to be advancing onto the Sweet 16.”

The Panthers’ reward for reaching the Sweet 16 was a showdown with the University of Illinois Fighting Illini, the number one seed for the tournament in practically their backyard in Chicago. The Panthers hung tight with the nation’s number one team at the time, but, in the end, the Illini, who had a crowd of about 95 percent Illini orange packed into the Allstate Arena, proved to be too much as the Panthers eventually lost.

With all of the success by Pearl and his Panthers, the University of Tennessee came knocking on the door at UWM, wanting Pearl for their head coaching vacancy.

Just four days after the departure from the NCAA tournament, Pearl packed his bags for greener pastures to Knoxville, Tenn. The administration tried everything they could to keep Pearl, but it was not enough. Pearl, with incentives, will make an estimated $1.3 million next season, as opposed to the $300,000 he was scheduled to make next season at UWM.

Pearl also took three of his assistants to Tennessee, Tony Jones, Jason Shay and Ken Johnson, leaving a huge hole in a program that was at its highest point in the 109-year history of the program.

But with the resurgence of the UWM program, the names of the people interested in the job were quite substantial. UWM athletic director Bud Haidet had his heart set right from the beginning that Rob Jeter, the associate head coach at Wisconsin under Bo Ryan, was the man for the job.

On April 12, it was officially announced that Jeter was going to be UWM’s 20th coach in school history and third since the start of the 1999-2000 season. At his press conference, Jeter vowed that the Panthers that captured the hearts of Wisconsin basketball fans and even fans across the country were still going to be the same Panthers.

“We’ll dive after loose balls. We’ll take charges. We’ll take good shots. We’ll press. We’ll get after teams,” Jeter said at his press conference. “You’ll see our point guard blast the ball up the court and all the things people appreciate, but fundamentally, we are going to be sound. I think people appreciate the little things and the fundamentals of the game and the tenacity with which our guys play the game.”

Surprises of 2004-05

For the last half-decade, the Detroit Titans have always been considered the “sleeper” team of the Horizon League. Coupled with a hard-nosed defense and a wide-array of highly-talented transfers joining the team in mid-season, the Titans came within one point of a trip to the NCAA tournament.

Disappointment of 2004-05

The reigning 2003-04 Horizon League tournament champions, the University of Illinois-Chicago Flames, struggled all year long. After narrowly upsetting Georgia Tech in the first game of the season, the Flames were never the same, despite the fact that they had their leading rebounder (Armond Williams) and leading scorer (Cedrick Banks) back.

Recapping the Horizon League tournament

The opening round of the tournament saw the No. 4, No. 5 and No. 6 seeds each win their first round game. The same happened in the second round, but Loyola and UIC played what was, outside of the league title game, the game of the tournament. The Ramblers, behind Blake Schilb’s 39 points, squeaked out an 87-81 victory over the Flames in the quarterfinals.

The semifinals saw an upset. The Titans simply outworked the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay Phoenix en route to a 61-55 victory, advancing to the league championship game. And, it was no surprise that UW-Milwaukee, hosting their third straight league tournament, easily defeated Loyola, 94-76, to advance to the league title game for a third straight season.

But the championship game brought out the best of both teams. With both teams struggling from the free throw line, a clutch performance by Adrian Tigert at the free throw line proved to be the difference. Tigert’s free throw with under five seconds to go, gave UWM a 59-58 lead. Detroit tried a desperation shot at the buzzer, but it was partially blocked, sending the sell-out crowd at the U.S. Cellular Arena into a frenzy. UWM was on their way to a second NCAA tournament appearance in three years.

The postseason

Unlike in past seasons, the Horizon League only had one postseason representative – the UWM Panthers in the NCAA tournament. There was no NIT for the league this year. But, the Panthers sure made notice that the Horizon League is for real. For the second time in three years, a league team pulled off two upsets to reach the Sweet 16.

Postseason awards

Player of the year: Joah Tucker, UWM
Coach of the year: Bruce Pearl, UWM
Newcomer of the year: Brandon Cotton, Detroit
Defensive player of the year: Brandon Cotton, Detroit

All-league team
Joah Tucker, UWM
Ed McCants, UWM
Cedrick Banks, UIC
Blake Schilb, Loyola
Brandon Cotton, Detroit

UW-Milwaukee Panthers (26-6, 14-2)

The post-Bruce Pearl era will be an interesting one out of the gate. As long as Joah Tucker, who is contemplating turning pro, stays, the Panthers will be fine as they return four of five starters from this past season.

Team MVP: Joah Tucker (16.2 points per game)
Top scorer: Ed McCants (17.4 ppg)
Top rebounder: Adrian Tigert (6.7 rpg)
Assist leader: Chris Hill (3.2 apg)

Starters leaving
McCants

Starters returning
Tucker
Boo Davis
Tigert
Hill

UW-Green Bay Phoenix (17-11, 10-6)

What looked to be a promising season at the start ended the same way the previous season did – one game into the Horizon League tournament. Not even a bye into the semifinal helped. But with two players who averaged at least 10 points per game last season coming back, the Phoenix will remain as leading candidates for the championship.

Team MVP: Javier Mendiburu (11.5 points, 7.1 assists per game)
Top scorer: Benito Flores (13.4 ppg)
Top rebounder: Flores (6.5 rpg)
Assist leader: Mendiburu (7.1 apg)

Starters leaving
Matt Rohde
Brandon Morris
Mendiburu

Starters returning
Flores
Ryan Evanochko
Josh Lawrence

Detroit Titans (14-16, 9-7)

The Titans surprised quite a few people as they reached the league championship game, then lost the game by just a single point. But with virtually all of their core players coming back for next season, it would not be far-fetched to think of Detroit as one of the leading contenders for next year’s championship.

Team MVP: Brandon Cotton (18.8 points per game)
Top scorer: Cotton (18.8 ppg)
Top rebounder: Torvoris Baker (5.8 rpg)
Assist leader: James Thues (2.6 apg)

Starters leaving
Thues

Starters returning
Cotton
Ryvon Coville
Baker

Illinois-Chicago Flames (15-14, 8-8)

A little bit of everything went on for the Flames this past season. One player was granted an extra year of eligibility, while another was not; the starting point guard leaves the team during the season and the Flames lose a regular season home game to a Division II program. Point guard Martell Bailey was not granted an extra year of eligibility by the NCAA as a Prop 48 student-athlete, but Armond Williams was. Going into next year, the luck does not look like it will change all that much, now that Williams and Cedrick Banks will be gone.

Team MVP: Banks (18.7 points per game)
Top scorer: Banks (18.7 ppg)
Top rebounder: Williams (6.7 rpg)
Assist leader: Banks (2.5 apg)

Starters leaving
Williams
Banks

Starters returning
Elliott Poole
Rocky Collum
Luther Boyd
Bowen

Wright State Raiders (15-15, 8-8)

A strong finish carried the Raiders into contention to make some noise in the league tournament. But, yet again, the Raiders faltered in the opening round of the tournament. And, next year may get even tougher as only one senior will be on the roster.

Team MVP: DaShaun Wood (15.2 points, 3.7 assists per game)
Top scorer: Wood (15.2 ppg)
Top rebounder: Zach Williams (6.0 rpg)
Assist leader: Wood (3.7 apg)

Starters returning
Williams

Starters leaving
Wood
Zakee Boyd
Drew Burleson

Loyola Ramblers (13-17, 8-8)

The Ramblers have every reason to enter the 2005-’06 season with confidence. A run into the Horizon League tournament semifinals with a youthful squad makes the Ramblers a contender next year, especially with Blake Schilb leading the way.

Team MVP: Schilb (17.9 points, 5.5 rebounds, 4.0 assists per game)
Top scorer: Schilb (17.9 ppg)
Top rebounder: Schilb (5.5 rpg)
Assist leader: Schilb (4.0 rpg)

Starters leaving
DaJuan Gouard
Tyrelle Blair (transferred to Boston College)

Starters returning
Schilb
Majak Kou

Butler Bulldogs (13-15 overall, 7-9 Horizon League)

The Bulldogs had their 11-year streak of a winning season snapped with their loss in the first round of the Horizon League tournament. Since the departure of their seniors that led them to the Sweet 16, the Bulldogs have struggled to be the dominant team of the league, but that time very well may be returning sooner than later.

Team MVP: Brandon Polk (team-high 13.6 points per game)
Top scorer: Polk (13.6 ppg)
Top rebounder: Polk (4.6 rpg)
Assist leader: Avery Sheets (4.0 apg)

Starters leaving
None

Starters returning
Polk
Sheets
Bruce Horan

Cleveland State Vikings (9-17, 6-10)

The league’s worst team last season was probably the most-improved this year. After getting only four victories all of the 2003-04 season, Mike Garland has got this program going in the right direction. Another solid recruiting class for 2005-06 will make the Vikings a team to not take lightly anymore.

Team MVP: Omari Westley (17.1 points and 8.3 rebounds per game)
Top scorer: Westley (17.1 ppg)
Top rebounder: Westley (8.3 rpg)
Assist leader: Walt Chavis (4.2 apg)

Starters leaving
Westley (graduation)
Modibo Niakate (graduation)
Chavis (graduation)

Starters returning
Raheem Moss
Patrick Tatham
Steve Gansey

Youngstown State Penguins (5-23, 2-14)

Well, what looked to happen at the beginning of the season, did. The Penguins fired head coach John Robic and brought in Jerry Slocum, who was previously at Division II Gannon University. Slocum brings in 30 years of coaching experience and a knack for winning. The Penguins need it: Robic only had one winning season during his tenure.

Team MVP: Quin Humphrey (14.4 points per game)
Top scorer: Humphrey (14.4 ppg)
Top rebounder: Brian Radakovich (5.5 rpg)
Assist leader: Jon Mends (3.6 apg)

Starters leaving
Khari McQueen
Radakovich

Starters returning
Humphrey
Mends

Horizon Championship Recap

Horizon League Championship Recap

by Nick Dettmann

MILWAUKEE – For the first 39 minutes and 56 seconds of the Horizon League final between the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and the University of Detroit Titans, free throws were either the saving grace, or the thorn in the side.

During that time, the Panthers shot 50 percent (12-for-24) from the free throw line, while the Titans shot 79 percent (11-for-14). But with 28 seconds left in the heart-wrenching contest, Detroit’s Ryvon Covile stepped to the free throw line with the score tied and the chance to put the Titans one giant step closer to their first NCAA tournament appearance since 1999.

Instead, Covile missed both free throws, allowing UWM a chance to win the game as the shot clock was off. UWM’s Boo Davis held the ball as long as he could and then, with 12 seconds left he tossed the ball into the corner to Adrian Tigert. Tigert drove baseline and was fouled on his way up to the basket.

Tigert lined up his free throws, but missed the first one. But after Bruce Pearl called a timeout, Tigert lined up for his second free throw and drilled it to give UWM the lead and what turned out to be the final margin. The Panthers downed the Titans, 59-58, in the Horizon League final, clinching the league tournament championship and a trip to the NCAA tournament.

Detroit’s Brandon Cotton tried a desperation buzzer-beater, but missed the shot giving the largest crowd to see a UWM basketball game, 10,787 fans a reason to celebrate – UWM’s second trip to the NCAA tournament in three years.

“On the second (free throw),” Tigert recalled about what was going through his mind with the game on his shoulders. “I was just thinking about how hard everyone has worked, from the players to the coaches to the administration, and how much everyone deserved it.

“And I just tried to put the pressure on myself to make it.”

UWM’s Joah Tucker, who scored 15 points, added, “I thought we were going to win the whole game. I tried to instill the confidence in everybody that this was our game to win.

“Detroit played well, they played the best they could, but it was still our game to win. Down the stretch, we just kept executing.”

Cotton scored a game-high 21 points for the Titans, who finish the season with a 14-16 record – their first losing record since the 1994-’95 season.

“I was proud of the way my guys came in here,” Detroit coach Perry Watson said. “They really fought against all odds. I thought they left it on the court.

“I thought Brandon Cotton just was a warrior out there.”

Cotton, a transfer from Michigan State and joined the team at mid-season, said, “I feel like I can go out there and play with anybody. I just played hard tonight and left it all on the court. We just couldn’t get the win.”

After the Panthers (24-5) won the regular season title last year, they cut down the nets at their former home at the Klotsche Center. UWM would, of course, go on to lose the Horizon League title game to Illinois-Chicago, 65-62.

This time around, the Panthers, after clinching their second straight regular season championship, did not cut the nets down and waited for the opportunity to do it at the league final. It paid off.

Led off by Allan Hanson, each player and coach took a pair of scissors and cut down the net. Pearl finished it off and Ed McCants, the league’s player of the year who scored 18 points, had the net draped around his neck.

“It felt good finally cutting down the nets because we didn’t want to do it after we won the league,” Tucker said. “We savored it tonight. It felt much better doing it tonight.”

Pearl added, “I thought that in some ways, Detroit deserved to win that game. But we definitely deserved to win that championship. I think that somehow carried over.”

When asked on where they think they will be seeded, Pearl had one theory in mind.

“I just don’t think we can fall as low as 13 (seed),” he said. “I think that when you’ve won 17 out of your last 18 games and had the kind of year we’ve had, I think we’re in position for an 11 or 12 seed.”

But his players had a different theory.

“I don’t care what seed we get,” McCants said. “I mean, any team we play, we’re probably going to try and run on them and try to run them out of the gym. I hope they underestimate this team because we’re coming in as underdogs and that’s the way we like it.

“The mindset now is nothing to lose. Tonight, we had everything to lose – player of the year, the all-conference players, the guys being here last year and trying to get back to the tournament from two years ago, all the pressure was on us. But now, it’s just relax and play ball.”

Horizon Semifinal Recaps

Horizon League Semifinal Recaps

by Nick Dettmann

Detroit 61, UW-Green Bay 55

MILWAUKEE – Brandon Cotton scored 26 points for the University of Detroit as the Titans defeated the second-seeded University of Wisconsin-Green Bay Phoenix, 61-55, on Saturday, to advance to the Horizon League championship game.

The Titans (14-15) advance to the league’s title game on Tuesday night for the first time since 2001. Detroit lost 53-38 to the Butler Bulldogs that season, but reached the NIT Final Four.

The Phoenix (17-11) finish the season having lost five of its last six games. Green Bay is now 0-3 in league tournament games under coach Tod Kowalczyk, with the last two years coming off of byes.

Brandon Morris would lead four players in double figures for Green Bay with 17 points, with Josh Lawrence adding 13.

After the Phoenix held a 31-24 halftime advantage, it was Detroit’s defense that set the tone. The Titans took the lead for good with 5:19 remaining after a Cotton lay-up and stretched the lead to 53-47 with 56 seconds remaining. Green Bay would get to within two with nine seconds left, but a pair of free throws by Detroit preserved the victory.

“We’ve had a team that’s really has matured throughout the season,” Titans coach Perry Watson said. “We only play one senior and we had to start the season without Brandon (Cotton) because he missed maybe the first eight or nine games because of transfer rules.”

“So now you’ve got a great player that’s really a freshman that you’re trying to teach how to play and teach guys how to play with him.”

UW-Milwaukee 94, Loyola 76

MILWAUKEE – Joah Tucker scored a collegiate-high 31 points as the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee advanced to its third straight Horizon League championship game, following a 94-76 victory over Loyola on Saturday.

The Panthers (23-5) hit 62 percent from the field in the second half, much to the like of the 8,653 fans at the U.S. Cellular Arena – the fourth-largest crowd in UWM history. UWM also equaled its longest winning streak of the season at eight games and have won 16 of the 17 games.

Boo Davis scored 21 points for UWM, while Ed McCants and Chris Hill contributed with 14 and 11 respectively.

Senior DaJuan Gouard scored 29 points to lead the Ramblers (13-17). Blake Schilb, who scored 39 points against Illinois-Chicago in the quarterfinals on Friday night, was held to 12 points on Saturday.

“Joah Tucker probably doesn’t get the kind of credit and talk that he deserves,” UWM coach Bruce Pearl said. “He was the best player on the floor tonight and there have been a lot of games this year where that was the case. He was unstoppable.”

Ramblers’ first-year coach Jim Whitesell added, “I think you have to give Milwaukee an incredible amount of credit. That’s an awfully good basketball team. They were ready to play and they played a very, very good basketball game.”

The league championship game between the Panthers and the Detroit Titans will begin at 8 p.m. (CDT) on ESPN. The game will be played at the U.S. Cellular Arena where a sell-out crowd of almost 11,000 fans are expected.

Horizon League Finals Preview

Horizon League Finals Preview

by Nick Dettmann

MILWAUKEE – Bruce Pearl and the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Panthers are trying to do something that has not been since 2001 – a number one seed win the Horizon League tournament title.

The Panthers advanced to the league final for a third straight season after defeating Loyola University Chicago, 94-76, on Saturday at the U.S. Cellular Arena.

The Butler Bulldogs, in 2001, was the last top-seeded team to win the league tournament. Butler was the top seed in the 2003 tournament when they lost to UWM, but still received an at-large bid.

UWM (23-5 overall) comes into the contest having won 16 of its last 17 games and having lost only one game since a 76-68 setback to the Detroit Titans on Jan. 3. The Titans (14-15) are the only team to have beaten UWM at the U.S. Cellular Arena. In fact, Detroit is a perfect 3-0 in games played in Milwaukee this year.

Detroit reached the title game courtesy of a 61-55 upset of the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay Phoenix on Saturday. The Titans will play in their first league final since 2001, a 53-38 loss to Butler. The Titans went on to the NIT Final Four that season.

The Panthers and Titans will tip-off from the U.S. Cellular Arena at 8 p.m. (CDT) on ESPN.

On Sunday night, during “The Bruce Pearl Show,” which aired on CBS Channel 58 in Milwaukee, Pearl brought up an interesting point. He said that this game on Tuesday night will be the season for Detroit. With a below .500 record, Detroit will not get a berth in the NIT if they lose. So, if Detroit wants to keep this season, they must win on Tuesday night and that is what Pearl feels is going to be the sole motivation for the Titans.

Also on the show, Pearl reiterated that Detroit, in his eyes, is deepest and most athletic team in the league. Coupling that with the fact that Detroit’s season will be over with a loss, the Titans have a ton of motivation for the game.

But that’s not to say that UWM does not have the motivation. UWM watched Illinois-Chicago dance on their home floor in last year’s final after the Flames beat UWM, 65-62. Over the past few weeks, the players and Pearl have all kept that feeling they had after the game in their minds, making sure it does not happen again – especially in front of an anticipated sell-out crowd at the U.S. Cellular Arena.

Fatigue may play a factor on Tuesday night. It will be Detroit’s third game in five days, while UWM has only played two games since an 87-81 victory over Hawaii on Bracket Buster Saturday on Feb. 19.

UWM will use its press to try and create plays. UWM used its press in its league final win over Butler in 2003 and that allowed for a 14-0 lead right away in the first half. But, last year they were unsuccessful in doing that and struggled. The effectiveness of UWM’s ability to create plays will be their biggest challenge.

For Detroit, the more athletic team in Pearl’s eyes will use their size to get rebounds. During the season, which the two teams split, Detroit kept the games close with its rebounding, because both teams struggled to shoot the ball.

Rebounding and creating plays are going to be the two biggest factors on Tuesday night as a berth into the NCAA tournament is on the line.

Keys to the game

UWM

• Rebounding. The Panthers are somewhat undersized when it comes to the five, or center, spot. James Wright and Derrick Ford will be very important to make sure that the Titans stay off the block.
• Turnovers. UWM is famous for creating turnovers off its press. Those turnovers many times lead to points, then runs where they can control the tempo of the game.
• Balance. When UWM gets balanced scoring, they are nearly unbeatable.
• Who’s going to step-up in the spotlight? On Saturday, Joah Tucker scored 31 points. If he and/or Horizon League Player of the Year Ed McCants struggle, who is going to pick-up the slack? Tucker scored 20 points in the victory by UWM over Detroit, zero in the loss.

Detroit

• Rebounding. The Titans hold the advantage size-wise. If Detroit can control the boards, they will be able to hang tight with UWM.
• Experience. Despite the fact that UWM is playing in its third straight league championship game, none of the players on Detroit’s roster has ever played in this caliber of a game. Brandon Cotton, James Thues and Chuck Bailey, transfers from Michigan State, Syracuse and Michigan are the only players on the roster to have played in big-time games. Will inexperience in the spotlight haunt the Titans?
• Bench play. Goes back to experience. For the reason that the Panthers love to run its opponents up and down the floor, fatigue may become a factor. If that happens, the effectiveness of the bench very well may become the life preserver.
• Momentum. The Titans come into Tuesday’s final winners of six of the last eight games and are on a four-game winning streak. With a loud and capacity crowd expected, momentum and focus will be crucial.

Horizon Quarterfinal Recap

Horizon League Quarterfinals Recap

by Nick Dettmann

Loyola 87, Illinois-Chicago 81 (OT)

MILWAUKEE – Sophomore forward Blake Schilb scored a career-high 39 points as the Loyola Ramblers defeated crosstown rival Illinois-Chicago, 87-81 in overtime, in quarterfinal action at the U.S. Cellular Arena.

Schilb, a first team All-Horizon League performer this season, hit 12-of-18 shots from the field and went 13-for-14 from the free throw line.

“I caught the hot hand,” he said. “My teammates did a great job of getting me the ball and I knocked down shots.”

Cedrick Banks led UIC (15-14) with 22 points in his final collegiate game. Banks struggled from the field, however, shooting 7-for-29. Banks finished his career with 2,097 points.

DaJuan Gouard scored 19 points as well for the Ramblers (13-16). Armond Williams and Elliott Poole each had double-digit rebounds with 14 and 10 respectively for UIC.

Detroit 61, Wright State 48

MILWAUKEE – Brandon Cotton scored 19 points to lead the Detroit Titans to a 61-48 victory over the Wright State Raiders in quarterfinal action at the U.S. Cellular Arena.

The Titans (13-15) advanced to the league semifinal game for the second year in a row with the victory. James Thues scored 11 points to round out double-digit scorers for the Titans.

Wright State (15-15) has now lost four straight league tournament games to Detroit. The Raiders struggled from the field, shooting 35 percent, the lowest percentage since 34.1 percent against Southern Illinois on Dec. 14.

“It was a true team win,” Titans coach Perry Watson said. “Everybody contributed and just really had to gut it out because Wright State played extremely well.”

Horizon Tournament Preview

Horizon League Tournament Preview

by Nick Dettmann

MILWAUKEE – For the third year in a row, the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee will be the host school for the Horizon League tournament.

Since the league adopted the new format three years ago, giving the regular season champion hosting rights, the response has been terrific. Ticket sales have been solid for all the tournament games that have been played at the U.S. Cellular Arena in downtown Milwaukee. The last two championship games have drawn over 10,000 fans – league tournament records.

Going into this year’s tournament, the favorite again is the host Panthers. UWM breezed through the Horizon League in 2004-’05 with a 14-2 league record and a 22-5 mark overall. The Panthers have quickly become the powerhouse of the league ever since Bruce Pearl took over the reigns four years ago.

After three first round games played on Tuesday, March 1, which saw Illinois-Chicago, Loyola and Wright State advance, quarterfinal action will begin on Friday, March 4 at the U.S. Cellular Arena.

The first game has the third-seeded Detroit Titans, who received a first-round bye, squaring off against Wright State. The Titans and Raiders split the season series with Detroit capturing the most recent victory, a 71-49 blowout in Detroit on Feb. 10.

The other quarterfinal game will be a battle of the Windy City. Loyola and UIC, who also split the season series with each other winning on the other’s home floor, will be a terrific match-up. UIC, who were predicted to finish second in the league in the pre-season, have struggled just one year removed from a NCAA tournament appearance. Loyola under first-year coach Jim Whitesell has been one of the pleasant surprises in the league this year with a 12-16 overall and 8-8 league record entering play on Friday.

The Saturday semifinals will feature the host state schools of UW-Green Bay and UW-Milwaukee. After a solid start, the Phoenix limped into the postseason, finishing 3-6 over the last nine games. But they were still able to lock-up the number two seed with a 10-6 league record. The Phoenix will play the winner of the Detroit-Wright State game.

The champion Panthers will play the “nightcap” on Saturday and will face the winner of the Loyola-UIC game. Pearl has indicated that there is no one team he would like to face because he has said all year long that there is great parody in the league and that anyone can win on any given day. But if there is any team that he would “like to get back at” it would be UIC, as the Flames danced on the Panthers’ home floor last year after winning the title game, 65-62.

And going into the tournament, there is a lot of talk surrounding whether the Panthers deserve an at-large bid even if they do not prevail in the league tournament. The best chance of that happening would be if UWM got to the title game for a third straight season.

The championship game will be played at the highest remaining seed on Tuesday, March 8 at 8 p.m. on ESPN.

Horizon League Notebook

Horizon League Notebook

by Nick Dettmann

University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (6-0 overall, 1-0 Horizon League)

The Panthers are off to a hot start. The preseason favorites are certainly proving why they were worthy of that selection as they have jumped out to their best start since 1992-93 when they started 8-0. Including easy wins over Prairie View A&M, University of Wisconsin-Parkside and South Dakota State, the Panthers have also scored big victories over Air Force and Saint Louis. But it does not get very easy from here. The Panthers are in the midst of a six-game road trip. They will be in Valparaiso, Ind., on Saturday to face Homer Drew’s Crusaders before road games at Wisconsin and Kansas in Kansas City.

Last week’s results
Wednesday, Dec. 1 – UWM 89, South Dakota State 54. Leading scorer for UWM: Ed McCants (19 points)
Saturday, Dec. 4 – UWM 75, Illinois-Chicago 67. Leading scorer for UWM: Chris Hill (18 points, a career-high)
Tuesday, Dec. 7 – UWM 57, Saint Louis 47. Leading scorer for UWM: Joah Tucker (21 points)

Cleveland State (3-0)

What’s this? The Vikings undefeated? That is no joke. After a team that started their year 4-2 a year ago and then lost a league-record 23 straight games after that, the Vikings could only go one way – up. A slight reason for the positive start for CSU is that they have yet to play a game on the road and plus they have not played North Carolina yet. It’s a little too early to be talking championship at this time of the year. But another factor for the early turnaround is Modibo Niakate. He leads the league in scoring (18.3 points per game entering Wednesday), this after just one year ago, he was dismissed from the team. The Vikings will take their best start since 1985-86 on the road on Wednesday, Dec. 8 to Akron to play the Zips and then return home on Saturday to face Kent State.

Last week’s results
Thursday, Dec. 2 – CSU 91, Clarion 73. Leading scorer for CSU: Raheem Moss (22 points)

University of Wisconsin-Green Bay (4-2)

The Phoenix were practically run off the court following an embarrassing 104-46 loss at Michigan State on Nov. 23. Since then, the Phoenix have made strides towards improvement and continue to be one of the fastest growing programs in the league. A solid win over Weber State and taking nationally ranked Wisconsin to a 10-point defeat at the Kohl Center gives reasons to think so. Green Bay’s defense is ranked eighth in the league, but that stat can be misleading because of their game against the Spartans. Josh Lawrence is leading the way for UWGB as his 14.5 points per game has him seventh in the league. Benito Flores is fourth in the league in rebounding with seven per contest and his two steals per game is second-best. Green Bay will wrap up a three-game road trip with visits to Montana State on Saturday and finish up the home-and-home with Northern Iowa from last year’s ESPN Bracket Buster on the 15th.

Last week’s results
Wednesday, Dec. 1 – UWGB 79, Chicago State 71. Leading scorers for UWGB: Lawrence and Flores (21 points, with 11 and 12 rebounds respectively). Javier Mendiburu celebrated his 24th birthday with four points and seven assists.
Saturday, Dec. 4 – UWGB 82, Weber State 62. Leading scorer for UWGB: Lawrence (24 points, a career-high), also set a Resch Center record by shooting 10-of-11 from the field. The team shot 71 percent, also a Resch Center record.
Tuesday, Dec. 7 – Wisconsin 65, UWGB 55. Leading scorers for UWGB: Lawrence and Mendiburu (10 points)

Butler University (3-2)

The Hinkle Fieldhouse certainly can work magic for the Bulldogs. Butler started the season 3-0 with all of those games played in Indianapolis. Then, they venture out onto the road and now have lost two straight. However, Butler is right there in the midst of league leaders that’s keeping the Horizon League on watch. They are third in scoring and second in defense. A balanced attack has been the theme thus far as their leading scorer, Bruce Horan, is 13th in the league at 13 points per game. To complete the talented backcourt, Avery Sheets is third in the league in assists per game (5.2). The Bulldogs will play their next three games against in-state rivals with Indiana State up first on Saturday, Dec. 11.

Last week’s results
Thursday, Dec. 2 – Ohio 64, Butler 58. Leading scorer for Butler: Horan (17 points). The loss snapped a seven-game win streak by Butler over Ohio.
Tuesday, Dec. 7 – Bradley 75, Butler 66. Leading scorer for Butler: Sheets (17 points)

Wright State University (3-2)

The Raiders got the opportunity to play in the Preseason NIT and made some noise. They defeated Tulsa 72-66 before falling at Arizona, 83-66, in a game where the Raiders would actually outscore the Wildcats 45-41 in the second half. And it was those two games that show that the Raiders are one of the other fastest growing programs in the league. DaShaun Wood may be one of those pivotal cornerstones that are helping get Wright State back on track. His 17.3 points per game has him second in the league and Everett Spencer is third in rebounding. The Raiders have a big home game on Wednesday, Dec. 8 against Miami (Ohio). Then, will follow up with a Fox Sports Ohio telecast on Saturday against Akron.

Last week’s results
Wednesday, Dec. 1 – Ball State 61, Wright State 54. Leading scorer for Wright State: Wood (20 points)
Saturday, Dec. 4 – Wright State 59, Northeastern 53. Leading scorer for Wright State: Drew Burleson (19 points)

Youngstown State University (2-3)

The start of the season has already had its share of up and down moments. When they play well, the Penguins win convincingly. But on the flip side, if they are playing poorly, they are being blown out. And head coach John Robic needs to find some consistency. The Penguins play one of the easiest schedules in the entire league. But a lack of consistent talent is what is slowing them down so far. The Penguins will have two home games this week to hopefully boost their confidence. They get Bowling Green on Saturday, Dec. 11 and Siena on the 14th after their finals.

Last week’s results
SMS Price Cutter Classic
Friday, Dec. 3 – SMS 88, YSU 52. Leading scorer for YSU: Derrick Harris (16 points, a career-high, in his first collegiate start)
Saturday, Dec. 4 – Southeast Louisiana 77, YSU 55. Leading scorer for YSU: Brian Radakovich (16 points)

University of Loyola-Chicago (2-4)

Wright State (13-11, 9-4):

The first portion of the season for first-year head coach Jim Whitesell has been very productive and has shown positive signs, despite the record. Whitesell won his first game, 63-56, over Northern Illinois at the Gentile Center. But, he has not found the win column yet on the road. DaJuan Gouard has really elevated his game as he is averaging almost seven points per game more than he did last season (up to 15.3 from 8.9) – good enough for fifth best in the Horizon League. Blake Schilb is up there as well with 12 points per game for 17th best in the league. A two-point loss at Bradley, four-point losses at Western Michigan and Oral Roberts and a seven-point win over NCAA tournament participant Northern Iowa does have the Ramblers in high spirits as they know they are headed in the right direction. But two tough road games might tell the tale. On Wednesday, Dec. 8, the Ramblers head across the state of Illinois into Macomb to play Western Illinois before playing North Carolina on the 12th.

Last week’s results
Wednesday, Dec. 1 – Oral Roberts 48, Loyola 44. Leading scorer for Loyola: Dave Telander (16 points)
Saturday, Dec. 4 – Northern Iowa 80, Loyola 73. Leading scorer for Loyola: Gouard (27 points, tying a career-high)

University of Detroit (1-4)

It has been a tough start for the boys in the Motor City. An opening game win over Southwest Missouri State almost seems long forgotten as the Titans have dropped four in a row, including one to Purdue. Offense has been hard to come by during that four-game slide as they have not broken 60 points in any of those four games, making them the worse offense in the league at 55 points per game. It is the slowest start for the program since they went 1-12 out of the gates in 1988-89. The games do not get easier. After their meeting with Northeastern on Wednesday, the Titans travel to Cincinnati on Saturday.

Last week’s results
Wednesday, Dec. 1 – Western Michigan 64, UDM 48. Leading scorer for UDM: Ryvon Covile (11 points). It was WMU’s 21st straight home-win, fourth-longest in the nation.
Saturday, Dec. 4 – Bowling Green 59, UDM 53. Leading scorer for UDM: James Thues (14 points)

University of Illinois-Chicago (2-3, 0-1)

After nearly beating Georgia Tech on Nov. 22, the defending league tournament champions have not been a very powerful team. Their offense ranks only sixth in the league at 63 points per game and defense is seventh at 64 points per game. But one thing is for sure, if you play UIC, the game will be close. But not winning the close games is what can make or break any team’s season, and after UWM dominated the Flames in the last few minutes on Saturday, the Flames need to find a rhythm. That may change as Saturday’s match-up against the Panthers saw the return of league tournament MVP Armond Williams return to the lineup. Williams was forced to sit the early portion of the season for academic reasons and he was a Proposition 48 player. But, he completed his classes in the nick of time and was able to see very valuable minutes against UWM. Now the Flames have the outside threat in Cedrick Banks, complimented with the inside physical play of Williams. The Flames have a tough road ahead. On Sunday, they will play the back-half of the home and home from last season’s ESPN Bracket Buster Saturday in UNC-Wilmington. Then, two days later, the Flames will play at Duke on ESPN2, before a cross-town rivalry match-up with DePaul on Saturday the 18th.

Last week’s results
Saturday, Dec. 4 – UWM 75, UIC 67. Leading scorer for UIC: Banks (16 points)

Interview with Paul Biancardi

Coach Biancardi Spills the Beans

by Bill Kintner

An interview with Wright State Coach Paul Biancardi where he talks about the Raiders, how he coaches, the Horizon League and even where to get some good Italian food.

When I arrived at Coach Biancardi’s office he came out and greeted me warmly. For the first twenty minutes we talked about basketball arenas, coaches that we both knew and college basketball in general. When the tape recorder went on for the next seventy minutes he talked very openly about his coaching philosophies, his past, as well as a few more light-hearted topics. When the tape jammed, he smiled and was happy to answer a few questions again.

One thing that is clear is that character is an important attribute that he looks for in the players that he recruits. He made it clear that he would not take a chance on character.

Another thing that stood out was that with all the talent Coach Biancardi has recruited he still believes there are a lot of question marks with how fast it will all come together. Being competitive in the Horizon League is what he predicted.

The last thing that I think readers will find is that along with the serious side of Coach Biancardi – a coach on a mission – there is also a lighter side that comes through at times during our discussion.

So kick back and enjoy this interview with one of the rising stars in coaching.

Bill Kintner: Coach, tell me about your team this year.

Coach Biancardi: We’ve got seven new guys, and four returners. I really like our team. I think we have more depth than last year. We have a lot of unknowns. And we’re very, very young and inexperienced this year. We have to get some chemistry because we have so many new and different guys.

Kintner: One thing in our prior conversation you talked a lot about was chemistry. You mentioned it a little bit here. What goes into making chemistry? And in terms of chemistry, what can kill chemistry?

Coach Biancardi: Well, what goes into it is everyone being on the same page, everyone believing in each other…everyone working toward one common goal. Chemistry has to be fostered. It isn’t something where you say, “Hey fellas, we have to have chemistry.” When they hear that they really don’t know what it means. Chemistry is something that is learned and chemistry is something that is very valuable to any team in any sport. What could kill that? Selfish attitudes. People who don’t believe in the system or people who don’t believe in other people. Agendas…… personal agendas will hurt a program. There are a lot of things that can creep in. Jealousy can creep in. A lot of negative can creep in and hurt chemistry. Hopefully you try to keep those negatives away from your program and away from your individuals.

Kintner: How do you see Wright State fitting in with the Horizon League this year?

Coach Biancardi: Competitive. I think we’ll be competitive in every game and that’s all you can ask for – to be competitive and have a chance to win every game. We finished in the top half of the league last year. We hope to possibly finish a little higher than that. We were playing for first place last year in February. I would like to do that again this year.

Kintner: Let’s talk a little about your personal philosophy in terms of basketball. What’s your philosophy in terms of overall coaching?

Coach Biancardi: Just to coach the game the way I envision it to be played: aggressive, full speed all the time. Every possession is so important. You can’t take a possession off in any game because it could come back to haunt you. Offensively, let the guys play a little bit. Don’t have them so robotic where they just have to go from A to B and B to C and C to D (and not have any freedom). Try to teach the guys how to play the game with some set plays and some alignments, along with some structure. Obviously you have to have structure. You don’t want to strangle them from an offensive standpoint. From a defensive standpoint, you know you have to be so disciplined from a defensive standpoint – individually and as a unit – to be good. So you need both ends of the court to win. I think the defense really does win championships because you can count on your defense, maybe, every night. You can’t count on your offense every night to hit certain numbers. Does that make me a defensive coach and not an offensive coach? No, not at all. We’ve got to put points on the board. I want to do that as much as possible but you have more control over your defense than you do your offense. So I think the emphasis on the defense is the reason that most coaches and most championship teams win, because they emphasize something that they’re very good at that they can control. You emphasize both the same, but you really have control over only one.

Kintner: How much does the offense feed off a good defense?

Coach Biancardi: A lot. When you make stops…… you block a shot that can feed into transition offense. When you take a charge, that gets the adrenaline going. When you can just make a stop on the defensive end I think you put confidence in yourself and there’s a juice that goes down to the other end on offense. Defense can really help your offense and it can lead to some easy baskets as well.

Kintner: What about recruiting? What’s your basic philosophy on recruiting?

Coach Biancardi: The basic philosophy, Bill, is to find the guys that we think can help us win the Horizon League on a talent level. Everything said, character is as important to us as talent. We’ve got to find guys that we believe to have good character – guys that are coachable, guys that listen, guys that are respectful, guys that have good attitudes. That’s all part of good character. If those individuals have those things (with the talent) they can become a good player here over time because this is such a competitive level of basketball. If they have bad character its going to diminish progress, stunt the growth of the team’s progress, and something you really don’t have time to deal with in this business is bad character. Now immaturity and bad character – you have to know how to separate the two. A lot of kids are immature and have growing up to do. If they’re lazy maybe they’ll grow out of that and I think that’s part of our jobs at times. But if it happens over and over again, I think we have to stay away from those kids. The third part is academics, where we feel they can do the college work and they have an interest in not just doing college work but they have a real strong interest in getting a degree. If they don’t have that then it’s not going to work.

Kintner: Do you start in Southwest Ohio then expand out from there into Indiana, Kentucky and Michigan?.

Coach Biancardi: We want to exhaust every available opportunity in Ohio. Specifically starting with Southwest Ohio because that is where we are and that’s where our name is. Ohio has been very good to Wright State. So I think we go up to the borders of Indiana and Michigan. We have some contacts up in those states and it’s very important to have contacts in areas – much better than to just go into areas.

Kintner: The class you’ve got coming in, how did it came about? You looked at some needs and filled them? Or you just recruited the best athletes you could get? How did that work?

Coach Biancardi: Well, it’s a balanced class. We have size with Jordan Pleiman and Parysh Munroe. And Everett Spencer can play inside too. . It’s a class of guards and post players. So we think we fit our needs of size for sure. We feel that we upgraded our talent and that it can help us win the league as these young men progress over time. These are freshman. They’ve got to develop into the players that we see that they can be. We’re real happy with the kids that we brought in. They’re all wonderful kids in terms of that they are the type of character kids that we want. We’re pretty sure about that and they’re all taking care of their business academically. So we’re real happy with these kids and we want them to grow with our program. That’s the most important thing. It’s a process; we have to develop them over the course of time.

Kintner: What’s the difference between coaching at a Wright State and coaching at an Ohio State?

Coach Biancardi: Basketball wise and on the court you’re dealing with players that are stronger and , faster. Some guys are more talented on paper.

Kintner: What were you responsible for at Ohio State?

Coach Biancardi: A bit of everything. You know over the years it was a seven year process in almost every aspect of the program – from A to Z.

Kintner: Did you kind of grow a little bit in terms of your responsibilities from when you got there?

Coach Biancardi: Your roles get defined a little bit more as time goes on. But you have many things that an assistance coach does. It’s not just one thing. Assistant coaches can do a lot of everything.

Kintner: Name one thing that you took away from coaching in past jobs…

Coach Biancardi: On the basketball court?

Kintner: Anywhere.

Coach Biancardi: There are so many wonderful things. It’s hard to pick the number one thing. To do the right thing for the right reason.

Kintner: Scheduling is a tricky business. What’s your philosophy on scheduling?

Coach Biancardi: To have a competitive and balanced schedule. Really, because there are so many factors that go into scheduling : opponents, dates, building facilities being available…so it’s a lot harder than people realize to schedule a game. And both people have to want to do it. If you call a school and they don’t want to play you, it doesn’t matter if the dates and the buildings are available. If they don’t want to come to your place it’s not going to happen.

Kintner: How does RPI figure into scheduling? Do you have a formula that gives you some guidelines – if one of the teams you schedule has let’s say a three-year rolling RPI of 200 or below so that even if you beat them the RPI goes down.? Do you look at those kinds of things?

Coach Biancardi: Those things are looked at a little bit but, for our program, we just have to find people that we can play here at the Nutter Center and then be able to go on the road. I mean, again, you want to find teams that are competitive and balanced. And everybody’s good. Everybody’s giving out scholarships. Some programs are up and down when you play them, but if you look at teams in the top two or three in their league this year it should be competitive. So our schedule this year is probably a little bit above competitive; it’s tough.

Kintner: Okay, I just want you to give me a sentence or two on each of these coaches: Tim Buckley.

Coach Biancardi: Loyal, hard-working, a good friend. Great coach.

Kintner: Barry Collier.

Coach Biancardi: Program builder, charismatic, very good at what he does.

Kintner: Rick Pitino.

Coach Biancardi: Set a lasting impression upon me as a youngster when I went to his practices at Boston University. One of the elite in college basketball.

Kintner: Todd Lickliter.

Coach Biancardi: Good coach. Nice person.

Kintner: Sean Miller.

Coach Biancardi: (Chuckles) Sean, on a trip to Canada, with the Big East all-stars played feisty, competitive, tough. Great person. Will do an unbelievable job at Xavier.

Kintner: Brian Gregory

Coach Biancardi: Hard-working, diligent, dedicated to his profession, has done and will do a very good job at Dayton.

Kintner: Charlie Coles.

Coach Biancardi: Like your grandfather – a guy you can just absorb a lot of knowledge and experience from. I got to play him this year. One of the best in the business.

Kintner: Phil Martelli.

Coach Biancardi: What you see is what you get. A great guy. Charismatic and caring. What can I say, he’s Italian. A good guy and very personable. Easy to get along with. Very good at what he does. As a head coach, he’s made a great transition.

Kintner: Steve Alford.

Coach Biancardi: A player I used to watch on TV. Has moved up in the ranks of the coaching profession now in the Big Ten. Does a good job at Iowa. He is a good person and good family guy. He’s got Iowa ready to break through there in the Big Ten. A good person to be with. Insightful. I do believe he is one of the best in the business and I don’t say that about everybody.

Kintner: Jim O’Brien.

Coach Biancardi: Jim O’Brien? Full of integrity. A person who always does the right thing for the right reason. Obviously, a guy who’s come up from the ranks over time. Started as a high school coach in Pittsburgh. Somebody I really admire.

Kintner: Finally, Pete Gillen.

Coach Biancardi: Funny, witty, full of life and passion, intensity. I mean wherever he goes he gets the job done.

Kintner: Now I want to talk about food. Since you’ve been around, you’ve traveled coast to coast – and this is being read by people from coast to coast. And they want to know where a traveled guy eats. So if you could, give me your top restaurants.

Coach Biancardi: I don’t go out to a lot of restaurants. I eat in the hotel a lot (chuckling) because of the lack of time and fatigue to be honest with you. You know when I go to Boston I know where to go because it’s my home city. I don’t think you can get a bad meal in New York. In Ohio, Trattoria Roma in Columbus – they’ve got great Italian food. Right here in Dayton, Mamma Di Salvo’s, obviously I like Italian food (both laugh). But I’m not a big restaurant guy. I don’t know names of restaurants. One that I do go to that is good wherever you go is The Palm in New Jersey, in Washington D.C. – last year at the final four I think there was one in San Antonio. I know good food but sometimes I don’t always know where to get it.

Kintner: Stick with me I know where to get it! If we looked on your CD player, what CD’s are sitting on it?

Coach Biancardi: My personal music CD players? Because there’s the TV ones…

Kintner: Let’s stick with music.

Coach Biancardi: There’s a combination of Rod Stewart, Elton John, Madeline, Disney (because we travel with the kids we have to have music for them), and then when the kids are not in the car I listen to Elton John, Rod Stewart, and Shania Twain. I’m trying to think who else. Oh, Phil Collins too.

Kintner: An eighties guy.

Coach Biancardi: I’m an eighties guy.

Kintner: So am I.

Coach Biancardi: And we have the music for the kids: the Madeline, the Disney’s, the Amations…all that good stuff.

Kintner: That one-hour a week you don’t spend on basketball …….

Coach Biancardi: …watching films and all that stuff?…I’m with my family. I mean they’re the heart and soul of what I have. I enjoy being with them. I love being with my wife, I love being with my kids, and I like it whether I am just with my kids or I am just with my wife. I enjoy that – and I enjoy all of us being together. That’s what I enjoy the most. I try to work out; I try to get in my one or two work-outs in a month (CB laughs). I try to play a little golf in the summer because I I enjoy being outside. It’s such a great game to play.

Kintner: Final question. What excites you when you get up?

Coach Biancardi: : What excites me when I wake up in the morning? Getting one of my daughters off to school. That excites me every day because you never know from day to day how that’s going to happen. That’s exciting for me. I enjoy it. And, going to work. I’m glad that I have the family that I do. I’m a big family person and truthfully, I am glad to just go to work and have the family that I do. I have simple pleasures in life. And my career and my family are my greatest pleasures.

Kintner: Thank you coach.

Coach Biancardi: I enjoyed it.

Horizon League Preview

Horizon League Preview

by Nick Dettmann

For the second straight season last year, the Horizon League championship game pitted the top two teams in the league. For the second straight year, the game had the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee as one of the teams. For the second straight year, the title game was played at the U.S. Cellular Arena in downtown Milwaukee.

Will it be a third straight year?

With the talent coming back for UWM, there is no expectations less than the Horizon League championship in both the regular season and the league tournament for the Panthers.

Entering this season, the Panthers are the runaway favorites for the league this year. They may be even primed for an at-large bid. However, that is going to be difficult considering their non-league schedule. The Panthers have road games against Saint Louis, Valparaiso, Wisconsin, Kansas, Manhattan and Purdue this season. They also will play NCAA participant Air Force on Nov. 28 at home.

But it will not be clear sailing for UWM.

The defending league tournament champions the University of Illinois-Chicago returns two of their core players from the last year. Cedrick Banks and Armond Williams, the tournament most valuable player, were granted another year of eligibility by the NCAA. Point guard Martell Bailey was denied another season. But with Banks and Williams still in the picture, the Flames are certain contenders.

The University of Wisconsin-Green Bay will also be contenders after their great turnaround season of a year ago. Third year coach and Hoopville.com Horizon League coach of the year Tod Kowalczyk has the program going in the right direction. Javier Mendiburu will be one of the anchors for the talented, but inexperienced team.

Butler will also be another team to contend with. No matter which way they do it, the Bulldogs always seem to click at the right time of the year. Despite having their seven-straight 20-win season streak snapped last year, an Avery Sheets and Bruce Horan backcourt will provide a lot of offense for a team that may struggle on defense.

Preseason Awards

First team
Ed McCants, UW-Milwaukee
Cedrick Banks, Illinois-Chicago
Armond Williams, Illinois-Chicago
Omari Westley, Cleveland State
Joah Tucker, UW-Milwaukee

Second team
Brandon Morris, UW-Green Bay
Ryvon Coville, Detroit
Avery Sheets, Butler
Bruce Horan, Butler
Quin Humphrey, Youngstown State

All-Newcomer team
Derrick Ford, UW-Milwaukee
Brandon Polk, Butler
Zach Williams, Wright State
Mike Adams, Youngstown State
Steve Gansey, Cleveland State

Player of the year:

Ed McCants, UW-Milwaukee

Coach of the year:

Bruce Pearl, UW-Milwaukee

Newcomer of the year:

Zach Williams, Wright State

1. UW-Milwaukee Panthers (20-11 overall, 13-3 Horizon League)

The Panthers return four starters from a team that just missed their second straight trip to the NCAA tournament. An enormously talented team with a lot of depth and one of the top rising coaches in the country, Bruce Pearl, roaming the sidelines, the 2004-’05 season will be one to remember.

Projected starting line-up:
G – Chris Hill, Jr.
G – Ed McCants, Sr.
F – Joah Tucker, Jr.
F – Adrian Tigert, Jr.
C – Derrick Ford, Jr.

Key loss:
F, Dylan Page (Horizon League player of the year)

Top newcomers:
Derrick Ford
Jason McCoy

2. Illinois-Chicago Flames (24-8, 12-4)

Thank goodness that the NCAA granted Cedrick Banks and Armond Williams another year of eligibility. Because if not, the Flames would have been in serious trouble to figure out who was going to be the “go to” guy. It is because Banks and Williams are returning for a fifth season that UIC will remain a contender. But it will be tough as UIC plays half of the Final Four field from last season (Georgia Tech and Duke).

Projected starting line-up:
G – Marcetteaus McGee, Soph.
G – Cedrick Banks, Sr.
F – Elliott Poole, Jr.
F – Armond Williams, Sr.
C – Josip Petrusic, Sr.

Key loss:
Martell Bailey (second in nation in assists per game)

Top newcomer:
Luther Boyd

3. UW-Green Bay Phoenix (17-11, 11-5)

After one of the biggest turnarounds in the country, the Phoenix are ready to go to the next level. They fell apart as they lost in the quarterfinals of the league tournament a year ago. But with much of the same team returning in 2004-’05, the Phoenix are destined to not let that happen again. They can very easily sneak up on teams and will do so this year.

Projected starting line-up
G – Matt Rhode, Sr.
G – Brandon Morris, Sr.
F – Javier Mendiburu, Sr.
F – Tyler Koening, Soph.
C – Josh Lawrence, Soph.

Key losses:
Mike King

Top newcomer:
Benito Flores

4. Butler Bulldogs (16-14, 8-8)

The Bulldogs will rebound from an “average” season last year. The Bulldogs spent much of the early part of 2003-’04 figuring out who was capable of doing what. Now that their backcourt is returning, the Bulldogs will be able to compete for the league title. But a relatively soft schedule may not get the Bulldogs prepared enough. Their only true test will come in late December when they play in a tournament at Arizona, where they already will play NCAA tournament participant Richmond.

Projected starting line-up:
G – Avery Sheets, Jr.
G – Bruce Horan, Jr.
F – Jeff James, Jr.
F – Brandon Polk, Jr.
C – Jamie Smalligan, Soph.

Key losses:
Mike Monserez (team’s leading rebounder)
Duane Lightfoot (team’s leading scorer)

Top newcomers:
Julian Betko (will be eligible in second semester after transfer from Clemson)
Brandon Polk

5. Detroit Titans (19-11, 10-6)

One of the league’s top defensive units suffered a major blow the loss of three quality seniors, two of which were in the backcourt. The Titans will struggle to start out the year as they try to figure out their rotation. The Titans have a lot of talent, but do not have a lot of talented depth. In addition, they are not very experienced in the big game. But, a difficult non-league schedule will get them prepared for the big game.

Projected starting line-up:
G – James Thues, Sr.
G – Ben Green, Jr.
F – Torvoris Baker, Jr.
F – Clarke Headen, Sr.
C – Ryvon Coville, Jr.

Key losses:
Elijah Warren
Jimmy Twyman
Willie Wallace

6. Wright State Raiders (14-14, 10-6)

Second year head coach Paul Biancardi will face similar questions that he did at this time last year. As new coach, he did not know what to expect and what kind of players he had. This year, that is again the case as his top two players, Vernard Hollins and Seth Doliboa, are no longer with the team as they have graduated. But one thing he knows for sure is the type of player he is getting in Zach Williams. Williams transferred to Wright State after being a three year starter at Ohio State, where Biancardi was an assistant coach. Williams’ 6-foot-7 240 pound frame and Big Ten experience is going to by key for another youthful squad.

Projected starting line-up:
G – DaShaun Wood, Soph.
G – Jaron Taylor, Jr.
F – Vova Severovas, Soph.
F – Zakee Boyd, Soph.
C – Zach Williams, Sr.

Key losses:
Vernard Hollins
Seth Doliboa
Alex Kock

Top newcomers:
Zach Williams
Jaron Taylor

7. Youngstown State Penguins (8-20, 4-12)

There is slight question of John Robic’s job coming into this season. Entering his sixth season with YSU, Robic is 53-90 and have not had a winning season. Improvement looks like it will be tough, but very much possible. The Penguins lost Academic All-American Adam Baumann to graduation, so the center spot is open. However, the Penguins have enough talent in their backcourt to keep them in games. A soft schedule is going to help as well.

Projected starting lineup:
G – Jon Mends, Jr.
G – Quin Humphrey, Soph.
F – Khari McQueen, Sr.
F – Brian Radakovich, Sr.
C – Mike Adams, Jr.

Key losses:
Adam Baumann
Doug Underwood

Top newcomer:
Mike Adams

8. Cleveland State Vikings (4-25, 0-16)

Anything will be better than what the Vikings went through a year ago. After their promising start of a 4-2 record, including taking North Carolina down to the wire, everything fell apart from there. But second year head coach Mike Garland got his first chance to recruit the players he wants to build for his program. The former Michigan State assistant was an important part of the Spartans’ run for the national championship as he was the recruiting coordinator. So he knows how to recruit. Thankfully, Garland still has one of top players from last year and has a former All-Newcomer team selection as well.

Projected starting lineup:
G – Walt Chavis, Jr.
G – Victor Morris, Soph.
G – Modibo Niakate, Sr.
F – Omari Westley, Sr.
F – Luke Murphy, Soph.

Key losses:
Pape Badiane
Jermaine Robinson
Percell Coles

Top Newcomers:
Frashon McGee
Steve Gansey

9. Loyola-Chicago Ramblers (9-20, 4-12)

A new head coach is why the Ramblers will finish in the cellar of the league this year. Jim Whitesell had 12 very successful years at Lewis University, but it will take at least this year to figure out what he has. Hopefully, Whitesell will have the kind of year that Wright State’s Biancardi had and not the kind of year that Cleveland State’s Garland had. The early part of the season will tell what kind of year the Ramblers are going to have.

Projected starting lineup:
G – Majak Kou, Soph.
G – DaJuan Gouard, Sr.
F – Blake Schilb, Soph.
F – Anthony Smith, Sr.
C – Tyrelle Blair, Soph.

Key losses:
Terrance Whiters
Paul McMillian

Top Newcomer
Dave Telander