It's early, but who do you got?

[DawgieStyle]

So, it's early in the off season and alot of the final pieces aren't in place yet, but let's do this anyway. For the 2006-2007 Season, who's 1) winning the Valley Regular season crown? 2) Winning the MVC tourney? 3) making the NCAA tournery? AND! Give supporting reasons why.

[outpost]

So, it's early in the off season and alot of the final pieces aren't in place yet, but let's do this anyway. For the 2006-2007 Season, who's 1) winning the Valley Regular season crown? 2) Winning the MVC tourney? 3) making the NCAA tournery? AND! Give supporting reasons why.

Report should be type-written, double-spaced, and punctuation and spelling will be scrutinized for accuracy.

(The good news is that this report isn't due until sometime in October!!!)

:valley: :valley: :valley:

[DawgieStyle]

1) I've got SIU winning the regular season crown. They have the most proven talent coming back, and the most depth, which will only add to their ability to crank up the defensive pressure. Also several new scoring options are now coming in, so their offense should improve just enough to win the regular season.

2) I've got Creighton winning the MVC tourney. They have a lot of proven talent coming back, but will need time to gel with Funk and Dotzler coming back from injury, this will keep them from winning the reg. season, but by MVC tourney time they have the most potential upside of any team in the valley, similar to Bradley this last year, and will have gelled by that point.

3) Sadly I've only got 3 teams from the Valley making the NCAA tourney this coming Year. SIU and Creighton for the reasons stated above. I think the third will probably be Wichita. They lose Paul Miller, but believe they have enough core players returning to have a good season. They won't duplicate last years run with out Paul Miller, but they have enough in the tank to make the Dance.

As for Bradley, the POB departure really kills their chances. For the Bears of Misery State, as long as Barry Hinson is coach they will continue to dwell in mediocrity. No. IA. losing their coach and Jacobsen in the same year will do them in.

As for the rest of the league? Same as usual..bottom feeders, with Drake and Evansville possibly surprising some people.

[gosmsgo]

#1. Missouri State

#2. Missouri State

#3. Missouri State

Reasons why?

BARRY HINSON....nuff said.

[DawgieStyle]

If Barry Hinson is such a great coach, where's all those NCAA trips from the last several years?? Hmmmmmm.....

[gosmsgo]

If Barry Hinson is such a great coach, where's all those NCAA trips from the last several years?? Hmmmmmm.....

you are as sharp as a mud puddle.

[DawgieStyle]

ok gosmsgo....seriously who do you really got man?

[Mike]

Whoa, it really is early but my predictions would be:

(1) SIU to win the regular season title. I base this on the return of all starters and the fact that they are so tough at home and have seemed to have Creighton's "number" of late.

(2) Creighton is my pick for the tournament champion and a VERY close second for the regular season title also. Reasons: The return of Nate Funk and Josh Dotzler from injury, the return of Dane Watts and Anthony Tolliver as starters, the addition of KU transfer, Rich Bahe, and a very good recruiting class consisting of Miles, Lawson and, if rumors are correct, Ty Morrison.

(3) NCAA Tournament teams will be SIU, Creighton, Wichita State and Northern Iowa.

[gosmsgo]

creighton

creighton

cu, siu, uni, drake

barry finally gets the hammer.

[DawgieStyle]

you've got uni and drake in the tourney? Please explain, I'd love to hear the rationale behind this.

[MSNSaluki]

i think creighton is the regular-season winner, the valley tournament winner and the candidate to make the deepest post-season run. the jays are loaded.

siu will nip at the Jays' heels, as will wichita, northern iowa and mo. state.

[DawgieStyle]

just keep in mind...how often has the regular season champ gone on to win the MVC tourney? Just a tid bit to keep in mind.

[shockerfan13]

Right now I guess I'll go with:

1) Creighton regular season champs

2) Valley tourney really does depend on matchups. I'll go with either WSU or SIU winning the tourney.

3) NCAA tourney: Creighton, SIU & WSU....possible 4th of either UNI or Mo St.


Oh and I hate Creighton, and it pains me to pick them that way....but they will be loaded next year with Tolliver & Funk being a pretty dangerous combo for teams to try and guard.

[tgcshock]

I would have CU winning the regular season with SIU and WSU in a battle for second. SIU can take second if they find some offense (not a given by the way) and WSU can take it if Phillip Thomasson competently handles the center position vacated by Paul Miller. I would expect either SIU or WSU to win the MVC tournament and think that these three teams (CU, WSU, SIU)are the realistic NCAA tourney teams. I would love to get four teams in but am not sure whether MSU can get it done.

I think all three of the above mentioned teams can make decent runs in the NCAA but how deep always depends on the luck of the draw.

[JayJay]

So, it's early in the off season and alot of the final pieces aren't in place yet, but let's do this anyway. For the 2006-2007 Season, who's 1) winning the Valley Regular season crown? 2) Winning the MVC tourney? 3) making the NCAA tournery? AND! Give supporting reasons why.


OK, I'll bite. Here is my predicted order of finish in the regular season:

1) CU 14-4
2) SIU 12-6
3) WSU 11-7
4) DU 10-8
5)(tie) BU 9-9
5)(tie) Ill State 9-9
7) MSU 8-10
8) NIU 7-11
9) UE 6-12
10) Ind St 4-14

Sorry, Dawgs, but CU is the clear favorite. Not that you won't beat CU again down in Carbondale, but your run at the Q is over. Drake will surprise with a fourth place finish. MSU and NIU will have down years. Ill State is on the rise: watch out is 07-08.

MVC Tourney: A crap shoot, as usual. I'll go with WSU.

NCAA: CU, SIU, WSU.

NIT: DU, BU, Ill State.

[valleyclimber]

whoa there dawgie!! The difference between some of your already so-called "bottom feeders" and mighty SIU last year was very slight. Speaking of
slight, you might want to rethink your bottom grouping because a couple of those teams ARE going to suprise. Hmmmm.....maybe even suprise the ugly dawgs!

Don't mean to slam you, but I'd have to completely disagree with your easy dismission of your "bottom feeders". I have no doubt in my mind that not only will this year's Valley race be extremely competitive (like last year), but we will also see the rise of a couple of teams that have been a been a bit down. Just my opinion, but who knows? :grin: :valley:

[DawgieStyle]

I'm having some trouble understanding Creighton being this overwhelming favorite next year. They bring back alot of people they had last year and yes funk was part of that team before he got injured. SIU brings back every single person, except walk ons as well. Now I know Funk was injured, and so was Dotzler, but didn't SIU finish basically tied with CU last year and beat them head to head twice. Where in all of that does it point to CU being this "overwhelming" favorite over SIU? I do think you could toss the two in a hat at this point and blindly pick a winner, but to call one an overwhelming favorite over the other, I just don't understand, nor can I see any real justification to do so. If anything with Funk being injured he's a bigger x-factor than anything. What if he doesn't fully recover or what if the team doesn't gel with him? Again, I think CU will be very very good next, and MIGHT win the Valley, but to deem them the overwhelming favorite is unwarranted.

[shockerfan13]

I'm having some trouble understanding Creighton being this overwhelming favorite next year. They bring back alot of people they had last year and yes funk was part of that team before he got injured. SIU brings back every single person, except walk ons as well. Now I know Funk was injured, and so was Dotzler, but didn't SIU finish basically tied with CU last year and beat them head to head twice. Where in all of that does it point to CU being this "overwhelming" favorite over SIU? I do think you could toss the two in a hat at this point and blindly pick a winner, but to call one an overwhelming favorite over the other, I just don't understand, nor can I see any real justification to do so. If anything with Funk being injured he's a bigger x-factor than anything. What if he doesn't fully recover or what if the team doesn't gel with him? Again, I think CU will be very very good next, and MIGHT win the Valley, but to deem them the overwhelming favorite is unwarranted.


I just think CU will have just as good talent if not better than SIU and they are better coached. Therfore I feel they are the favorite.

[DawgieStyle]

thats cool, I can see an arguement for favorite....that's cleary plausible for CU. But it's the post about being "clear" favorites and "over whelming" favorites, I don't get. It's not like CU is stocked with NBA players and SIU and WSU have HS walk ons as their players.

[troutangler]

OK, I'll bite. Here is my predicted order of finish in the regular season:

1) CU 14-4
2) SIU 12-6
3) WSU 11-7
4) DU 10-8
5)(tie) BU 9-9
5)(tie) Ill State 9-9
7) MSU 8-10
8) NIU 7-11
9) UE 6-12
10) Ind St 4-14

Sorry, Dawgs, but CU is the clear favorite. Not that you won't beat CU again down in Carbondale, but your run at the Q is over. Drake will surprise with a fourth place finish. MSU and NIU will have down years. Ill State is on the rise: watch out is 07-08.

MVC Tourney: A crap shoot, as usual. I'll go with WSU.

NCAA: CU, SIU, WSU.

NIT: DU, BU, Ill State.

MSU 8-10 in the Valley? There is absolutely no way we will finish 8-10 in the conference next year with the players we have coming back and the addition of a point guard and possibly another forward. I can't say we'll win the league, but 8-10 is not going to happen.

Creighton is my pick to win the league. I'll go with either MSU or WSU to win the Valley tournament.

NCAA tourney teams: Creighton, SIU, WSU, MSU (only if we win the tournament)

[shockerfan13]

thats cool, I can see an arguement for favorite....that's cleary plausible for CU. But it's the post about being "clear" favorites and "over whelming" favorites, I don't get. It's not like CU is stocked with NBA players and SIU and WSU have HS walk ons as their players.


I got ya...I can see an argument made for CU, SIU and even WSU to win it next year. At this point it's hard to tell and we can only go by what's on paper. I don't think any one of them are the "overwhelming" favorite and think it'll be another tight race to the finish next year much like this year.

[jt45]

Its too early, but for arguments sake I'll play along.

SIU wins the Valley regular season title. With WSU,CU,MOst tied for 2nd a game back.

WSU beats CU for the tourney title.

SIU,WSU,and CU make the Dance.....sorry Most no love again.

It should be another very competitive year in The Valley. I think that from top to bottom their won't be too awfully much difference in records and probably a 3 or 4 way tie for 2nd. This ? will be somewhat easier when all the schedules come out.

[Bird]

I think there are 2 reasons CU should win the conference next year - Tolliver and Funk. They may be the 2 best players in the Valley. Add in Dotzler who is among the top 2-3 point guards in the Valley (if he is healthy, that is) and Nick Porter who was the Newcomer of the year last year, and we should be pretty tough. Now if our recruiting class helps us in the least, this will easily be Altman's most talented team from top to bottom.

Starting 5

Dotzler
Funk
Porter
Watts
Tolliver

Next 5

Isacc Miles
Nick Bahe (KU transfer)
Pierce Hibma/Brice Nengsu
Ty Morrison (assuming he really did commit)
Manny Gakou/Kenny Lawson

I have to applaud Dana. Recruiting has been an issue in the past and he and his staff have picked it up big time the last couple years.

[dawg_tired nemesis]

I will say:

CU MVC champs.

MSU valley tourney champs.

Making the dance, CU, MSU, WSU

I keep thinking how SIU probably would not have made the tourney if they hadn't made the run in the mvc tourney. And they were a last second shot away from losing to UNI and finishing 5th in the regular season. All their players are coming back, but is that a good thing? They had real trouble scoring some games. But maybe the run in the tourney gave them their swagger back? If it did, I'll pick SIU over MSU to win the tourney.

[shockerfan13]

Of course you know, I talk about Tolliver and Funk about being tough to guard and being a great duo, but many of us thought the same thing about Jacobsen and Stout and we saw how that ended in terms of Conference finish.

Who knows, but it's going to be one heck of a season again.

[Jayball]

13

Obviously nothing is guaranteed, but I think UNI rode its starting five (six) extremely hard last year and they ran out of juice at the end of the season.

In theory, CU should have the depth next year so they won't have to ride five or six guys into the ground. If everyone is healthy the problem for CU could be getting all these guys minutes and getting them to buy into the team concept. some guys don't transition to a role player very well.

[jt45]

I will say:

CU MVC champs.

MSU valley tourney champs.

Making the dance, CU, MSU, WSU

I keep thinking how SIU probably would not have made the tourney if they hadn't made the run in the mvc tourney. And they were a last second shot away from losing to UNI and finishing 5th in the regular season. All their players are coming back, but is that a good thing? They had real trouble scoring some games. But maybe the run in the tourney gave them their swagger back? If it did, I'll pick SIU over MSU to win the tourney.
You are probably right that they wouldn't have made the tourney had they not won the conference tourney. You are also correct that they almost could have finished 5th, they were also a couple double overtime losses from being conference champs too. I really don't see how having all your starters back can be a bad thing at all. Hell I'll take 5 starters coming back on 2-20 team and say I'd have a fighting chance, it just doesn't happen that often.

[redbirdtim]

Trout,

You have every right to disagree with a prediction, but that is what it is...a prediction. If someone thinks you'll finish 8-10, they much have a reason. Who knows, WSU or SIU could be hit with a plague and their guys out for the season...who knows. We're so far away from next season; nobody knows about how recruits will turn out or if even they will get to campus.

[Mike]

I really look for the 2006-07 MVC BB race to be very similar to this past season with Wichita State, SIU, Creighton, Northern Iowa and Missouri State all fighting for the top spot.
I look for Bradley to drop with POB turning pro.
What do some of you think about Indiana State, Illinois State, Drake and Evansville? Illinois State appears to have signed a good recruiting class. Evansville had two players on the all-MVC Freshman team last season. Don't know much about either Drake or Indiana State.

[LincolnJay]

Mitch Holtus, voice of the MVC, was on Omaha radio today and stated that he thinks CU is absolutely loaded, that he can't believe Isacc Miles ended up with CU since half the Big 12 was after him {he is from KC - does Chiefs games too} and that they are probably a Top 25 team.

I, on the other hand, thought last year was going to be terrific only to watch it wither away in injury-hell so I won't speculate.

Holtus also said the MVC is here to stay which is going to shock all the BCS'ers who think the conference was a one year wonder. He stated that the talent level is very high and the coaching remains intact and is about as top notch as any conference around. Also thinks the Big 12 will be much improved over their dismal 05-06.

[blueblood]

Mitch really has a boner for the MVC. I think he would announce MVC games for free.

[JayJay]

MSU 8-10 in the Valley? There is absolutely no way we will finish 8-10 in the conference next year with the players we have coming back and the addition of a point guard and possibly another forward. I can't say we'll win the league, but 8-10 is not going to happen.

Creighton is my pick to win the league. I'll go with either MSU or WSU to win the Valley tournament.

NCAA tourney teams: Creighton, SIU, WSU, MSU (only if we win the tournament)

Trout: I may be wrong about MSU's ecord but I feel confident about their placing. Let me say that I do not think MSU will be a worse team than last year. On the other hand, from what I've read so far (mostly from MSU posters), II do not see them being much better. I think overall the conference will be even tougher next year than last year. In particular, the "bottom feeders" with the exception of Ind St, will be much improved. I also think the very top of the conference will be stronger as well. Sorry, Bear fans, but I think you're headed for a middle of the pack finish. By the way, I love Barry. He's got more personality than the rest of the league's coaches combined.

[SubGod22]

1 - CU
2 - WSU
3 - UNI
4 - SIU
5 - IlST
6 - MSU
7 - BU
8 - DU
9 - UE
10-InST

WSU wins the Tourny and The Valley gets CU, WSU, UNI and SIU in the Dance.

[Panthera Pardus]

1) CU 14-4
2) SIU 12-6
3) WSU 11-7
4) DU 10-8
5)(tie) BU 9-9
5)(tie) Ill State 9-9
7) MSU 8-10
8) NIU 7-11
9) UE 6-12
10) Ind St 4-14

I wasn't aware that UNI had been replaced with Northern Illinois. Oh well... them's the ropes.

Now that I'm through being a bastard, here are some preliminary predictions:

1-Creighton: Funk back, Dotzler... I'm pretty sure Chuck Norris is playing the post. This team is scary good next year. They're the obvious pick for obvious reasons.

2-Southern Illinois: Return pretty much everyone from a team that wasn't too damned shabby by the end of the year, save for a turd dropped on the floor against WVU. Their defense will give teams fits.

3-UNI: People shouldn't sell this team short. They reloaded, they're not rebuilding. They should be a stronger post team this year than last year, with plenty of decent shooters.

4-WSU: I got burned by picking them fifth last year, and I hoped to avoid that this year, but I don't know. A tourney bid is still quite likely for this team who has the kind of coach to sustain success.

5-Illinois State: I've got this feeling that my second-favorite coach in The Valley will have finally turned a corner by next year. A lot of quality guards coming in next year.

6-Missouri State: Barry's lineup doesn't really stand out at me all that much next year. I hope I'm proven wrong, but an NIT bid would be lucky for them.

7-Evansville: More experienced guards will help this team get on the right track.

8-Bradley: Losing O'Bryant will KILL this team, who can't really shoot and relied on POB and Marcellus quite a bit last year.

9-Drake: Dr. Tom has not done ANYTHING to make me think this team will be any better than last year's disappointing effort.

10-Indiana State: I mean this in the nicest way, but the wrong coach is at the helm of this team. They could be better if they had someone who wasn't in need of carbon-dating.

[redbirdtim]

Surprised to see some love for us Redbirds. I guess we do have one of our best recruiting classes ever coming, but surprised to see us picked this high by other teams fans. I'm liking it. With Dilligard anchoring the frontcourt and the emergence of Fortes, that should help us in addition to some other solid roleplayers we have coming back and some great recruits.

[WSUfan]

I'll take a shot at this. I think the Sweet16 run, the return of everyone except PM (& CL, NR) and the new guys coming in makes WSU the favorite. CU looks very strong. I'm not sure that SIU has solved its offensive problems but the Dawgs will be good at home as usual. I think MSU has a chance at the NCAA tourney this year. I think Drake & Illinois State will be up and UNI will be down.
1. WSU
2. CU
3. MSU
4. SIU
5. DU
6. Illinois State
7. UNI
8. UE
9. BU
10. Indiana State
For 2007-8, I see Illinois State as a top 3 MVC team.

[Little Eddie]

I'm not sure about all the other teams but I predict Missou St to have an even lower RPI next season and not get invited again...if this does happen I don't wanna watch the video of it like this past season.

Way too depressing even for a Jay fan like myself.

[MSNSaluki]

I'm having some trouble understanding Creighton being this overwhelming favorite next year. They bring back alot of people they had last year and yes funk was part of that team before he got injured. SIU brings back every single person, except walk ons as well. Now I know Funk was injured, and so was Dotzler, but didn't SIU finish basically tied with CU last year and beat them head to head twice. Where in all of that does it point to CU being this "overwhelming" favorite over SIU? I do think you could toss the two in a hat at this point and blindly pick a winner, but to call one an overwhelming favorite over the other, I just don't understand, nor can I see any real justification to do so. If anything with Funk being injured he's a bigger x-factor than anything. What if he doesn't fully recover or what if the team doesn't gel with him? Again, I think CU will be very very good next, and MIGHT win the Valley, but to deem them the overwhelming favorite is unwarranted.

I'm an SIU fan but even I cringe at the Dawgs' offensive ineptitude at times.
The good news: SIU has everybody back.
The bad news: SIU has everybody back.

Bone, Green, Corneilus and Armstrong are gonna have to bring a lot of offense to the table to change that.

[siubball32]

1. CU
2. SIU
3. WSU
4. MSU
5. UNI
6. UE
7. Drake
8. Ill.st
9. Bradley
10. Ind.st
teams in the tounrey= cu, siu, wsu, msu.

[SiuCubFan8]

I'm an SIU fan but even I cringe at the Dawgs' offensive ineptitude at times.
The good news: SIU has everybody back.
The bad news: SIU has everybody back.

Bone, Green, Corneilus and Armstrong are gonna have to bring a lot of offense to the table to change that.

I am hoping some improved depth at the guard possition will help the offense.

[Tasmanian Devil]

Tough to tell at this point but I'll go with this for now:

1. CU (I expect it to be a great battle between CU and WSU for the top spot)
2. WSU
3. MSU
4. SIU
5. Ill St
6. EU
7. UNI
8. BU
9. DU
10. Ind St

[GoCatsGo]

1. CU
2. SIU
3. WSU
4. UNI
5. MSU
6. BU
7. DU
8. Ill. St.
9. EU
10. ISU

:panthers:

[MSNSaluki]

I am hoping some improved depth at the guard possition will help the offense.

I hope so, too.:salukis:

[Aargh]

1. CU
2. SIU
3. WSU
4. MSU
5. UNI
6. UE
7. Drake
8. Ill.st
9. Bradley
10. Ind.st
teams in the tounrey= cu, siu, wsu, msu.
I don't agree with 6-10, but that's the way I see the top half of the Valley and the NCAA bids.

1. CU. Find a weakness. Go ahead - try. A week or so ago the only weakness was frontcourt depth and CU had more frdontcourt depth for 2006-07 than WSU had in 2005-06. It appears late recruiting is solving that problem and putting an exclamation point behind it.

2. SIU. Returning everyone is overrated. UNI returned everyone from a 4th place team and finished 5th. Year before that WSU returned everybody from a 2nd place team and finished 2nd. Valley teams are recruiting quicker perimeter players. SIU's perimeter defense depends on SIU's perimeter players being "a step" quicker than the opponents. If that step ever disappears, SIU's defensive schemes will not be as effective.

3. WSU. Shouldn't be "significantly" down from last year, but certainly won't be improved and improvement is required every year to stay on top of this league.

4. MSU. MSU doesn't seem to have the players (talent) to move into the top 3. Not enough athleticism or speed to run an effective transition game. Never did seem to get the hang of the secondary break. Defensible half-court offensive sets. What's Barry going to try that will almost work next year?

5. UNI. Too many changes to expect anything better than 5th. Could move up if the changes work better than can be expected. Could easily move down if it takes a little time to put all the new pieces together.

?. BU. O'Bryant is starting to look like he may go mid-first round. I don't think any NBA team actually "wants" O'Bryant that badly. They just can't let any other team that might want him to get him. That's wierd, but that's the NBA. With O'Bryant - stick BU in at about the 4 spot.

? DU. Close in lots of games this year. DU gets Korver back and that should improve DU's team considerably. The question is: Can Drake actually win a close game or is it in the players' heads that they're going to lose?

[GoCatsGo]

1. CU
2. SIU
3. WSU
4. UNI
5. MSU
6. BU
7. DU
8. Ill. St.
9. EU
10. ISU


Tourney winner is UNI

Dancing = CU, SIU, UNI, WSU

:panthers:

[stormpanther5012]

Im not sure why everyone thinks UNI has too many new pieces, losing ECrawford, JLit, and Benny is tough, but Grant and Brooks are very experienced seniors, with a very talented Jr class lead by Coleman and Coach Ben is not really all that much of a new coach, hes been the associate head coach for the last year, and has been "in the trenches" so to speak with the team at practice. Coach Jake will make the turn just fine with this talented Frosh class and expeienced leaders in Grant, Brooks, and Coleman. Althought CU, WSU, SIU, will all be battling for the crowns I believe.

Should be another tight race for the Regular season and Tourny championships.

[Aargh]

Im not sure why everyone thinks UNI has too many new pieces, losing ECrawford, JLit, and Benny is tough, but Grant and Brooks are very experienced seniors, with a very talented Jr class lead by Coleman and Coach Ben is not really all that much of a new coach, hes been the associate head coach for the last year, and has been "in the trenches" so to speak with the team at practice. Coach Jake will make the turn just fine with this talented Frosh class and expeienced leaders in Grant, Brooks, and Coleman. Althought CU, WSU, SIU, will all be battling for the crowns I believe.

Should be another tight race for the Regular season and Tourny championships.
I was posting outlooks for Valley teams a week or so ago. I was going from top to bottom and intended to cover all Valley teams. I ran out of gas when I hit UNI.

It's not that easy to run through all the players leaving, what's left on the roster, who's coming in and taking a look at potential rosters and contributors for a team.

It was really hard for an outsider to look at UNI. 2 players in addition to the Sr's leaving, recruits coming in from apparently every possible source.

CU, SIU, WSU and MSU have 1 or 2 pieces to fit in next year. In some cases that's frontcourt depth or senior leadership. UNI has "more" pieces to fit together. "More" compared to 1 or 2 pretty easily becomes "a lot".

[troutangler]

4. MSU. MSU doesn't seem to have the players (talent) to move into the top 3. Not enough athleticism or speed to run an effective transition game. Never did seem to get the hang of the secondary break. Defensible half-court offensive sets. What's Barry going to try that will almost work next year?


Move into the top 3? We tied for second in the league last year. How else do we get into the top 3 besides winning the league?

Trust me, if you watch all of our games, you would realize that running the transition game is when we are at our best. Ask any of our fans on here. When we run, we score. A lot. If we could adjust to a half court man-to-man defense it would improve us immensely.

We have the talent, especially this year, to easily finish in the top three. Whether or not that happens because of other factors (cough, cough) remains to be seen.

[MikeKennedyRulz]

Everyone keeps saying that SIU has everyone back, but yet they are bringing in 4 new players. How is this possible?

[DawgieStyle]

SIU is bringing everyone back that actually played last year. Not everyone that had a pulse, some walk ons graduated, Mike Dale left the team mid year, and We had a scholly open up when Josh Tabb went to prep school and has since moved on to Tennessee. So we return everyone that actually played minutes. The "new" guys are Bone, Cornelius, Armstrong and Greene, they are a mix of Red shirt freshmen, JUCO transfer, and a true freshmen.

[MikeKennedyRulz]

SIU is bringing everyone back that actually played last year. Not everyone that had a pulse, some walk ons graduated, Mike Dale left the team mid year, and We had a scholly open up when Josh Tabb went to prep school and has since moved on to Tennessee. So we return everyone that actually played minutes. The "new" guys are Bone, Cornelius, Armstrong and Greene, they are a mix of Red shirt freshmen, JUCO transfer, and a true freshmen.

Thanks for the info. The redshirts are already on scholly and with Dale leaving midstream and the Tabb situation, I can see how it worked.

[hondo]

I think many of you are seriously delusional. SIU doesn't go to the tourney last year unless they win the MVC. UNI loses some real talent AND loses the coach that made it all work. WSU's best player is gone. They still look great, but they lost the guy that took them to the promised land last year. Ill St. has proved nothing and seems to get lots of talent that doesn't perform there. Drake? Next. EU? Next. Ind St.? Next.

Creighton will be good. Very Good. Great coaching, nice talent, and they will be the contender next year.

MSU: Who exactly did we lose? A JUCO transfer and a guy that was never used correctly. Who do we gain? A true point guard. We were talented enough last year to beat everyone but WSU with horrific coaching. We were talented enough to lead the league in scoring, tied for first in scoring margin, 1st in free throw percentage, second by 1/100th in fg pct., 1st in 3pt pct., 3rd in rbounding to WSU and BU who both lose their 5's, 3rd in assists, 3rd in steals, 3rd in turnover margin, etc.

To put us anywhere below 4th is rank stupidity. Likely we'll be in the top two or three. If we actually do run the secondary break instead of the Barry "half-court broke" offense I'd say that we were the ones to beat period. As it is, the one thing we do have is talent.

A message for SIU and the bottom-feeders (BTW, none of you bottom-feeders beat us last year): Prepare for dissapointment.

My List:

1. CU
2.WSU/MSU (If we actually beat you this year WSU, this might change)
3. See above
4. SIU/UNI
5. See above
6. Drake
7. Ill St.
8. Drake
9. UE

[engrshock]

I think many of you are seriously delusional. SIU doesn't go to the tourney last year unless they win the MVC. UNI loses some real talent AND loses the coach that made it all work. WSU's best player is gone. They still look great, but they lost the guy that took them to the promised land last year. Ill St. has proved nothing and seems to get lots of talent that doesn't perform there. Drake? Next. EU? Next. Ind St.? Next.

Creighton will be good. Very Good. Great coaching, nice talent, and they will be the contender next year.

MSU: Who exactly did we lose? A JUCO transfer and a guy that was never used correctly. Who do we gain? A true point guard. We were talented enough last year to beat everyone but WSU with horrific coaching. We were talented enough to lead the league in scoring, tied for first in scoring margin, 1st in free throw percentage, second by 1/100th in fg pct., 1st in 3pt pct., 3rd in rbounding to WSU and BU who both lose their 5's, 3rd in assists, 3rd in steals, 3rd in turnover margin, etc.

To put us anywhere below 4th is rank stupidity. Likely we'll be in the top two or three. If we actually do run the secondary break instead of the Barry "half-court broke" offense I'd say that we were the ones to beat period. As it is, the one thing we do have is talent.

A message for SIU and the bottom-feeders (BTW, none of you bottom-feeders beat us last year): Prepare for dissapointment.

My List:

1. CU
2.WSU/MSU (If we actually beat you this year WSU, this might change)
3. See above
4. SIU/UNI
5. See above
6. Drake
7. Ill St.
8. Drake
9. UE

Is Bradley not playing next year?

[DawgieStyle]

We were talented enough last year to beat everyone but WSU with horrific coaching.

yah, and isn't that same horriffic coach, still your coach? Sound like same old story at Misery state. NUFF said.

[Pocket Aces]

I think many of you are seriously delusional. SIU doesn't go to the tourney last year unless they win the MVC. UNI loses some real talent AND loses the coach that made it all work. WSU's best player is gone. They still look great, but they lost the guy that took them to the promised land last year. Ill St. has proved nothing and seems to get lots of talent that doesn't perform there. Drake? Next. EU? Next. Ind St.? Next.

Creighton will be good. Very Good. Great coaching, nice talent, and they will be the contender next year.

MSU: Who exactly did we lose? A JUCO transfer and a guy that was never used correctly. Who do we gain? A true point guard. We were talented enough last year to beat everyone but WSU with horrific coaching. We were talented enough to lead the league in scoring, tied for first in scoring margin, 1st in free throw percentage, second by 1/100th in fg pct., 1st in 3pt pct., 3rd in rbounding to WSU and BU who both lose their 5's, 3rd in assists, 3rd in steals, 3rd in turnover margin, etc.

To put us anywhere below 4th is rank stupidity. Likely we'll be in the top two or three. If we actually do run the secondary break instead of the Barry "half-court broke" offense I'd say that we were the ones to beat period. As it is, the one thing we do have is talent.

A message for SIU and the bottom-feeders (BTW, none of you bottom-feeders beat us last year): Prepare for dissapointment.

My List:

1. CU
2.WSU/MSU (If we actually beat you this year WSU, this might change)
3. See above
4. SIU/UNI
5. See above
6. Drake
7. Ill St.
8. Drake
9. UE

Doesn't look like Indiana State is playing either, but Drake makes up for it by placing 6th and 8th

[Aargh]

In preparation for his son taking over at Drake, Dr. Tom will be running a split squad with his son coaching one of the teams.

[DawgieStyle]

In preparation for his son taking over at Drake, Dr. Tom will be running a split squad with his son coaching one of the teams.

how quickly the wheels come off..............howeve, it was funny.

[SiuCubFan8]

I think many of you are seriously delusional. SIU doesn't go to the tourney last year unless they win the MVC. UNI loses some real talent AND loses the coach that made it all work. WSU's best player is gone. They still look great, but they lost the guy that took them to the promised land last year. Ill St. has proved nothing and seems to get lots of talent that doesn't perform there. Drake? Next. EU? Next. Ind St.? Next.

Creighton will be good. Very Good. Great coaching, nice talent, and they will be the contender next year.

MSU: Who exactly did we lose? A JUCO transfer and a guy that was never used correctly. Who do we gain? A true point guard. We were talented enough last year to beat everyone but WSU with horrific coaching. We were talented enough to lead the league in scoring, tied for first in scoring margin, 1st in free throw percentage, second by 1/100th in fg pct., 1st in 3pt pct., 3rd in rbounding to WSU and BU who both lose their 5's, 3rd in assists, 3rd in steals, 3rd in turnover margin, etc.

To put us anywhere below 4th is rank stupidity. Likely we'll be in the top two or three. If we actually do run the secondary break instead of the Barry "half-court broke" offense I'd say that we were the ones to beat period. As it is, the one thing we do have is talent.

A message for SIU and the bottom-feeders (BTW, none of you bottom-feeders beat us last year): Prepare for dissapointment.

My List:

1. CU
2.WSU/MSU (If we actually beat you this year WSU, this might change)
3. See above
4. SIU/UNI
5. See above
6. Drake
7. Ill St.
8. Drake
9. UE

Ok well there you have it! MSU all the way! Get real pal.
No way MSU is ahead of WSU, SIU or UNI.
It is great you spouted off all those stats. What did those stats get you? Talent yes but there has been talent there the past few years and nothing has happened under Barry.

[BTbird]

Most improved team: Ill St. :redbirds:

[kyyle23]

Ok well there you have it! MSU all the way! Get real pal.
No way MSU is ahead of WSU, SIU or UNI.
It is great you spouted off all those stats. What did those stats get you? Talent yes but there has been talent there the past few years and nothing has happened under Barry.

Its an opinion. Relax

[SiuCubFan8]

Its an opinion. Relax

I was being a smart ***.
Weren't you supose to change your avatar so gnfr wouldnt get confused?:grin:

[hondo]

The point was that we did all of that with a horrible offense and a Valley that knows just how to stop us.

It is just opinion, and my opinion is that the Valley is now the have's and the have nots. 6-10 are the teams that don't get respect and have a lot to fight for. The rest compete. I left BU out, but I don't know what to make of them. You don't go as far as they did without talent, but how much will POB and Summerville cost the team? Probably a lot.

My point was that we don't expect to be the best in the Valley because of our coach, but we proved that we have the talent to overcome that enough to be 2nd in the Valley last year. We gain as much as we lose, and other teams don't. The concept that a recruit will improve a team enough to be a contender is a pretty big statement. So we lose the least (In terms of impact players) of anyone in the Valley from a team that was 2nd last year, and a bunch of people think that some recruit they bring in is going to kill us this upcoming year? That's idiocy at its finest.

[SiuCubFan8]

The point was that we did all of that with a horrible offense and a Valley that knows just how to stop us.

It is just opinion, and my opinion is that the Valley is now the have's and the have nots. 6-10 are the teams that don't get respect and have a lot to fight for. The rest compete. I left BU out, but I don't know what to make of them. You don't go as far as they did without talent, but how much will POB and Summerville cost the team? Probably a lot.

My point was that we don't expect to be the best in the Valley because of our coach, but we proved that we have the talent to overcome that enough to be 2nd in the Valley last year. We gain as much as we lose, and other teams don't. The concept that a recruit will improve a team enough to be a contender is a pretty big statement. So we lose the least (In terms of impact players) of anyone in the Valley from a team that was 2nd last year, and a bunch of people think that some recruit they bring in is going to kill us this upcoming year? That's idiocy at its finest.


You do not loose the least.
Siu looses the least.
But CU is a scary team cause they pick up arguable one of the best players in the league two years ago.

[MikeKennedyRulz]

I was being a smart ***.
Weren't you supose to change your avatar so gnfr wouldnt get confused?:grin:

I think GnR has been resurrected on here as a different username. I won't speculate as to who I think might be GnR reincarnated but its not hard to figure out. I think it was a good move on his part as the new GnR is much more tolerable. :grin:

[SiuCubFan8]

I think GnR has been resurrected on here as a different username. I won't speculate as to who I think might be GnR reincarnated but its not hard to figure out. I think it was a good move on his part as the new GnR is much more tolerable. :grin:

Well your new avatar sure helped him out.
I thought you were a MSU fan!!!:clap:

[WSUfan]

You do not loose the least.
Siu looses the least.
But CU is a scary team cause they pick up arguable one of the best players in the league two years ago.
I am waiting to see if Funk (in a MVC game) is the same player he was before the injury. Also defenses might be better next year with quicker, taller players guarding Funk.

[MikeKennedyRulz]

I am waiting to see if Funk (in a MVC game) is the same player he was before the injury. Also defenses might be better next year with quicker, taller players guarding Funk.

Like a certain 6'3" guard from San Antonio...I hope. :shockers: :grin: :naughty:

[Aargh]

The concept that a recruit will improve a team enough to be a contender is a pretty big statement.

So, who's projected at PG for MSU?

Last year the pre-season picks here were pretty much exactly what the media came up with. What would all the Barry-haters at MSU do if MSU was the pre-season 4 pick, then won the league and Barry was named CoY? That could get hilarious.

[valleyclimber]

here goes:

1. CU ...they are loaded
2. tie
WSU...didn't lose a ton and they now have confidence & tourney experience
SIU...their NCAA tourney showing not withstanding, they are looking good
4. MSU...plenty of weapons (they could be higher)
5. tie
UNI...still have good players, some good recruits and the same system
IL ST...they've filled last year's holes (i.e. PG another big)...may just suprise
7. Du...having Kyle Korver back will make quite a difference
8. tie
BU...Sommerville and POB gone means a drop, but still very competitive
UE...showed last year they are a team that's moving in the right direction
10.IN ST...I like the Sycs, but the Valley is tough and now it's without Moss

All in all, the MVC should be tough as nails this season....I love it! I'll be rooting for all Valley teams to kick a** outside of conference, so we can go to war when conferce starts and keep our RPIs going up. Here's to placing 5 (that's right)...5 teams in the NCAA tourney!! :valley:

[DawgieStyle]

How is it bad for a team (SIU) who won the MVC tourney and made the NCAA tourney, as well as finish 4th in a valley race that could have realistically gone to anybody, to have everyone who played minutes last year back? That argument holds no water. Yes their offense wasn't great, but their defense was out standing. Eveyone keeps stating that it's bad offensively for SIU to have everyone back, but fail to mention 1)its outstanding! and scary to have all those same people back on defense and 2) the more mature players become the better their offense will be, so it will improve, not get worse. especially with EVERY one back on the team. I'm not stating that SIU will have an explosive offense, aint gonna happen, but it will be an improved offense, it can't help but get better with that much experience and familiarity coming back. Couple that with an even better defense (scary, and you all know it) and some new recruits who are more offensively minded, SIU has to be considered along with CU as the favorites to win the valley.

[outpost]

How is it bad for a team (SIU) who won the MVC tourney and made the NCAA tourney, as well as finish 4th in a valley race that could have realistically gone to anybody, to have everyone who played minutes last year back?

I wouldn't consider it bad, personally. But everyone else will be better along with SIU. JMHO, but If SIU's offense doesn't come around, I don't see them finishing any higher next year than they did in the year just completed.

[SiuCubFan8]

How is it bad for a team (SIU) who won the MVC tourney and made the NCAA tourney, as well as finish 4th in a valley race that could have realistically gone to anybody, to have everyone who played minutes last year back? That argument holds no water. Yes their offense wasn't great, but their defense was out standing. Eveyone keeps stating that it's bad offensively for SIU to have everyone back, but fail to mention 1)its outstanding! and scary to have all those same people back on defense and 2) the more mature players become the better their offense will be, so it will improve, not get worse. especially with EVERY one back on the team. I'm not stating that SIU will have an explosive offense, aint gonna happen, but it will be an improved offense, it can't help but get better with that much experience and familiarity coming back. Couple that with an even better defense (scary, and you all know it) and some new recruits who are more offensively minded, SIU has to be considered along with CU as the favorites to win the valley.

We will see how good of a coach Clo is? He has a whole offseason to come up with something that resembles an offense. If SIU can be average or slightly above average on the offensive end then they can challenge CU. If not then they will be with the rest of the pack.

[DawgieStyle]

Yah, we'll see how good Lowery is, but truth be told, the offense can't get any worse. With so many players returning, simple familiarity will make it better than it has been. Even a slight improvement in the offense could spell trouble for the rest of the vallery, considering the defense is only be better as well.

[Mc Bulldog]

1- Drake
2- MSU
3- CU
4- WSU
5- IlSU
6- SIU
7-UNI
8-BU
9-EU or UE
10-InSU

[cuhoops]

1- Drake
2- MSU
3- CU
4- WSU
5- IlSU
6- SIU
7-UNI
8-BU
9-EU or UE
10-InSU


Ever since I joined this board, I always look forward to McBullshat's prediction... always worth a good laugh. The bullpups will definitely be good next year, even tougher at home.



Keep 'em coming, and I can't wait to see Korver this year!

[underdawg2]

1- Drake
2- MSU
3- CU
4- WSU
5- IlSU
6- SIU
7-UNI
8-BU
9-EU or UE
10-InSU


Where the Sam Hill have you been BullDawg? I was getting worried you'd been picked up by Homeland Security
:original:

[Mc Bulldog]

After going to Las Vegas and seeing the Dogs almost beat BC, and then Iowa, and SIU, and then waffle up and down until the last 4 conf. games, and then the game against the Sycamores in STL. .. well .. I didn't want to be dangerous to myself or anyone else.
I've calmed down a tad and I'm back on the Bulldog path. And yes I know what I've predicted in the past and all but I'm here to tell all that Drake is going to be a f'n bad arsch team next year. 4 free throws, 2 -3 pointers, and 3 more shots made and Drake would have been a 20 win team last year. The players and the coaches learned some serious lessons and I really don't care who does or doesn't believe my prediction .. I'm here to tell you that Drake is going to be tougher than nails next year. I'm not going to argue or play games on this board. I know I'm right and even a certain head coach in Korverha thinks the same. I know some folks who are good friends of his and even he thinks Drake will be the team in MVC next year. I know what chemistry is forming on the team and how hard the players are working and what the skinny is behind the scenes. Drake will be at the top of the league next year .. take it to the bank.

[DUBulldog]

7. Du...having Kyle Korver back will make quite a difference


Having Kyle Korver leave the 76ers to play for DU would make quite a difference :original: I think you meant Klayton Korver.

[CreightonRx]

Now I know Funk was injured, and so was Dotzler, but didn't SIU finish basically tied with CU last year and beat them head to head twice. Where in all of that does it point to CU being this "overwhelming" favorite over SIU?

The theory is just has you have stated. SIU basically finished tied with CU last year, despite CU not having their preseason POY canidate and w/o our PG who played more minutes than anyone else on the team.

We road funk to the tourny is 04-05 w/ no inside game, in 05-06 Tolliver stepped it up big time and nearly got us in the tourney, now we have both.

Not saying we're gonna dominate the league and run away with it b/c defensive teams like SIU will always less apt to lose games that they shouldn't b/c they rely less on offense which can be streaky. And the fact that both teams are loaded and it comes down to the head to head games which SIU has our number in. But in theory, by looking at the players and how competitive we were last year w/o our best player is why it could be viewed that way.

[valleyclimber]

My bad, sorry Bulldog I meant Clayton Korver...darn brain toxins!!
Anyway, who knows? Dr. Tom may have his day in the Valley yet. Last year's MVC race was quite a scramble, but I believe this year's wars are going to be INTENSE!!

What more can we ask for? Great coaches and lots of talented teams vying for a possible 5 NCAA bids....that makes for some bada** ballgames every night the ball is tipped up in the Valley of Death....ooooooo yeah!! Man, can't wait for the season to begin. Oh, sure it's 6 months away....

:valley:

[MSNSaluki]

6 months to tip off but this board is in mid-season mode!

[Carrcar]

How is it bad for a team (SIU) who won the MVC tourney and made the NCAA tourney, as well as finish 4th in a valley race that could have realistically gone to anybody,
Didn't SIU finish 2nd?

[kyyle23]

I was being a smart ***.
Weren't you supose to change your avatar so gnfr wouldnt get confused?:grin:

LOL, I have a promise to fulfill, and I am not changing it because the most well-read poster in the world couldnt figure out who I was cheering for. Besides, I had my SIU avatar for 5 years or something, its a nice change. And I really think the guy who made my avatar did a nice job, so I wont change it until Jan 1 like I promised.

I think GnR has been resurrected on here as a different username. I won't speculate as to who I think might be GnR reincarnated but its not hard to figure out. I think it was a good move on his part as the new GnR is much more tolerable. :grin:

Ooooh, do tell? Who is the mystery man?

[da_bears]

nm

[da_bears]

1. :bears: Missouri State
-return conference leading scorer: Ahearn
-4 returning starters + Deven mitchell + Spencer Laurie (mizzou transfer & Mr Missouri Basketball)
2. :jays: Creighton
-Funk
3. :shockers: Wichita
-bring back 4 starters
4.:panthers: UNI
-jacobson and the coach Mac were huge loses
5. :bulldogs: Drake
-?
6. :salukis: SIU
-maby this year they wont lose to a D-2 team
7. :braves: Bradley
-losing Sommerville and Pat O'B
:sycamores: :aces: :redbirds:

[iSASO]

1. CU - Afterall, until someone beats the man for the regular season title, they're still the man.

2. SIU - Considering they're "The Greatest Team in MVC History", 2nd is a lock

3. MSU - All that overwhelming talent again this year? When will their domination end?

4. Drake - Surely the old Dawg_Tired will guarantee everyone they will finish ahead of The Shuckers again. How can I argue with that?

5. WSU - After another one of their traditional 9th place finishes in '06, the fifth spot seems about right for some reason. They cannot hope to replace what they lost, right everyone?

6. Bradley - they still have Less, right? He can't coach...

7. Oh, hell, I can't even remember the rest of the teams. Forget it.

[troutangler]

I think losing Miller is going to hurt more than you guys think, Shocker fans. Just ask us after we lost Maclin after the 04-05 season. Unproven big men are just that, unproven.

I don't think you guys are going to finish 7th or 8th by any means, but I don't think you're anywhere near a favorite to repeat this year.

Everyone keeps putting SIU in the top two, but why? They weren't even an NCAA team if they didn't win the Valley tournament. (Which they do deserve credit for) I guess if we could just figure out that vaunted defense with it's hand checks, pushes, body bumps, and general hacks/slaps then maybe we could knock them off. :innocent:

[shockerfan13]

I think losing Miller is going to hurt more than you guys think, Shocker fans. Just ask us after we lost Maclin after the 04-05 season. Unproven big men are just that, unproven.

I don't think you guys are going to finish 7th or 8th by any means, but I don't think you're anywhere near a favorite to repeat this year.

Everyone keeps putting SIU in the top two, but why? They weren't even an NCAA team if they didn't win the Valley tournament. (Which they do deserve credit for) I guess if we could just figure out that vaunted defense with it's hand checks, pushes, body bumps, and general hacks/slaps then maybe we could knock them off. :innocent:


I just hope we are picked 5th again. I would love to look forward to another championship.

[WuDrWu]

I think losing Miller is going to hurt more than you guys think, Shocker fans. Just ask us after we lost Maclin after the 04-05 season. Unproven big men are just that, unproven.

I don't think you guys are going to finish 7th or 8th by any means, but I don't think you're anywhere near a favorite to repeat this year.

Everyone keeps putting SIU in the top two, but why? They weren't even an NCAA team if they didn't win the Valley tournament. (Which they do deserve credit for) I guess if we could just figure out that vaunted defense with it's hand checks, pushes, body bumps, and general hacks/slaps then maybe we could knock them off. :innocent:

I agree about Paul. I was one of the few that thought he would compete for POY before the season. What I haven't heard much of is how other team's losses will affect them adversely. To hear BJ fans, JM never got off the bench and future All Americans are fighting for his minutes. He CARRIED that team at times the last 2 years. While I think CU will be good, even very good, no way am I going to annoint a team that finished behind WSU for 3 years running as the next champs. There are others, but that one really sticks in my craw.

[kyyle23]

Everyone keeps putting SIU in the top two, but why? They weren't even an NCAA team if they didn't win the Valley tournament. (Which they do deserve credit for) I guess if we could just figure out that vaunted defense with it's hand checks, pushes, body bumps, and general hacks/slaps then maybe we could knock them off. :innocent:

The fact is they made it, and they won the valley tournament so they were a NCAA team. You can discredit the team all you want, and you very well may be right that they really didnt deserve to be there, but they put their game-faces on for the MVC tournament and played 3 tough games in a row.

People keep putting them at the top of the list because of continuity and returning players. Lets face it, the more time your team has to gel together, the better off they are. Yeah, SIU had a horrid offense last year, but the defense still shut opposing teams down(by whatever method necassary, lol) and the same group of players returns. and SIU is adding some size up front with Armstrong and Cornelius.

I think WSU is a toss-up, if Cousinard and Ogirri can carry on after Miller departs in similar fashion to what Brooks and Hairston did after Dearman and Williams left, then WSU can compete for the top spot again, no doubt in my mind. I saw the competitive "light" flip on in their heads in the tournament, no doubt in my mind. I saw the same thing with Brooks against Missouri and Alabama. they just took their games to another level, and that could spell trouble for the valley this year.

[iSASO]

We certainly can't count on Kyle Wilson to elevate his game. Surely, he's maxxed out...

[A Bad Bear Fan]

MSU 7th. I guess that Deke Thompson and Kellen Easley were really underated. We lose those two guys and add Kyle Kirk and Spencer Laurie and finish 7th.

The Valley must really be strong next year. I guess we are in for it.

:bears:

[Ricky Del Rio]

1) I've got SIU winning the regular season crown. They have the most proven talent coming back, and the most depth, which will only add to their ability to crank up the defensive pressure. Also several new scoring options are now coming in, so their offense should improve just enough to win the regular season.

You have to be kidding. If not, you may want to check out CU and get a reality check.

[Panthera Pardus]

SIU will be good, but they still don't have any offense, especially not a good enough one to win the MVC. They will still be a top-half finisher though.

[Dawgbit]

I think SIU will be a 4th or 5th place team.

Just like last year.:naughty:

[iSASO]

Keep your paws off our 5th place Championship spot.

[MSNSaluki]

I'm actually surprised the NCAA, when releasing its new rules last week for the upcoming season, didn't announce Charles Koch had bought Wichita State an automatic invitation to the next 5 tournaments.

[BeeLine]

I tend to agree with most of what I've seen except those who seem to want to use our omission from the NCAA tourney to forget the realities of the whole season.
Creighton to me is clearly the favorite because of talent, depth, coaching, consistency. But as last year, 3-4 other teams will be right there , and the most likely based on returning talent are WSU,MSU,SIU first, with several others needing one or two more factors to first clarify themselves .
MSU will be significantly better because of the talent and stability at the point guard spot, the second year of maturation on the court of our jr posts players, and the first time in years we've had multiple 4 year senior leadership returning, coupled with experienced depth. I'm not dissing SIU, but I have to question some of your inferences against a team[MSU] that finished tied in the conference with you, has beaten you 4 of the last 6 meetings, with both your wins being last second shots on your home court. People can say what they want about Barry, but irregardless, this is a team that has been slowly[ agonizingly so] moving forward with each season the last 3 and is now a solid contender for the next couple seasons. I don't think that's overhype, just a statement of the obvious.
WSU has been our thorn the last few seasons, but no one else has been able to establish much of an advantage in head to head, and SIU least of all the contenders.
Again, I give the nod to Crieghton at the top, and then think it's a pickem for spots 2-4, and bet actually there will be at least 1-2 more additions who challenge, making the coming season just like the last with at least 6 teams challenging for post season honors.

[WuDrWu]

Bee you're right and that's what has made our league so tough the last few years. The competition through at least 5-6, even the top 7 spots at times is fierce and consists of quality teams.

I would like to add this. Having at times partaken of the BJ Koolaid, allow me to say that for 3 years running the top 2 spots in the conference have been occupied by SIU and WSU and the 2 schools lose a combined total of 1 player that averaged over 1 point per game from last year. Both schools also have a solid track record of both successfully rebuilding without missing a step and improving off their accomplishments. The test is for someone else to step forward and compete at their level not for 1 or 2 games, but for the entire season. Until then, hey Koolaid man!!!!!

[BeeLine]

The only thing I would say about the issue of where CU has finished conference wise the last few seasons, is that after who wins the regular season title, the only thing that matters is the conference tourney and how you manage the noncon season, and CU has traditionally done a good job in those. Placing second in the regular season didn't get WSU[ season before] or MSU into the big dance, as both years teams as low as 4th/5th got at large bids. To me it's clear that finishing in the top 4-5 is a must, but the noncon carrys more weight than a 2nd place Valley regular season, and of course the certain way is the Valley tourney.
I think Creighton always schedules in a way that if successful, their noncon gets them a chance to be considered. But all that aside, I think they have the best talent in the league if Funk is fully healthy. Tolliver is the best big man, Funk a proven go to scorer, they have size and depth,more athleticism than they've had at times, a legit point guard, and a great coach.No one else has all those things already established.
Still, the season always has some surprises and CU not winning it all wouldn't be too big a one.

[NoPlaceLikeDome]

Some of you guys seriously think that a team with a brand new home to protect, three returning starters, more depth due to new recruits will finish 7th at best? Some of you are going to be in for a rude awakening.

UNI is most likely not contending for the MVC title this year, but if you think they aren't fighting for the top half, you're just crazy.

[MSNSaluki]

Some of you guys seriously think that a team with a brand new home to protect, three returning starters, more depth due to new recruits will finish 7th at best? Some of you are going to be in for a rude awakening.

UNI is most likely not contending for the MVC title this year, but if you think they aren't fighting for the top half, you're just crazy.

I will not discount the Panthers. The only rude awakening I will get is if they don't finish in the top half.

[WuDrWu]

Some of you guys seriously think that a team with a brand new home to protect, three returning starters, more depth due to new recruits will finish 7th at best? Some of you are going to be in for a rude awakening.

UNI is most likely not contending for the MVC title this year, but if you think they aren't fighting for the top half, you're just crazy.

I think they are fighting for 4th and if you don't, then you are crazy.

[Chairman of the Boards]

I think you'll find that the visiting teams will love playing in your new arena... they never looked forward to playing in the dome.

[kyyle23]

I think you'll find that the visiting teams will love playing in your new arena... they never looked forward to playing in the dome.

I doubt that, teams usually try and christen new arenas when they get them. Just because it isnt the dome doesnt mean that visiting teams are going to have an easier time at it.

[NoPlaceLikeDome]

I think they are fighting for 4th and if you don't, then you are crazy.

I personally agree with you.

I see the Panthers in 3-5th place, but some people have them 7th or even lower...

[outpost]

It will be up to UNI to prove that they can replace Jacobsen and Crawford.

May be easier said than done.

I like Stout and Coleman, but if you don't have an outside attack, it will be easier to neutralize UNI's inside game.

I haven't made a prediction, but this is just my observation.

I personally see UNI at the lower end of the upper division.

[Shox21]

I'm actually surprised the NCAA, when releasing its new rules last week for the upcoming season, didn't announce Charles Koch had bought Wichita State an automatic invitation to the next 5 tournaments.

You are REALLY hung up on Koch -- wish you had one like him?

[WSUShock]

Right now I guess I'll go with:

1) Creighton regular season champs

2) Valley tourney really does depend on matchups. I'll go with either WSU or SIU winning the tourney.

3) NCAA tourney: Creighton, SIU & WSU....possible 4th of either UNI or Mo St.


Oh and I hate Creighton, and it pains me to pick them that way....but they will be loaded next year with Tolliver & Funk being a pretty dangerous combo for teams to try and guard.

Remember last year, all this, "Stout and Jacobsen are too good to hold" and Wichita State picked 5th, yeah, this is just the same thing. Don't just assume that because these players are on the same team that they will be dominant. You see, UNI was picked first and got 5th. WSU was picked 5th and got 1st. Just because Funk and Tolliver are on the same team doesn't mean that they might not have some problems.

By the way, this is SeanTheShocker, school comp wont let me on my usual profile.

[MSNSaluki]

You are REALLY hung up on Koch -- wish you had one like him?

Not really. My Salukis have done just fine without the likes of him.
I'm just tired of having Koch and every other good thing in Wichita jammed up my ***** on every thread on this site these days. I think you and I have discussed this before ...

[Shox21]

Not really. My Salukis have done just fine without the likes of him.
I'm just tired of having Koch and every other good thing in Wichita jammed up my ***** on every thread on this site these days. I think you and I have discussed this before ...


This HAS been discussed before (and I might say in adnauseam), but YOU AND I have not discussed it. This is not usually a topic I would even respond to but you really seem to have a problem with it. I honestly wish every team in the Valley had such a supporter (and maybe they do but just aren't being vocal about it). We're all proud of what Charles Koch has given to the City of Wichita and to Wichita State University, but you are right, it shouldn't be cramed down someone's throat. Some people just like to brag (and pull your chain). But I would like to point out, if I am not mistaken (without going back and re-reading every post on this thread), Koch had not been metioned until YOU brought his name up.

How about a truce on this. I can only speak for myself, but I will promise you I will not mention Mr. Koch or his benevolence again.

[BornShocker]

I'll chime in,

1) Ind. St.
2) Evansville
3) Ill. St.
4) Bradley
5) Drake
6) UNI
7) MSU
8) SIU
9) WSU
10) CU

You'll have to forgive my small bouts with dyslexia.

[valleyclimber]

thank you BornShocker for reigning back in this thread that was supposed to be about Valley predictions. dyslexia huh? :ermm: :valley:

[Shox21]

I'll chime in,

1) Ind. St.
2) Evansville
3) Ill. St.
4) Bradley
5) Drake
6) UNI
7) MSU
8) SIU
9) WSU
10) CU

You'll have to forgive my small bouts with dyslexia.

Bottoms Up?

[MSNSaluki]

This HAS been discussed before (and I might say in adnauseam), but YOU AND I have not discussed it. This is not usually a topic I would even respond to but you really seem to have a problem with it. I honestly wish every team in the Valley had such a supporter (and maybe they do but just aren't being vocal about it). We're all proud of what Charles Koch has given to the City of Wichita and to Wichita State University, but you are right, it shouldn't be cramed down someone's throat. Some people just like to brag (and pull your chain). But I would like to point out, if I am not mistaken (without going back and re-reading every post on this thread), Koch had not been metioned until YOU brought his name up.

How about a truce on this. I can only speak for myself, but I will promise you I will not mention Mr. Koch or his benevolence again.

I'll stay off the subject, too.
Unless COLD brings it up.
Just joking.

[outpost]

Joey, Koch is no joke.

[MSNSaluki]

Joey, Koch is no joke.

I know that. If you're from Shocker men's basketball fan, you've got at least 25 millions reasons to love the dude. Impressive donor.
Hell, I wish he had a brother who lived in Carbondale.
Just tired of hearing about him.

[Shox21]

Joey, Koch is no joke.

Sigh. No use. Just can't win.

[MSNSaluki]

Sigh. No use. Just can't win.

Sorry Shox ... what am I missing?
I'm slow today.
And every day for that matter.

[NayshunSycamore]

Will Indiana State ever be good again?

[underdawg2]

Will Indiana State ever be good again?



Yes
:valley:

[outpost]

Does Bird have any eligibility left?

[redbirdtim]

Indiana St. will be good again, might take 3-5 years though. It all depends on if Royce can get some magic or new blood comes in to instill a new direction.

[NayshunSycamore]

New blood better mean someone that does not ***** and moan when his team is doing bad.

[NayshunSycamore]

oh come on...***** is not a bad word

[salukisportsfreak75]

My early predictions...

1) Creighton and SIU co-champs for regular season (14-4). Followed by WSU, UNI,MSU,Drake,Bradley, Illinois st, Evansville, Indiana St

2) Creighton wins Tourney

3) Creighton gets 6 seed, SIU gets 7 seed, Wichita gets 11 seed.

[1972Shocker]

I know that. If you're from Shocker men's basketball fan, you've got at least 25 millions reasons to love the dude. Impressive donor.
Hell, I wish he had a brother who lived in Carbondale.
Just tired of hearing about him.

Not sure what 25 million reasons you are referring to. The total Roundhouse Renassaince campaign.was $25 million. Charles Koch, I believe, contributed $8 million. There were a few other large donors and a number of substantial donors and a large number of smaller donors. Most pledges were paid over 5 years. To my knowledge Charles Koch doesn't particularly seek the limelight. In fact, I beleive he has given more money to George Mason University than to WSU, althought I'm not totally positive about that.

When it comes to large donors I don't think anyone holds a candle to MSU supporter John Q. Hammonds. On the other hand, he made a very nice contribution to get the Kansas Sports Hall of Fame opened in Wichita in the past year.

However, both John Q. and Chuck are probably pikers when compared to what the Walton family (Wal-Mart) have given to the University of Arkansas.

Not sure why this bothers you so much or who is throwing it in your face, but yeah were lucky to have a supporter like Charles Koch. On the other hand, he certainly doesn't throw his wealth around indiscriminately. He is only one of many very substantial supporters of WSU. No doubt, most of the universities and colleges in this country can say the same thing. I don't think WSU has any particular advantage over any other university soley because of Charles Koch.

I wouldn't lose any sleep over it if I were you.

[MSNSaluki]

Not sure what 25 million reasons you are referring to. The total Roundhouse Renassaince campaign.was $25 million. Charles Koch, I believe, contributed $8 million.

My bad ... I thought he coughed it all up. Now, I think he's a slacker!

When it comes to large donors I don't think anyone holds a candle to MSU supporter John Q. Hammonds. On the other hand, he made a very nice contribution to get the Kansas Sports Hall of Fame opened in Wichita in the past year. However, both John Q. and Chuck are probably pikers when compared to what the Walton family (Wal-Mart) have given to the University of Arkansas.

John Q's name is all over the midwest.

Not sure why this bothers you so much or who is throwing it in your face, but yeah were lucky to have a supporter like Charles Koch. On the other hand, he certainly doesn't throw his wealth around indiscriminately. He is only one of many very substantial supporters of WSU. No doubt, most of the universities and colleges in this country can say the same thing. I don't think WSU has any particular advantage over any other university soley because of Charles Koch.

I wouldn't lose any sleep over it if I were you.


Do you read many posts on this site? Koch is thrown out all the time by Wichita guys. I usually take the opportunity to get a jab in, but I don't lose any sleep over it. It's all in fun. Kinda.:grin: :grin: :grin:

[Shox21]

Sorry Shox ... what am I missing?
I'm slow today.
And every day for that matter.

Just hoping that others would pick up on not talking about Koch so much. Doesn't work. The "Koch" name is magic here. Sorry.

[Ricky Del Rio]

I'm having some trouble understanding Creighton being this overwhelming favorite next year. They bring back alot of people they had last year and yes funk was part of that team before he got injured. SIU brings back every single person, except walk ons as well. Now I know Funk was injured, and so was Dotzler, but didn't SIU finish basically tied with CU last year and beat them head to head twice. Where in all of that does it point to CU being this "overwhelming" favorite over SIU? I do think you could toss the two in a hat at this point and blindly pick a winner, but to call one an overwhelming favorite over the other, I just don't understand, nor can I see any real justification to do so. If anything with Funk being injured he's a bigger x-factor than anything. What if he doesn't fully recover or what if the team doesn't gel with him? Again, I think CU will be very very good next, and MIGHT win the Valley, but to deem them the overwhelming favorite is unwarranted.

The Jays have the best center and best player in the league. That is a pretty good start. The rest of the team isn't too shabby either.

[valleyclimber]

Ricky, would have to agree the Jays are looking AWESOME assuming Funk comes back full strength. :valley:

[JayJay]

Indiana St. will be good again, might take 3-5 years though. It all depends on if Royce can get some magic or new blood comes in to instill a new direction.


With the way recruiting is picking up for the teams in the upper half of the league, there is a danger of a widening gap between the haves and have-nots. This would not be a good thing for the MVC. From what I can see, Illinois State has answered the bell with a solid recruiting class. Evansville and Drake are improving. But Indiana State seems to be heading the other way. I like Royce, but I wonder if he is the man to lead Ind St back to a contender. What say you, Sycamore fans?

[DawgieStyle]

Ricky, would have to agree the Jays are looking AWESOME assuming Funk comes back full strength. :valley:

That's the issue, can Funk come back full strength? Time will tell. It's not that Creighton won't be good, they will be, they'll be very good. I just don't think they're head and shoulders above SIU, or even Wichita. The way the valley has played out the last couple years, the "favorite" hasn't faired to well, just look at No. Ia. last year. Which leads me to believe all this hype over Creighton is a bit over rated and way pre-mature. Again, they'll be good, but to crown them the undisputed kings of the valley for next season is a step I'm not willing to take based on the history of "favorites" in this league, especially with the amount of talent and players both SIU and Wichita have returning as well.

[JayJay]

That's the issue, can Funk come back full strength? Time will tell. It's not that Creighton won't be good, they will be, they'll be very good. I just don't think they're head and shoulders above SIU, or even Wichita. The way the valley has played out the last couple years, the "favorite" hasn't faired to well, just look at No. Ia. last year. Which leads me to believe all this hype over Creighton is a bit over rated and way pre-mature. Again, they'll be good, but to crown them the undisputed kings of the valley for next season is a step I'm not willing to take based on the history of "favorites" in this league, especially with the amount of talent and players both SIU and Wichita have returning as well.


Nobody's crowning CU Valley champs. Everyone knows next season will be a war, just like the last one. But the consensus seems to be that CU will be the preseason favorite based on returning talent and additions to the roster. As you said, the could well turn out to be a curse. SIU is getting plenty of attention as well and will be highly regarded entering next season.


:valley:

[thetruthhurts]

I think its Creighton and SIU and then everyone else. Wichita is probably a solid third after that and maybe SMS but then you can throw the other guys in a hat and see where it falls.

Im actually only predicting two NCAA teams and two NIT teams.

[DoubleJayAlum]

That's the issue, can Funk come back full strength? Time will tell. It's not that Creighton won't be good, they will be, they'll be very good. I just don't think they're head and shoulders above SIU, or even Wichita. The way the valley has played out the last couple years, the "favorite" hasn't faired to well, just look at No. Ia. last year. Which leads me to believe all this hype over Creighton is a bit over rated and way pre-mature. Again, they'll be good, but to crown them the undisputed kings of the valley for next season is a step I'm not willing to take based on the history of "favorites" in this league, especially with the amount of talent and players both SIU and Wichita have returning as well.

Don't worry about it so much. Preseason predictions mean next to nothing. Although I'm a Jaybacker and like to see the positive press, I know deep down everyone on this board can pick CU and it won't mean a damn thing. Besides your team will be fine.

[MSNSaluki]

preseason and off-season publicity are nice, but nothing is decided until the games are played.
this next year is gonna be fun ... again.

[crazy4creighton]

Im sorry to burst everyones bubble but the Funkster is goona be just as talented as he was before. If anything he will be better :naughty: Creighton is Loaded next year soo all you other teams better bring your a game to keep up :jays:

[SiuCubFan8]

Im sorry to burst everyones bubble but the Funkster is goona be just as talented as he was before. If anything he will be better :naughty: Creighton is Loaded next year soo all you other teams better bring your a game to keep up :jays:


Are they good enough to actually beat SIU this year?:lol: :jays: :salukis: :valley:

[JayJay]

Are they good enough to actually beat SIU this year?:lol: :jays: :salukis: :valley:


Fair enough. Jay fans, until we beat SIU and reclaim the Valley throne, let's keep the smack to a minimum.

[SiuCubFan8]

Fair enough. Jay fans, until we beat SIU and reclaim the Valley throne, let's keep the smack to a minimum.

Cu is loaded and Funk will not have a ton of pressure to be the main guy. He doesn't have to score 25 a game. He can play within the offense and spread the ball around. I am looking forward to the CU/SIU battles next year, they should be fun.

[NayshunSycamore]

With the way recruiting is picking up for the teams in the upper half of the league, there is a danger of a widening gap between the haves and have-nots. This would not be a good thing for the MVC. From what I can see, Illinois State has answered the bell with a solid recruiting class. Evansville and Drake are improving. But Indiana State seems to be heading the other way. I like Royce, but I wonder if he is the man to lead Ind St back to a contender. What say you, Sycamore fans?

Royce is NOT the right man for the job. He acted like a crying toddler on the sidelines during our losing stretch this past season. Also, I'm sure all the ISU fans here remember David Moss' Senior Night speech when he said that he had to go up to Royce during a practice while he was injured and tell him to keep his head up. That sounds like what a coach should do for a player, not what a player should have to do for a coach.

[1972Shocker]

1. CU with Funk, Tolliver and a healthy Dotzler have to be considered the early favorite. Their Coach ain't half bad either. Funk and Tolliver are both POY candidates.

2. Hard to argue with SIU being right in the mix since they are essentially returning everyone. I expect they will be somewhat improved on the offensive end. The question is only to what degree. Tony Young is a POY candidate.

3. MSU definitely has the pieces to be a strong contender. I look for them to be very tough next year. Ahearn is a POY candidate.

4. WSU will definitely challenge. Whether or not they can successfully defend their league championshio may depend as much on intangibles as anything. Last year's Seniors provided great leadership, although only one, Paul Miller, played significant minutes. The key to next year will be maintaining the great team chemistry and getting solid contributions from transfer Phil Thomasson and one or more of the incoming freshman. With 6 of our top 7 players returning we should have a very solid core. If they play, the way Coach Turgeon wants them to play they probably won't have a standout POY candidate.

5. I think the Coaching transition will go well with UNI. The new arena may or may not be a big factor. However, losing B.J., Crawford and Little will be a big factor. Stout is very good and a POY candidate and Coleman is very solid. Just not sure there are enough other pieces to make a strong run next year. However, you know UNI will be fundamentally sound and generally they will not beat themselves.

6. Evansville really impressed me last year with their effort and toughness. Webster (POY candidate), Strickland, Anslinger, Holsinger and Ely make a pretty formidable returning group with solid senior leadership. If you UNI has trouble replacing 3 departing Seniors Evansville could pass them for 5th.

7. Klayton Korver will no doubt help Drake next year. However, I do think the rest of the league is learing how to deal with Coach Davis's style. That said, that style is still a pain to deal with and did anyone lose more close games than the Bulldogs did last year.

8. Illinois State may get a lift from what is reported to be a very good recruiting class. On the other hand, depending on incoming freshman to carry you in a league as tough as the MVC may be asking too much. Looking forward to seeing the new talent.

9. This projection for Bradley assumes POB is gone. Bradley loses quite a bit with Sommerville, Wright, and Bennett graduating. If POB is also gone it just cuts too much muscle and talent in one year to easily recover from. Archer may be the best athlete in the league but has yeat to show basketball skills that come close to matching his athleticism. Obviously, if POB returns Bradley moves up at least one notch, if not two.

10. David Moss, a tremendous player and leader is finally gone. A POY quality player. Look at the Sycamores record with and without him last year. That pretty much tells the story.

In any case, I see the league better next year than it was this year.

CU, SIU, WSU and MSU will be in the hunt for a spot in the Big Dance. UNI and Evansville in the NIT.

[E-Ville]

1. Creighton (13-5)
2. S. Illinois (13-5)
3. Wichita St. (13-5)
4. Missouri St. (13-5)
5. N. Iowa (9-9)
6. Evansville (8-10)
7. Drake (7-11)
8. Bradley (6-12)
9. Illinois St (6-12)
10. Indiana St. (2-16)