Midconfans News 2/28/2006

WOMEN’S ROUNDUP--The Oakland Press
OU falls at Southern Utah
FROM STAFF AND WIRE REPORTS

CEDAR CITY, Utah — Southern Utah used a 54.5 percent shooting performance in the second half to pad its lead and hand Oakland its third loss in a row as the Golden Grizzlies fell, 73-58, on Monday night. Three OU starters were held to single digits, while Anne Hafeli (Bloomfield Hills) led the effort with 17 points.
While Nicole Piggott was held to just five points on the night, the junior forward paced Oakland on the glass, pulling down 10 rebounds.
Southern Utah opened things up to start the second half with a 9-0 surge and managed to take a 49-30 lead at 14:07 on an Amy Young triple.
Oakland finished the regular season at 12-15 overall and 8-8 in the Mid-Con and will enter this weekend’s league tournament as the fifth seed. The Grizzlies will square off against fourth-seeded Valparaiso (15-12, 9-7) at noon Sunday in the first game of the afternoon.

Kangaroos hop past Leathernecks in finale--The Macomb Journal

MEN’ S BASKETBALL: VU eyes redemption in tournament--The Post-Tribune

Feb. 28, 2006

By Justin Breen / Post-Tribune deputy sports editor

VALPARAISO — Dan Oppland was 9 the last time Valparaiso’s men’s basketball team was lower than a No. 3 seed in the Mid-Continent Conference Tournament.

But a disappointing regular season has led to the Crusaders grabbing the No. 4 seed — their lowest seeding since they were No. 7 in the 1992-93 tournament.

Oppland, now 22, hopes the Crusaders can rebound from a less-than-desirable regular campaign that saw them go 8-8 in Mid-Con play.

“I think we definitely underachieved in ways, especially with the guys we had going in,” Oppland, whose Crusaders face No. 5 seed Southern Utah on Sunday in the opening round, said Monday. “It’s a shame, but we can wipe the slate clean if we can win it.

“It’s tough going through this, but I still think it’s possible.”

Valpo’s other key contributing seniors felt similar thoughts to Oppland’s.

“I want to go out fighting,” guard Seth Colclasure said. “That’s kind of my thing.”

The Crusaders (16-11) split with the Thunderbirds (10-19), who finished 2-11 in nonconference play. But in the Mid-Con, SUU had some solid performances, including a 73-61 victory over Valpo on Jan. 21. The Crusaders beat the Thunderbirds 76-64 in the teams’ other meeting on Feb. 4 at the Athletics-Recreation Center.

“We match up better with Southern Utah than we do with a lot of other teams,” senior Ali Berdiel said.

The Crusaders, who were the tournament’s No. 1 or 2 seed for 11 straight seasons until they were the No. 3 seed last season, will leave for Tulsa on Friday. The tournament begins on Saturday, with No. 1 seed Oral Roberts playing No. 8 Western Illinois and No. 2 IUPUI facing No. 7 Oakland, last year’s champions.

The other first-round match pits No. 3 UMKC against No. 6 Chicago State. The No. 3 seed has lost in the first round five straight seasons, including Valpo’s 72-67 defeat to Chicago State in 2004-05.

“Going by last year, the first game isn’t guaranteed by any means,” senior guard Ron Howard said.

Contact Justin Breen at 648-3122 or jbreen@post-trib.com

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL: Frigid effort as VU falls on road to ORU--The Post-Tribune

Feb. 28, 2006

Post-Tribune staff report

Bad shooting, poor defense and lethargic play leading to a dubious record-setting performance — not exactly the way the Valparaiso women want to be playing headed into this weekend’s Mid-Continent Conference tournament.

The Crusaders shot a woeful 24 percent from the field while allowing several players to either drive to the basket or shoot unguarded in a 53-31 loss to Oral Roberts on Monday night.

The loss concludes Valparaiso’s regular season at 9-7 in the conference (15-12 overall) and on a three-game losing streak that drops VU to either the fourth or fifth seed when a No. 2 seed seemed within its grasp two weeks ago.

The 31-point output ties for the second-lowest point total in VU women’s history, but it’s the lowest since the 3-point shot was implemented into women’s college basketball. The output is the lowest since Jan. 21, 1982, when the Crusaders scored 27 in a loss to Notre Dame.

VU had trouble getting into any rhythm on either end of the court, with Oral Roberts (16-11, 10-6) bringing a unique game plan that other teams in the Mid-Con rarely use.

“They go four corners, spread you out, hold the ball in the backcourt for 20 seconds, and then go one-on-one. They also have two posts that can both shoot threes,” coach Keith Freeman said. “They did a good job defending us and our shooters.”

That defense resulted in VU shooting 30.4 percent (7-of-23) in the first half, and even worse in the second half with a pitiful 18.5 percent (5-of-27) when the Crusaders tried something different.

“We tried to run motion in second half and we’re not very good at that,” Freeman said. “We’re going to have to adjust. I think we’ll straighten it out by Saturday.”

Nobody scored in double figures for VU; Krystal Taylor and Mayella Kuikhoven led the way with six points each. Those two players were the only ones on the team to make more than one shot in the game. Kuikhoven added a team-high seven rebounds.

Marianna Camargo led the Golden Eagles with 15 points, while probable Mid-Con first-teamer Elisha Turek added 12 points, 10 rebounds and five steals.

Crusaders end season on low note--The NWI Times

T-Birds run past Grizzlies--The Spectrum

Women's Basketball to Face IUPUI in First Round of Mid-Continent Tournament--Chicago State Athletics

IUPUI HEAD COACH NETS MILESTONE VICTORY AS SENIOR GO OUT IN STYLE WITH 55-46 WIN OVER CHICAGO STATE; FACE COUGARS AGAIN IN CONFERENCE TOURNAMENT--IUPUI JAGUAR ATHLETICS

Kangaroos Close 11-Point Halftime Deficit To Earn 70-61 Overtime Upset Over Western Illinois--UMKC Kangaroos

Golden Grizzlies Falter at Southern Utah, 73-58--OUGrizzlies.com

Golden Eagles Clinch #3 Seed with 53-31 Rout of Valparaiso--Oral Roberts University Golden Eagles

Green Earns Fourth Mid-Con Weekly Honor--Oral Roberts University Golden Eagles

SUU RUNS PAST OAKLAND IN REGULAR SEASON FINALE, 73-58--SOUTHERN UTAH THUNDERBIRDS

Valpo Drops Third Straight Falling at ORU--www.valpo.edu

Women's Basketball Falls to UMKC, 70-61, in OT--Western Illinois Athletics

Final Women's Seeding

Women's Basketball

   School  W-L  Home  Away   Sweeps               Swept By   Split
   ------  ---  ----  ----   ------               --------   -----
1. WIU    13-3  6-2   7-1    CC,IUPUI,VU,CSU,SUU             ORU,OU,UMKC
2. IUPUI  11-5  7-1   4-4    OU,CC,UMKC,ORU       WIU        VU,SUU,CSU
3. ORU    10-6  4-4   6-2    CC,CSU,SUU           IUPUI,OU,UMKC         WIU,VU
4. Valpo   9-7  6-2   3-5    CC,SUU               WIU        OU,IUPUI,CSU,UMKC,ORU
5. OU      8-8  5-3   3-5    CC                   IUPUI      UMKC,VU,WIU,ORU,CSU,SUU
6. UMKC    8-8  4-4   4-4    SUU                  IUPUI,ORU  CSU,CC,OU,VU,WIU
7. CSU     7-9  5-3   2-6    CC                   ORU,WIU    SUU,UMKC,OU,CSU,IUPUI
8. SUU     4-12 4-4   0-8                         ORU,VU,UMKC,WIU    CSU,CC,IUPUI,OU
9. CC      2-14 2-6   0-8                         WIU,VU,IUP,OU,CSU,ORU  UMKC,SUU

WIU had already clinched the #1 seed.

With their victory over CSU, IUPUI wins the #2 seed outright.

ORU beats Valpo to get the #3 seed.

Valpo remains alone at 9-7 and gets the 4 seed.

OU and UMKC are tied at 8-8. They split with each other, they both split with WIU, they both were swept by IUPUI, they both split with ORU, they both split with Valpo, but UMKC swept SUU, while OU split, so UMKC would get the 5 seed, and OU gets the 6 seed.

CSU gets the 7 seed outright with the only 7-9 record.

SUU gets the 8 seed outright with the only 4-12 record.

So, here are the pairings

Game 1 - Saturday, 12:00 pm: #1 Western Illinois vs. #8 Southern Utah
Game 2 - Saturday,  2:30 pm: #2 IUPUI            vs. #7 Chicago State
Game 3 - Sunday,   12:00 pm: #4 Valparaiso       vs. #5 UMKC
Game 4 - Sunday,    2:30 pm: #3 ORU              vs. #6 Oakland

Game 5 - Monday,   12:00 pm: Game 1 winner vs. Game 3 winner
Game 6 - Monday,    2:30 pm: Game 2 winner vs. Game 4 winner

Game 7 - Tuesday,  12:30 pm: Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner

Both IUPUI teams have the 2 seed. Both Valpo teams have the 4 seed.

Game 4 Sunday afternoon promises to be an outstanding game. OU got a buzzer-beater win at the Mabee Center, and ORU returned the favor the following week at the O'Rena. Both games were nail-biters.

Did You Know...

For the 4th straight year, Western Illinois has the #1 seed, but they have yet to make it to the final game in the past 3 years. In 2003, they lost to Valpo. In 2004, they lost to ORU in overtime. Last year, they lost to ORU again.

Prior to this year, the highest seed IUPUI ever got was the 5 seed in 2001, and that was the only tourney win they've ever gotten, beating 4 seed Southern Utah 58-53, before losing to 1 seed Oakland 80-73. This year is also the first year they finished the season with a winning record in conference.

Post-game Remarks

IUPUI closed out their regular season on a winning note, beating CSU 55-46.

ORU's 4-Corner offense befuddled the Crusaders in the 2nd half, and ORU wins going away, 53-31.

Western Illinois, with nothing but senior night pride to play for, frittered away an 11-point halftime lead, allowing the UMKC Kangaroos to tie the game at 53, forcing overtime. With Zane Teilane fouled out, UMKC's perimeter shooters started knocking down 3s and Western Illinois went cold from the field. The Roos upset the Westerwinds, 70-61 in overtime.

Southern Utah handled Oakland fairly well, prevailing 73-58.

Updated Women's Standings after today's games:

            Conf.      Overall
    School  W L  Pct    W  L  Pct    Seed
1.  WIU    13 3  0.813  21 5  0.808  #1
2.  IUPUI  11 5  0.688  16 10 0.615  #2
3.  ORU    10 6  0.625  16 11 0.593  #3
4.  Valpo   9 7  0.563  15 12 0.556  #4
5.  UMKC    8 8  0.500  10 17 0.370  #5
6.  Oakland 8 7  0.533  11 15 0.423  #6
7.  CSU     7 9  0.438  12 15 0.444  #7
8.  SUU     3 12 0.200  10 16 0.385  #8
9.  CC      2 14 0.128  3  24 0.111

Today in the Mid-Con

Today's Women's Standings:

            Conf.      Overall      Remaining Conf. Games
    School  W L Pct     W  L  Pct    Home        Away
1.  WIU    13 2  0.867  21 4  0.840  UMKC
2.  IUPUI  10 5  0.667  15 10 0.600  CSU
3.  Valpo   9 6  0.600  15 11 0.577              ORU
4.  ORU     9 6  0.600  15 11 0.577  VU
5.  Oakland 8 7  0.533  11 15 0.423              SUU
6.  CSU     7 8  0.467  12 14 0.462              IUPUI
7.  UMKC    7 8  0.467  9  17 0.346              WIU
8.  SUU     3 12 0.200  10 16 0.385  OU
9.  CC      2 14 0.128  3  24 0.111

Today's Games (links for webcasts):

Chicago State at IUPUI, 6:00 pm CT

UMKC at Western Illinois, 7:00 pm CT
Watch this game!

Valparaiso at ORU, 7:05 pm CT

Oakland at Southern Utah, 8:05 pm CT

Midconfans News 2/27/2006

Oakland women at Southern Utah--The Oakland Press
— DUSTIN FRUCCI

When: 9 tonight
Where: Cedar City, Utah
Records: Oakland 12-14 (8-7 Mid-Con); Southern Utah 10-16 (3-12)
Overview: After a streak during which it won six of seven games, OU has lost its last two heading into the season finale at Southern Utah. … OU defeated Southern Utah, 82-63, in January. … With a win over the Thunderbirds tonight, OU would clinch the fifth seed in the upcoming Mid-Continent Conference tournament. … After its loss to Chicago State on Saturday, OU will suffer its first losing regular season since 2002-03 and the first losing regular season under head coach Beckie Francis.
Up next: Mid-Con tournament, March 4-7 in Tulsa, Okla.

International love and basketball--The NWI Times

UMKC edges Western Illinois men--The Peoria Star Journal

--Chicago State Athletics

Seedings Set For Mid-Con Tournament; UMKC To Face Chicago State--UMKC Kangaroos

UMKC Women Close Out Season Monday Night At Western Illinois, Look To Improve Conference Seed--UMKC Kangaroos

Penny Night at the Mabee Center--Oral Roberts University Golden Eagles

VALPO CLOSES OUT REGULAR SEASON MONDAY NIGHT AT ORAL ROBERTS IN BATTLE FOR #3 SEED--www.valpo.edu

Women's Seeds and tiebreakers

Women's Basketball

   School  W-L  Home  Away   Sweeps               Swept By   Split
   ------  ---  ----  ----   ------               --------   -----
1. WIU    13-2  6-1   7-1    CC,IUPUI,VU,CSU,SUU             ORU,OU
2. IUPUI  10-5  6-1   4-4    OU,CC,UMKC,ORU WIU              VU,SUU
3. Valpo   9-6  6-2   3-4    CC,SUU               WIU        OU,IUPUI,CSU,UMKC
4. ORU     9-6  3-4   6-2    CC,CSU,SUU           IUPUI,OU,UMKC         WIU
5. OU      8-7  5-3   3-4    CC                   IUPUI      UMKC,VU,WIU,ORU,CSU
6. CSU     7-8  5-3   2-5    CC                   ORU,WIU    SUU,UMKC,OU
7. UMKC    7-8  4-4   3-4    SUU                  IUPUI,ORU  CSU,CC,OU,VU
8. SUU     3-12 3-4   0-8                         ORU,VU,UMKC,WIU    CSU,CC,IUPUI
9. CC      2-14 2-6   0-8                         WIU,VU,IUP,OU,CSU,ORU  UMKC,SUU

WIU has a home game against UMKC
IUPUI has a home game left against CSU
VU has a game at ORU
OU has a game at SUU
ORU has a home game against VU
CSU has a game at IUPUI
UMKC has a game at WIU
SUU has home games left against OU
CC is done

WIU has already clinched the #1 seed.

IUPUI has clinched at least the #3 seed. If they tie with VU at 10-6, it means they lost to CSU and SUU. IUPUI and VU split and they were both swept by WIU, so we have to go to 4th place, which would be ORU or OU (if they beat SUU) at 9-7.

If both are 9-7, then we look at VU and IUPUI records against ORU and OU together:

IUPUI: 4-0
VU: 3-1

Which would give the 2 seed to IUPUI.

If only ORU is 9-7, then both VU and IUPUI would be 2-0 against ORU, so we'd go to 5th place, which would be OU and CSU (if IUPUI is 10-6 they lost to CSU) and possibly UMKC (if they beat WIU) at 8-8.

If it is just OU and CSU, then here are the records to compare:

IUPUI: 2-2
VU: 2-2

and we'd have to to 7th place, which would be UMKC at 7-9.

IUPUI: 2-0
VU: 1-1

which again gives the 2 seed to IUPUI.

If OU, CSU, and UMKC are all 8-8, then here are the records to compare:

IUPUI: 4-2
VU: 3-3

and again, the 2 seed goes to IUPUI, and that exhausts all the possibilities, so give the #2 seed to IUPUI.

This leaves the #3 seed between ORU and VU, who play each other tomorrow night. The winner will be 10-6 and have the 3 seed, the loser will be 9-7 and play in the 4-5 game.

If ORU wins and gets the 3 seed, and OU beats SUU, then VU plays OU in the 4-5 game.

If ORU wins, and OU loses to SUU, then VU gets the 4 seed, and OU, CSU, or UMKC gets the 5 seed. If all 3 are tied at 8-8, OU is 2-2, CSU is 2-2, UMKC is 2-2, so we look at #1 WIU: OU is 1-1, CSU is 0-2, and UMKC would be 1-1, eliminating CSU. OU and UMKC split with each other, they both split with WIU, they both were swept by IUPUI, they both split with ORU, they both split with Valpo, but UMKC swept SUU, while OU split, so UMKC would get the 5 seed, OU 6, CSU 7, and SUU 8.

If only OU and CSU are tied at 8-8, OU split with CSU, OU was 1-1 against WIU while CSU was 0-2 against WIU, so OU would get the 5 seed, CSU the 6, UMKC 7, and SUU 8

If only OU and UMKC are tied at 8-8, then as seen previously with the 3-way tie, SUU would break the tie and UMKC would get the 5 seed, OU the 6, CSU 7, and SUU 8.

If Valpo wins and gets the 3 seed, and OU beats SUU, then ORU plays OU in the 4-5 game.

If Valpo wins, and OU loses to SUU, then ORU gets the 4 seed, and OU, CSU, or UMKC gets the 5 seed. If all 3 are tied at 8-8, OU is 2-2, CSU is 2-2, UMKC is 2-2, so we look at #1 WIU: OU is 1-1, CSU is 0-2, and UMKC would be 1-1, eliminating CSU. OU and UMKC split with each other, they both split with WIU, they both were swept by IUPUI, they both split with Valpo, they both split with ORU, but UMKC swept SUU, while OU split, so UMKC would get the 5 seed, OU 6, CSU 7, and SUU 8.

If only OU and CSU are tied at 8-8, OU split with CSU, OU was 1-1 against WIU while CSU was 0-2 against WIU, so OU would get the 5 seed, CSU the 6, UMKC 7, and SUU 8

If only OU and UMKC are tied at 8-8, then as seen previously with the 3-way tie, SUU would break the tie and UMKC would get the 5 seed, OU the 6, CSU 7, and SUU 8.

Otherwise, OU gets the 5 seed outright.

If CSU and UMKC finish tied at 7-9, then UMKC split with CSU, they both were swept by WIU, but CSU split with IUPUI while UMKC was swept by them, so CSU would get the 6, UMKC the 7, SUU the 8.

So, in summary:

WIU: #1 seed

IUPUI: #2 seed

ORU: #3 seed if they beat Valpo. Otherwise #4 or #5.

VU: #3 seed if they beat ORU. Otherwise #4 or #5.

OU: #4 or #5 seed if they beat SUU, or UMKC loses to WIU. Otherwise #6.

CSU: #6 if UMKC loses. Otherwise #7.

UMKC: #5 if they win. Otherwise #7.

SUU: #8 seed.

Midconfans News 2/26/2006

Colleges--The Chicago Sun-Times

CHICAGO ST. 91, OAKLAND 80: Royce Parran connected on seven three-pointers and scored a career-high 39 points, leading the host Cougars past the Golden Grizzlies.

Parran added eight assists, four rebounds and three steals and shot 13-for-18 for the Cougars (9-18, 8-8 Mid-Continent Conference).
...
ORAL ROBERTS 87, VALPARAISO 78: Caleb Green scored 27 points for the host Golden Eagles. Dan Oppland led Valparaiso (16-11, 8-8 Mid-Con) with 25 points and 12 rebounds.

College Basketball: Midwest Roundup--The Daily Southtown

Chicago St. 91, Oakland (Mich.) 80

Royce Parran connected on seven 3-pointers en route to a career-high 39 points in host Chicago State's victory.

Parran added eight assists, four rebounds and three steals. He made 13 of 18 field-goal attempts for Chicago State (9-18, 8-8 Mid-Continent), which shot 57 percent from the field.

David Holston contributed 13 points and Kevin Jones added 11 for Chicago State. Vova Severovas scored a career-high 30 points, shooting 75 percent from the floor, and grabbed nine rebounds for Oakland (11-17, 6-10).
...
UMKC 77, Western Illinois 73

MACOMB, Ill. — Kalu Guasco, Tim Blackwell and Quinton Day each scored 16 points to lead Missouri-Kansas City (14-13, 11-5 Mid-Con) over Western Illinois (7-20, 3-13). David Jackson led the charge for Western Illinois, scoring 15 points.

SUU routs IUPUI--deseretnews.com

SOUTHERN UTAH 83-IUPUI 62: Southern Utah's Nate Janes saved his best for last. The forward from Cedar City, playing his final game in front of the home fans, scored a career-high 25 points and pulled down seven rebounds on senior night Saturday to lead the Thunderbirds.

SUU 58, IUPUI 55--deseretnews.com

Three Thunderbirds scored in double figures as Southern Utah's women's basketball team held off a furious IUPUI rally to escape with a 58-55 victory Saturday night at the Centrum Arena.
The win clinched the eighth and final Mid-Continent Conference tournament berth for the Thunderbirds, who improve to 10-16 overall, 3-12 in league play. Meanwhile the Jaguars fell to 15-10, 10-5 in conference.
Southern Utah jumped out to a quick 11-5 lead thanks to six early points from Cheryl Grant and a 3-pointer from Cassie Hahl, who broke the school's single-season 3-point record on the made shot. IUPUI rallied with a 14-2 run, holding SUU to just two free throws over a span of nearly eight minutes, to erase the early deficit and take the lead away at 19-13 with eight minutes to play until intermission.

State: Roundup--The Detroit News

Mid-Continent
# Chicago State 91, Oakland 80:
Royce Parran scored 39 for Chicago State (9-18, 8-8). Vova Severovas scored 30 for Oakland (11-17, 6-10).

STATE ROUNDUP--The Oakland Press
Oakland men, women swept at Chicago St. Detroit 73, Butler 71
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

CHICAGO — Royce Parran connected on seven 3-pointers on his way to scoring a career-high 39 points, leading Chicago State to a 91-80 win over Oakland on Saturday.
Parran had a career game, adding eight assists, four rebounds and three steals to his point total. He made 13 of 18 field-goal attempts for the Cougars (9-18, 8-8 Mid-Con), who shot 57 percent from the field.
Oakland’s Vova Severovas also had a big night.
He scored a career-high 30 points and grabbed nine rebounds, shooting 75 percent from the floor and making 12 free throws for the Golden Grizzlies (11-17, 6-10).
But in spite of Severovas’ performance, Oakland shot just 37 percent in the first half, falling behind 42-37 at halftime.
The Golden Grizzlies made only 25 percent of their 3-pointers, compared with Chicago State’s 56 percent.
Oakland’s Rick Billings scored 15 points with five rebounds in the loss.
OAKLAND (11-17)
Nelson 3-8 5-7 11, Severovas 9-12 12-14 30, Hopes 1-3 1-2 3, Wooten 3-6 1-3 9, Billings 3-6 9-12 15, MacKenzie 2-4 0-1 6, Cassise 1-10 0-0 3, Carson 0-2 1-2 1, Kangas 0-1 0-0 0, McCloskey 1-2 0-0 2. Totals 23-54 29-41 80.
Chicago State 70, Oakland women 59
Oakland missed a golden opportunity to move up the conference standings by falling to Chicago State.
The Golden Grizzlies (12-14, 8-7 Mid-Con) would have moved into a three-way for third place in the Mid-Con with a win over the Cougars, but now could fi nish as low seventh with a loss to Southern Utah in their season fi nale Monday.
Chicago State (12-4, 7-8) was led by Ayesha Neasley, who finished with 21 points. Oakland’s Jayme Wilson led all scorers with 22 points, and Nicole Piggott added 13 points and 10 rebounds.
Oakland shot just 32 percent from the field. The Grizzlies did go 16-for-22 from the free-throw line, but the Cougars shot better than 90 percent from the line.
Wilson hit a 3-pointer to start the game, but the Cougars went on a 14-0 run after that. The Grizzlies cut the deficit to single digits, 29-20, before halftime.
The Grizzlies pulled within six in the second half, but could not get any closer. The Cougars built a 63-48 lead with 2:30 to play, then went 7-for-8 from the free-throw line in the final two minutes to seal the victory.
Oakland wraps up its regular season with a road game against Southern Utah on Monday.

MEN’S ROUNDUP--The Oakland Press
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Mid-Continent

• Oral Roberts 87, Valparaiso 78 — At Tulsa, Okla., Caleb Green scored 27 points and grabbed 15 rebounds to lead Oral Roberts over Valparaiso.

state roundup--The Indy Star

ORAL ROBERTS 87, VALPARAISO 78 -- Caleb Green scored 27 points and grabbed 15 rebounds for host Oral Roberts (18-11, 13-3 Mid-Continent).
It was the tenth consecutive loss for Valparaiso (16-11, 8-8) at Oral Roberts since 1997.

Women
S. UTAH 58, IUPUI 55 -- Kia Hayes had a game-high 18 points in a losing effort for the visiting Jaguars (15-10, 10-5 Mid-Continent) against the Thunderbirds (10-16, 3-12).

MO.-KANSAS CITY 69, VALPARAISO 63 -- Stephanie Brown and Jowan Ortega each scored 14 points to lead the host Kangaroos (9-17, 7-8 Mid-Continent) past the Crusaders (15-11, 9-6).

Jaguars lose last 2 games, finish tied atop Mid-Con--The Indy Star

UMKC wins at homeThe Kansas City Star

Hot-shooting trio lifts Kangaroos to road winThe Kansas City Star

MEN’S BASKETBALL: Could state be shut out of NCAAs yet again?--The Post-Tribune

Feb. 26, 2006

By Justin Breen / Post-Tribune deputy sports editor

Death, taxes, an Indiana team playing in the NCAA Tournament.

For years, all seemed like guarantees.

But the Hoosier state was denied last season from the NCAAs for the first time since 1972. And Indiana clubs could very well be shut out again from this season’s tournament.

“It would shock me if any Indiana teams made it this year — as an at-large team,” said Gregg Doyel, the college basketball scribe for www.cbssportsline.com. “There’s not a team in the state that should feel even remotely good about its NCAA chances, barring a conference tournament championship.”

Indiana University looked like a shoo-in until losing five of its last six games heading into today’s critical match-up with Michigan State.

The trainwreck ways perhaps forced coach Mike Davis to resign last week. In their first home game since his resignation, the Hoosiers played Penn State on Wednesday in front of a lethargic crowd at Assembly Hall, prompting senior transfer Marco Killingsworth to say, “we’ve got some real true fans out here, and we’ve got some fake ones. The real ones, they’re still sticking behind us.”

Notre Dame’s probably the best team in the state, but the Irish can’t beat anybody in the Big East and might not even advance to that tournament.

Only the top 12 teams in the Big East go to the conference tourney, and the (13-12, overall, 4-10 Big East) are in 14th place with two games left.

Butler’s playing well, but the Bulldogs will have to win the Horizon League Tournament to receive an NCAA bid. Same goes for IUPUI in the Mid-Continent Conference, while Valparaiso will hope to play the darkhorse role and go to the NCAAs for the first time since 2004.

Evansville (last NCAA Tournament bid in 1999), Ball State (2000), Indiana State (2001) and Purdue (2003) appear to be floating in the abyss, at least for now. The Purple Aces and Sycamores are at the bottom of the tough Missouri Valley Conference, the Cardinals are in the lower half of the Mid-American Conference, and the Boilermakers have dealt with a spate of injuries and other issues on their way to the Big Ten dungeon.

And sorry independent IPFW, you don’t really factor here.

So what’s the deal?

Are Indiana’s teams not a chic choice anymore for blue-chip players? Richmond’s Dominic James chose Marquette, Lawrence North’s Greg Oden and Mike Conley selected Ohio State, and Carmel’s Josh McRoberts went with Duke. The best ballers don’t appear to be sticking around.

Or maybe there’s too much drama. Gene Keady perhaps stayed too long with the Boilermakers, hurting recruiting until Matt Painter came along. Valpo’s Homer Drew came out of retirement to replace his son, Scott, who high-tailed it to Baylor. Davis faced a constant battle with fans who called for his dismissal.

“When they cheered for me tonight, it felt good,” Davis said after the Penn State win. “But I’m not sure they were cheering.”

Perhaps it was just the Hoosier State’s time to drop out of the NCAA picture, if only for a few seasons.

“It’s like a cycle,” said Homer Drew, whose Crusaders have been to seven NCAA Tournaments since 1996 but are in serious danger of not going for the second straight time. “Hopefully the cycle will change very quickly, and we return to being a very dominant state.”

Or possibly there’s no explanation at all.

“There’s not really a rhyme or reason why nobody has made it since 2004,” IUPUI coach Ron Hunter said in an e-mail. “It’s just happened that way.”

The state began this century with a bang, sending six teams to the tournament in 2000. Purdue went the furthest, reaching the regional finals.

“It wasn’t that long ago that Indiana was among the national leaders in number of teams in the tournament,” Butler coach Todd Lickliter said in an e-mail. “I don’t think there’s anything wrong with the state of college basketball in Indiana. Different schools face different hurdles, and sometimes those hurdles all pop up at the same time.”

The state’s strength in numbers continued for the next three seasons. Four squads went in 2001, a trio — including national finalist Indiana — advanced in 2002 and five qualified in 2003.

The downslide commenced in 2004, when only VU reached the NCAA’s promised land.

Last season was a shocker considering Hoosierland hadn’t been blanked since the early 70s, when only 25 teams qualified for the Big Dance.

Whatever the reasons, Doyel said fans of the state teams needn’t worry.

“Next season looks much better for the state,” Doyel said. “Purdue — yes, Purdue — could could be a 2007 NCAA Tournament team. Indiana could get a bid, too, if it hires the right coach (whoever that is). And if freshman point guard Tory Jackson (Buena Vista HS, Saginaw, Mich.) can do for Notre Dame next year what Dominic James is doing this year for Marquette, I can see the Irish reaching the 2007 NCAA Tournament, too.

“Then again, it wouldn’t surprise me if all three big schools got shut out again. Each will have its share of question marks.”

Right now, fans simply want answers.

Unfortunately, they might just have to have a little patience.

Contact Justin Breen at 648-3122 or jbreen@post-trib.com

MEN’S BASKETBALL: Tulsa remains house of horrors for Valpo--The Post-Tribune

Feb. 26, 2006

Post-Tribune staff report

Valparaiso remained 0-for-Tulsa after falling 87-78 at Oral Roberts on Saturday night before 8,514 at the Mabee Center.

The Crusaders (16-11, 8-8 Mid-Con) dropped to 0-11 all-time in Tulsa, including last season’s opening-round loss in the Mid-Continent Conference Tournament to Chicago State.

“I have no answer for that,” Valpo’s Homer Drew, who coached his 900th career game, said of the Tulsa jinx. “One year we’ll get them.”

Oral Roberts (18-11, 13-3) clinched the top seed in the tournament after IUPUI lost 82-63 at Southern Utah later Saturday. The Crusaders, who ended the regular season with two straight losses, are the No. 4 seed will play No. 5 seed Southern Utah in the opening round of the Mid-Con tourney.

Dan Oppland had a team-high 25 points and 12 rebounds, but it was not enough as Caleb Green (game-high 27 points) and Ken Tutt (18 points) led the way for the Golden Eagles.

The Crusaders dealt with foul trouble most of the game, with Mohamed Kone (nine points, four rebounds) and Ron Howard (16 points, five rebounds) each fouling out. Oppland, Ali Berdiel (16 points, four assists), Brandon McPherson and Moussa Mbaye all had four fouls.

“That really hurt us,” Drew said of the foul trouble.

Jimmie Miles played just two minutes but dealt with a high ankle sprain. Drew said Mbaye is about 60 percent recovered from his groin injury. Shawn Huff is walking without crutches and could be available for tournament action.

“We were 11-4 when we were healthy,” Drew said. “We’re really looking to the three days in March.”

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL: Crusaders still can’t prevail at Kansas City--The Post-Tribune

Feb. 26, 2006

Post-Tribune staff report

For the fourth straight year Valparaiso was unable to defeat UMKC in Kansas City, Mo., as the Kangaroos posted a 69-63 victory over the Crusaders on Saturday afternoon in Swinney Recreation Center.

The Crusaders (15-11, 9-6 Mid-Continent Conference), who shot just 31.9 percent (22-of-69), fell out of contention for one of the top two seeds in the conference tournament. Valpo concludes the regular season at Oral Roberts on Monday.

“We didn’t shoot the ball very well,” Valpo coach Keith Freeman said. “We really made a lot of mental mistakes defensively.”

Freshman point guard Launa Hochstetler led the Crusaders with a career-high 14 points in 28 minutes. Starting point guard Lauren Bechtold was held to six points in 20 minutes.

Betsy Rietema (3-of-16 from the field), Carrie Myers (3-of-10) and Tamra Braun (3-of-7) combined to shoot 9-of-33. Braun had a season- and game-high 13 rebounds, while Rietema had 12.

Agnieszka Kulaga had a career-high 10 points for VU.

UMKC (9-17, 7-8) was fronted by Stephanie Brown and Jowan Ortega, who had 14 points each.

The Kangaroos, who upset the Crusaders in last season’s Mid-Con tournament, grabbed a 50-36 lead before VU cut the gap to six with 2:30 to play.

The Crusaders held UMKC without a field goal for the final 6:34 but made eight free throws down the stretch to seal the win.

“I think it’s hard to win on the road in the Mid-Con,” said Freeman, whose team dropped to 3-4 away from home in the Mid-Con. At the Athletics-Recreation Center, VU was 6-2 in the Mid-Con.

VU struggles again--The NWI Times

ORU continues home hex over VU--The NWI Times

UMKC edges Western Illinois men--The Peoria Journal Star

Thunderbirds pound first-place IUPUI--The Spectrum

T-Bird women hold off Jaguars--The Spectrum

ORAL ROBERTS 70, CENTENARY 43--The Shreveport Times

Down six at halftime, the Ladies were outscored by Oral Roberts 40-19 in the second half as they fell in their final regular season game of the season. The Ladies (3-24, 2-14 Mid-Con) still have a shot a making the conference tournament pending Monday's action.

Three Ladies scored in double figures, led by Jelena Aleksic with 12. Laura Kizyte and Van'esha Brabson added 11 and 10, respectively.

Men's State College Boxscores--The Salt Lake Tribune

Southern Utah 83, IUPUI 62
IUPUI (18-9) -Cole 3-10 3-3 9, Smith 3-5 2-2 8, Burks 2-9 0-0 5, Hill 6-13 7-8 21, Barlow 2-7 2-2 6, Byles 1-6 0-2 2, Scott 0-0 0-0 0, Vavrek 1-3 0-0 3, Conner 0-0 0-0 0, Van Senus 0-0 0-0 0, Cameron 3-6 0-0 8. Totals 21-59 14-17 62.
SOUTHERN UTAH (10-19) - N.Janes 10-12 5-5 25, Bonzano 2-4 0-0 6, Olsovsky 3-8 0-0 6, Barnes 3-8 2-2 8, R.Janes 5-7 0-0 14, Uhegwu 3-5 9-10 17, Crum 0-0 0-0 0, Allen 3-5 0-0 7, Davis 0-1 0-0 0, Abrahao 0-0 0-0 0, Bonfim 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 29-51 16-17 83.
Halftime-Southern Utah 38-33. 3-Point Goals-IUPUI 6-26 (Cameron 2-3, Hill 2-3, Vavrek 1-2, Burks 1-6, Byles 0-2, Barlow 0-3, Cole 0-7), S. Utah 9-17 (R.Janes 4-5, Uhegwu 2-3, Bonzano 2-4, Allen 1-1, Davis 0-1, Barnes 0-3). Fouled Out-None. Rebounds-IUPUI 28 (Byles 6), S. Utah 34 (Olsovsky 8). Assists-IUPUI 9 (Hill 3), S. Utah 18 (Barnes 9). Total Fouls-IUPUI 16, S. Utah 19. A-2,836.

Ladies End Regular Season with 70-43 Loss at Oral Roberts--GoCentenary.Com

Neasley's Career High 21 Points Leads Cougars in 70-59 Victory Over Oakland--Chicago State Athletics

Cougars Continue Home Win Streak--Chicago State Athletics

SECOND HALF COMEBACK FALLS SHORT AS IUPUI LOSES 58-55 AT SOUTHERN UTAH; CLINCHES NO. 2 SEED DESPITE LOSS--IUPUI JAGUAR ATHLETICS

JAGS END REGULAR SEASON ON SOUR NOTE, LOSE AT SOUTHERN UTAH 83-62--IUPUI JAGUAR ATHLETICS

Balanced Offense, Stingy Defense Earns Kangaroos Victory Over Valparaiso--UMKC Kangaroos

Kangaroos Close Out Regular Season With A Win--UMKC Kangaroos

Oakland Drops Road Contest to Chicago State, 70-59--OUGrizzlies.com

Oakland Falls at Chicago State, 91-80--OUGrizzlies.com

Golden Eagles Handle Ladies, 70-43--Oral Roberts University Golden Eagles

Golden Eagles Clinch Share of Mid-Con Title, No.1 Tourney Seed with 87-78 Victory Over Valparaiso--Oral Roberts University Golden Eagles

SUU HOLDS OFF IUPUI TO CLINCH FINAL MID-CON TOURNEY BERTH, 58-55--SOUTHERN UTAH THUNDERBIRDS

T-Bird Men Top IUPUI, Claim Share Of Fourth--SOUTHERN UTAH THUNDERBIRDS

Valparaiso Drops Second Straight On the Road, Falls at UMKC--www.valpo.edu

Valpo Falls to Oral Roberts Saturday in Tulsa--www.valpo.edu

Women's Basketball Hosts UMKC in Regular Season Finale--Western Illinois Athletics

Leathernecks Drop Regular-Season Finale to UMKC, 77-73--Western Illinois Athletics

Leathernecks Draw Oral Roberts in First Round of Mid-Con Tournament--Western Illinois Athletics

Final Men's seedings

All should be definitive now for the Men's bracket:

School  W-L  Home  Away   Sweeps            Swept By             Split
------  ---  ----  ----   ------            --------             -----
IUPUI  13-3  8-0   5-3    OU,UMKC,WIU,VU,CC                      ORU,CSU,SUU
ORU    13-3  8-0   5-3    CSU,SUU,OU,UMKC,CC                     WIU,IUPUI,VU
UMKC   11-5  6-2   5-3    CC,CSU,OU,VU,WIU  IUPUI,ORU            SUU
Valpo   8-8  6-2   2-6    CC,WIU            IUPUI,UMKC           OU,SUU,CSU,ORU
SUU     8-8  6-2   2-6    WIU               ORU                  VU,CSU,CC,UMKC,OU,IUPUI
CSU     8-8  6-2   2-6    CC,WIU            ORU,UMKC             SUU,VU,IUPUI,OU
OU      6-10 3-5   3-5    WIU               IUPUI,ORU,UMKC       VU,CC,SUU,CSU
WIU     3-13 2-6   1-7    CC                OU,IUPUI,VU,SUU,CSU,UMKC  ORU
CC      2-14 1-7   1-7                      UMKC,VU,WIU,CSU,ORU  SUU,OU
                                            IUPUI

Breaking the tie between ORU and IUPUI:

The two teams split against each other
vs. #3 UMKC: IUPUI 2-0, ORU 2-0
vs. 3-way tie for 4th: IUPUI 4-2, ORU 5-1

ORU wins the #1 seed, leaving IUPUI with the #2 seed.

UMKC stands alone in 3rd place with the #3 seed.

Breaking the tie between VU, SUU, and CSU:

The three teams split against each other, both individually and collectively
vs. #1 ORU: VU 1-1, SUU 0-2, CSU 0-2

VU wins the #4 seed.

Breaking the tie between SUU and CSU:

The two teams split against each other
vs. #1 ORU: SUU 0-2, CSU 0-2
vs. #2 IUPUI: SUU 1-1, CSU 1-1
vs. #3 UMKC: SUU 1-1, CSU 0-2

SUU wins the #5 seed.
CSU wins the #6 seed.

OU stands alone with the 7 seed.

WIU stands alone with the 8 seed.

So, here are the pairings

Game 1 - Saturday, 6:00 pm: #1 ORU        vs. #8 Western Illinois
Game 2 - Saturday, 8:30 pm: #2 IUPUI      vs. #7 Oakland
Game 3 - Sunday,   6:00 pm: #4 Valparaiso vs. #5 Southern Utah
Game 4 - Sunday,   8:30 pm: #3 UMKC       vs. #6 Chicago State

Game 5 - Monday,   6:00 pm: Game 1 winner vs. Game 3 winner
Game 6 - Monday,   8:30 pm: Game 2 winner vs. Game 4 winner

Game 7 - Tuesday,  6:00 pm: Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner

Did You Know...

The last year Valpo finished with .500 or worse conference record was 1992-1993 - 13 years ago.

The last time Valpo played Southern Utah in the tourney was March 6, 2001 in Fort Wayne, losing the championship game to the T-Birds, 62-59. Jeff Monaco, Fred House, et. al. nearly pulled off an upset of #3 seed Boston College in the NCAA first round, just missing sending the game to overtime on a 3 point shot by Fred House at the buzzer.

The last time ORU played Western Illinois in the tourney was March 3, 2002 in Fort Wayne, beating the Leathernecks 87-75 in overtime, but losing Reggie Borges to a season ending leg injury. The Golden Eagles lost in the semifinals to IUPUI, 58-53.

The last time IUPUI played Oakland in the tourney was March 3, 2002 in Fort Wayne, Oakland's first year of eligibility for the tournament. The Jaguars beat the last Oakland team dominated by players recruited while still at Division II level - the Champaign brothers, Brad Budenborg and Jason Roczyki, along with an upstart sophomore named Mike Helms. The final score was 90-84.

The last time UMKC played Chicago State in the tourney was March 5, 2000 in Fort Wayne, eking out a 1 point victory over the #6 Cougars, 62-61, before getting blown out by Southern Utah, 72-54.

Seeds and tiebreakers - official clarification from the Mid-Con office

I fixed the error that ORU Tex found, and yes folks, ORU Tex was right all along ;-)

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Thanks to tmh2826, who provided the email address to check with, I got a response from Kristina Peterson at the Mid-Con office:

In the situation that you are speaking of, we would find out IUPUI and ORU's record combined against the teams tied below them.

So, with that clarification, here is the real poop:

School  W-L  Home  Away   Sweeps            Swept By             Split
------  ---  ----  ----   ------            --------             -----
IUPUI  13-2  8-0   5-2    OU,UMKC,WIU,VU,CC                      ORU,CSU
ORU    12-3  7-0   5-3    CSU,SUU,OU,UMKC,CC                     WIU,IUPUI
UMKC   10-5  6-2   4-3    CC,CSU,OU,VU      IUPUI,ORU            SUU
Valpo   8-7  6-2   2-5    CC                IUPUI,UMKC           OU,SUU,WIU,CSU
SUU     7-8  5-2   2-6    WIU               ORU                  VU,CSU,CC,UMKC,OU
CSU     7-8  5-2   2-6    CC,WIU            ORU,UMKC             SUU,VU,IUPUI
OU      6-9  3-5   3-4    WIU               IUPUI,ORU,UMKC       VU,CC,SUU
WIU     3-12 2-5   1-7    CC                OU,IUPUI,VU,SUU,CSU  ORU
CC      2-14 1-7   1-7                      UMKC,VU,WIU,CSU,ORU  SUU,OU
                                            IUPUI

IUPUI has a game left at SUU
ORU has a home game left against VU
UMKC has a game at WIU
VU has a game left at ORU
SUU has a home game left against IUPUI
CSU has a home game left against OU
OU has a game left at CSU
WIU has one home game left against UMKC
CC is done. Stick a fork in 'em, they're done.

Both ORU and IUPUI have clinched at least the #2 seed, so one of them will be #1 and the other #2.

UMKC has clinched the #3 seed.

If IUPUI loses to SUU and ORU beats VU and CSU loses to OU, the following would be the top-half standings (we'll give UMKC a win over WIU as well, since that game literally means nothing)

ORU   13-3         1-1 vs. IUPUI
IUPUI 13-3         1-1 vs. ORU
UMKC  11-5         0-2 vs. IUPUI, 0-2 vs. ORU
SUU    8-8         1-1 vs. IUPUI, 0-2 vs. ORU
VU     8-8         0-2 vs. IUPUI, 1-1 vs. ORU
CSU    7-9         1-1 vs. IUPUI, 0-2 vs. ORU
OU     7-9         0-2 vs. IUPUI, 0-2 vs. ORU

OK, now applying the official interpretation:

ORU is 3-1 against SUU and VU
IUPUI would be 3-1 against SUU and VU
so we have to go to CSU.

ORU is 2-0, while IUPUI is 1-1.

Therefore, ORU would get the #1 seed, IUPUI the #2 seed.

Then SUU would get the 4 seed and VU the 5 seed, CSU the 6 seed and OU the 7th seed, giving us these pairings:

Saturday game 1 - ORU vs. WIU, game 2 - IUPUI vs. OU
Sunday game 3 - SUU vs. VU, game 4 - UMKC vs. CSU

No change there.

If, on the other hand, CSU beats OU:

ORU   13-3         1-1 vs. IUPUI
IUPUI 13-3         1-1 vs. ORU
UMKC  11-5         0-2 vs. IUPUI, 0-2 vs. ORU
SUU    8-8         1-1 vs. IUPUI, 0-2 vs. ORU
VU     8-8         0-2 vs. IUPUI, 1-1 vs. ORU
CSU    8-8         1-1 vs. IUPUI, 0-2 vs. ORU

ORU is 5-1 against the 3-way tie
IUPUI is 4-2 against the 3-way tie

Here I was wrong, ORU would once again get the #1 seed, IUPUI the #2 seed, rather than the other way around.

The 3-way tiebreaker comes out differently as well:

With their 1-1 record against ORU, VU would have the 4 seed (not the 6). That leaves SUU and CSU tied for 5th. Both swept by ORU, both split with IUPUI. SUU split with UMKC, but CSU was swept by them, so SUU gets the 5 seed and CSU the 6. That gives us:

Saturday game 1 - ORU vs. WIU, game 2 - IUPUI vs. OU
Sunday game 3 - VU vs. SUU, game 4 - UMKC vs. CSU

So actually, in this case, it doesn't matter who wins the OU-CSU game, as these are the exact same pairings as the ones arrived at above.

If VU beats ORU or IUPUI beats SUU, then IUPUI has the #1 seed and ORU has the #2 seed. If the first happens and OU beats CSU:

IUPUI 13-3
ORU   12-4
UMKC  11-5
VU     9-7
SUU    8-8
CSU    7-9
OU     7-9

OU wins the tiebreaker by having swept CSU, so:

Saturday game 1 - IUPUI vs. WIU, game 2 - ORU vs. CSU
Sunday game 3 - VU vs. SUU, game 4 - UMKC vs. OU

If CSU beats OU, then we have:

IUPUI 13-3
ORU   12-4
UMKC  11-5
VU     9-7
SUU    8-8    1-1 vs. IUPUI, 0-2 vs. ORU, 1-1 vs. UMKC
CSU    8-8    1-1 vs. IUPUI, 0-2 vs. ORU, 0-2 vs. UMKC

CSU and SUU split, but SUU split with UMKC while CSU was swept by them, so:

Saturday game 1 - IUPUI vs. WIU, game 2 - ORU vs. OU
Sunday game 3 - VU vs. SUU, game 4 - UMKC vs. CSU

If instead, IUPUI beats SUU and OU beats CSU:

IUPUI 14-2
ORU   13-3
UMKC  11-5
VU     8-8
SUU    7-9
CSU    7-9
OU     7-9

OU is 3-1, SUU is 2-2, CSU is 1-3, so:

Saturday, game 1 - IUPUI vs. WIU, game 2 - ORU vs. CSU
Sunday, game 3 - VU vs. OU, game 4 - UMKC vs. SUU

If CSU beats OU, we have:

IUPUI 14-2
ORU   13-3
UMKC  11-5
VU     8-8      0-2 vs. IUPUI
CSU    8-8      1-1 vs. IUPUI, but who cares?
SUU    7-9
OU     6-10

Saturday, game 1 - IUPUI vs. WIU, game 2 - ORU vs. OU
Sunday, game 3 - VU vs. CSU, game 4 - UMKC vs. SUU

Finally, if VU beats ORU AND SUU beats IUPUI, and OU beats CSU:

IUPUI 13-3
ORU   12-4
UMKC  11-5
VU     9-7
SUU    8-8
CSU    7-9
OU     7-9

IUPUI gets the #1 seed, ORU 2, VU 4, SUU 5.

OU swept CSU, so they get 6 and CSU 7.

Saturday, game 1 - IUPUI vs. WIU, game 2 - ORU vs. CSU
Sunday, game 3 - VU vs. SUU, game 4 - UMKC vs. OU

If CSU beats OU:

IUPUI 13-3
ORU   12-4
UMKC  11-5
VU     9-8
CSU    8-8      1-1 vs. IUPUI, 0-2 vs. ORU, 0-2 vs. UMKC
SUU    8-8      1-1 vs. IUPUI, 0-2 vs. ORU, 1-1 vs. UMKC
OU     6-10

SUU wins the tiebreaker by splitting with UMKC:

Saturday, game 1 - IUPUI vs. WIU, game 2 - ORU vs. OU
Sunday, game 3 - VU vs. SUU, game 4 - UMKC vs. CSU

Let me see if I can summarize all this....

IUPUI: #1 if they beat SUU OR ORU loses to VU. Otherwise #2.

ORU: #1 if they beat VU AND IUPUI loses to SUU. Otherwise #2.

UMKC: #3.

VU: #4 or #5.

SUU: #6 if they lose to IUPUI. Otherwise #4 or #5.

CSU: #5 if they beat OU AND both ORU and IUPUI win. #7 if they lose to OU. Otherwise #6.

OU: #7 if ORU and IUPUI tie OR they lose to CSU. #5 if they beat OU AND both IUPUI and ORU win. Otherwise #6.

WIU: #8

CC: eliminated from tourney field.

In addition to knowing the 3 and 8 seeds, we also know:

ORU and IUPUI will play on Saturday, as will WIU.
VU will play the first men's game on Sunday.
UMKC will play the second men's game on Sunday.

Post-game Remarks

Chicago State finished strong going into the tourney, following up their big win over IUPUI with a win over Oakland, 91-80.

ORU may have been bracing for very difficult game against Valparaiso, given the 20-point thrashing they got from the Crusaders at the ARC in January, but they also were aware that VU has been struggling lately and is without Shawn Huff. Both Jonathan Bluitt and Jimmy Miles were very questionable for the game, but both started. However, Miles only played a few minutes, while Bluitt was able to play longer. Valpo jumped out to a very early lead, and stayed pretty much even throughout the first half, trailing by 3 at the half, 38-35. But the second half was much like second halves have often been lately for VU - opportunity for a let-down. Eventually, ORU was able to build a double-digit lead. Valpo suddenly found some wide-open shots for Seth Colclasure late in the game and was able to bring the deficit back down to 6, but the Crusaders were not able to get any closer than that, and the Mabee Center undefeated streak against Valpo continues with ORU winning, 87-78.

UMKC visited Western Hall in Macomb in a totally meaningless game (since UMKC had clinched the 3 seed and Western Illinois the 8). Apparently they had an exciting game all the same, with the Roos prevailing, 77-73.

After beating Valpo, all eyes in Golden Eagle land were pointed out west to Cedar City, awaiting word of the IUPUI-SUU contest. As they celebrated their outgoing seniors, yahoo.com was reporting that Southern Utah had the halftime lead, 38-33. Before long in the 2nd half, the T-Birds had increased the lead to 15 points at 52-37, and Greg Rakestraw of ESPN950 in Indianapolis was beside himself watching the demise of IUPUI's quest for the #1 seed. Time after time he had to report a Jaguar player had driven the lane and been called for a charging foul. With 12 minutes to go, the issue was still in doubt, given IUPUI's uncanny ability to come back from 20 point deficits this season, but as the clock wound down, things went from bad to worse. In the end, they lost by 21, 83-62, handing the #1 seed to ORU.

Men's Final Standings after tonight's games:

        Conf.      Overall
School  W L Pct     W  L  Pct    Seed
ORU    13 3  0.813  18 11 0.621  #1
IUPUI  13 3  0.813  18 9  0.667  #2
UMKC   11 5  0.688  14 13 0.519  #3
Valpo   8 8  0.500  16 11 0.593  #4
SUU     8 8  0.500  10 19 0.345  #5
CSU     8 8  0.500  9  18 0.333  #6
Oakland 6 10 0.375  11 17 0.393  #7
WIU     3 13 0.188  7  20 0.260  #8
CC      2 14 0.125  4  23 0.148

The men aren't the only VU basketball team struggling right now. The Lady Crusaders were hoping for a sweep of UMKC, having thrashed them 69-31 in December at the ARC, but this contest was quite a bit different, with UMKC grabbing the lead late in the 1st half and not letting go. VU made another late run, but this is the team that generally has their exciting comebacks from double-digit deficits fall just short at the buzzer, and the Lady Roos hung on for the win, 69-63.

Likewise, the Lady Cougars of Chicago State handled the Oakland Lady Grizzlies, taking a significant lead in the first half, and keeping Oakland at bay in the 2nd half to win, 70-59.

ORU moved into a tie with Valpo by crushing the Ladies of Centenary, 70-43.

Southern Utah sealed the #8 seed, eliminating Centenary from the tourney, by outlasting IUPUI, 58-55.

Updated Women's Standings after today's games:

            Conf.      Overall      Remaining Conf. Games
    School  W L Pct     W  L  Pct    Home        Away
1.  WIU    13 2  0.867  21 4  0.840  UMKC
2.  IUPUI  10 5  0.667  15 10 0.600  CSU
3.  Valpo   9 6  0.600  15 11 0.577              ORU
4.  ORU     9 6  0.600  15 11 0.577  VU
5.  Oakland 8 7  0.533  11 15 0.423              SUU
6.  CSU     7 8  0.467  12 14 0.462              IUPUI
7.  UMKC    7 8  0.467  9  17 0.346              WIU
8.  SUU     3 12 0.200  10 16 0.385  OU
9.  CC      2 14 0.128  3  24 0.111

Today in the Mid-Con

Today's Men's Standings

        Conf.      Overall      Remaining Conf. Games
School  W L Pct     W  L  Pct    Home        Away
IUPUI  13 2  0.867  18 8  0.692              SUU
ORU    12 3  0.800  17 11 0.607  VU
UMKC   10 6  0.625  13 13 0.500              WIU         #3 seed
Valpo   8 7  0.533  16 10 0.615              ORU
SUU     7 8  0.467  9  19 0.321  IUPUI
CSU     7 8  0.467  8  18 0.308  OU
Oakland 6 9  0.400  11 16 0.407              CSU
WIU     3 12 0.200  7  19 0.269  UMKC                    #8 seed
CC      2 14 0.125  4  23 0.148

Today's Midcon Sagarin Ratings

College Basketball 2005-2006
Div I games only    thru 2006 February 24 Friday
HOME ADVANTAGE=  3.91           PREDICTOR  
 129  Oral Roberts            76.97  111
 151  IUPUI                   72.45  162
 172  Valparaiso              72.88  155
 243  Chicago State           67.71  239
 252  UMKC                    65.40  272
 257  Oakland-Mich.           67.05  248
 271  Southern Utah           66.75  254
 304  Western Illinois        63.38  288
 316  Centenary               60.28  313

No wins against Top 10 or Top 30 teams.

Today's Games (links for webcasts):

Oakland at Chicago State, 5:00 pm CT
Sagarin Picks: Chicago State (71.62 to 67.05)

UMKC at Western Illinois, 7:00 pm CT
Sagarin Picks: Western Illinois (67.29 to 65.40)
Watch this game!

Valparaiso at ORU, 7:05 pm CT
Sagarin Picks: ORU (80.89 to 72.88)

IUPUI at Southern Utah, 8:35 pm CT
Sagarin Picks: IUPUI (72.45 to 70.66)

Today's Women's Standings:

            Conf.      Overall      Remaining Conf. Games
    School  W L Pct     W  L  Pct    Home        Away
1.  WIU    13 2  0.867  21 4  0.840  UMKC
2.  IUPUI  10 4  0.714  15 9  0.625  CSU         SUU
3.  Valpo   9 5  0.643  15 10 0.600              UMKC,ORU
4.  Oakland 8 6  0.571  11 14 0.440              CSU,SUU
5.  ORU     8 6  0.571  14 11 0.560  CC,VU
6.  CSU     6 8  0.429  11 14 0.440  OU          IUPUI
7.  UMKC    6 8  0.429  8  17 0.320  VU          WIU
8.  SUU     2 12 0.143  9  16 0.360  IUPUI,OU
9.  CC      2 13 0.133  3  23 0.115              ORU

Today's Games (links for webcasts):

Centenary at ORU, 2:00 pm CT

Valparaiso at UMKC, 2:00 pm CT

Oakland at Chicago State, 2:00 pm CT

IUPUI at Southern Utah, 5:15 pm CT

Midconfans News 2/25/2006

TODAY'S COLLEGE BASKETBALL GAMES--The Detroit Free Press

Oakland at Chicago State

Matchup: Oakland University 11-16, 6-9 Mid-Continent Conference; Chicago State 8-18, 7-8.

Tip-off: 6 p.m. Dickens Athletic Center, Chicago.

Overview: The winner gets the sixth seed in next week's conference tournament. Oakland beat Chicago State, 89-76, last month. The Grizzlies have won two in a row, both on the road. Junior forward Vova Severovas, who has averaged 14.5 points and 6.6 rebounds since becoming eligible in December, is coming off a 25-point performance at Southern Utah.

Oakland turning it around at the line--The Oakland Press
By DUSTIN FRUCCI Special to The Oakland Press

ROCHESTER — For the Oakland University men’s basketball team, going to the free-throw line tonight in its regular-season finale at Chicago State could be the difference between a No. 5 seed or a No. 7 seed in the upcoming Mid-Continent Conference tournament.
In its last two road games (both wins), Oakland is a combined 55-for-65 from the free-throw line, while its opponents are just 18-for-28.
“We’ve started to use our athleticism and decided to not rely on jump shots so much,” OU head coach Greg Kampe said. “Some players are starting to pick up their play at the right time, and we’re putting ourselves in good position for the tournament.”
With a win against Chicago State, OU would move into the No. 6 seed for the conference tournament. The Golden Grizzlies could climb all the way up to the No. 5 seed with a win and a Southern Utah loss to league-leading IUPUI.
The Grizzlies’ success has been a reflection of their aggressiveness.
OU is 6-1 this season when it scores at least 20 points from the free-throw line. That includes an 89-76 win over Chicago State in January in which OU went to the free-throw line 24 more times than the Cougars.
Junior Vova Severovas and sophomore Brandon Cassise are taking advantage of the parade to the free-throw line. They are a combined 25-for-28 in the last two games.
Kampe said getting to the line is important for Severovas because he’s undersized in the middle at 6-feet-6, and for Cassise because it “gives any shooter confidence.”
“It’s not as easy to get those calls when you’re on the road,” Kampe said. “Even with the calls, our players have to knock down those (free-throw) shots. We weren’t able to do that through much of the year.”
OU has steadily improved its percentages at the free-throw line, but remains second-to-last in the Mid-Con at 68.5 percent.
“It’s the difference between winning and losing,” Kampe said after OU defeated Valparaiso in January. “When you’re last in the conference in free-throw shooting, you’re probably not winning very often.”
That was the case for much of the conference season, but the Grizzlies have turned around their free-throw woes and will look to use it to their advantage tonight against Chicago State.

Oakland men at Chicago State--The Oakland Press
— DUSTIN FRUCCI

When: 6 tonight
Where: Dickens Athletic Center, Chicago
Records: Oakland 11-16 (6-9 Mid-Con); Chicago State 8-18 (7-8)
Overview: OU is playing its regular-season fi nale and third straight road game. OU won the first two games of its road trip (at Centenary and Southern Utah). … The winner of tonight’s game will gain at least the No. 6 seed in the upcoming Mid-Con tournament. … OU beat Chicago State, 89-76, in January. In that game, all five OU starters reached double figures in points. … OU is 13-3 all-time against Chicago State. … The last time OU won three straight games to end the season was 2002-03.
Up next: Mid-Con tournament, March 4-7, Tulsa, Okla.

Oakland women at Chicago State--The Oakland Press
— DUSTIN FRUCCI

When: 3 p.m. today
Where: Dickens Athletic Center, Chicago
Records: Oakland 12-13 (8-6 Mid-Con); Chicago State 11-14 (6-8)
Overview: OU ha s won three of its last four and finishes the regular season with two games on the road. … OU defeated Chicago State, 72-43, in January. It was the largest margin of victory for OU in conference play. … Senior Jayme Wilson has led the team in scoring in the last three games and became just the sixth OU player to score 1,700 points in a career. … OU heads into the last two games of the season tied for fourth place in the Mid-Con with Oral Roberts. … OU is 13-3 all-time against CSU.
Up next: OU at Southern Utah, 9:05 p.m. Monday, Cedar City, Utah

UMKC hopes to stay hotThe Kansas City Star

Game Preview: UMKC at Western IllinoisThe Kansas City Star

VU's Diebler waits his turn--The NWI Times

Crusaders head west looking for repeat--The NWI Times

Janes brothers bid farewell--The Spectrum

IUPUI has chance to lock up top seed in Mid-Con--The Spectrum

CENTENARY--The Shreveport Times

The Ladies (3-23, 2-13) close out their season at 2:05 p.m. today against Oral Roberts (14-11, 8-6) in Tulsa, Okla.

Thunderbirds fall from too many turnovers--The Salt Lake Tribune

IUPUI CONCLUDES REGULAR SEASON AT SOUTHERN UTAH ON SATURDAY--IUPUI JAGUAR ATHLETICS

Kangaroos Head To Western Illinois For Reguar Season Finale--UMKC Kangaroos

Golden Eagles Host Centenary on Saturday--Oral Roberts University Golden Eagles

ORU Hosts Valparaiso on Senior Night--Oral Roberts University Golden Eagles

CRUSADERS CLOSE REGULAR SEASON SATURDAY IN TULSA--www.valpo.edu

http://www.wiuathletics.com/release.sphp?id=2392--Western Illinois Athletics

Midconfans News 2/24/2006

Colleges--The Chicago Sun-Times

CHICAGO STATE 74, IUPUI 66: David Holston scored 17 points, and Kevin Jones Jr. scored 13 points and grabbed eight rebounds as host Chicago State (8-18, 7-8 Mid-Con) beat IUPUI (18-8, 13-2).

Nikko Briteramos chipped in 10 points and 11 rebounds off the bench for the Cougars.

UMKC 73, VALPARAISO 70: Quinton Day scored a career-high 37 points, including a 22-footer with 2.7 seconds left, to lift Missouri-Kansas City (13-13, 10-5 Mid-Con) over visiting Valparaiso (16-10, 8-7).

Valparaiso was led by Dan Oppland with 20 points, followed by Ron Howard with 15.

College Basketball Roundup--The Daily Southtown

Chicago St. 74, IUPUI 66

CHICAGO — David Holston scored 17 points while Kevin Jones Jr. scored 13 points and grabbed eight rebounds as Chicago State (8-18, 7-8 Mid-Con) beat IUPUI (18-8, 13-2).

Nikko Briteramos chipped in 10 points and 11 rebounds off the bench for Chicago State.

George Hill led IUPUI and all scorers with 22 points.

SUU wastes Uhegwu's effort--deseretnews.com

Campus notes--deseretnews.com

Southern Utah

MEN'S BASKETBALL: Steve Barnes has been named Mid-Continent Conference player of the week. Barnes, a 5-9 junior point guard from Cedar City, averaged 16.7 points, 4.3 assists and 2.7 rebounds per game in the three games last week.

Golden Grizzlies grab big victory on the road--The Oakland Press

CEDAR CITY, Utah — Vova Severovas scored 25 points, and Calvin Wooten added 23 to lead Oakland to a 78-75 victory over Southern Utah on Thursday night.
Severovas was 10-of-12 from the field and 5-of-5 from the foul line for the Grizzlies (11-16, 6-9 Mid-Continent). Wooten hit three 3-pointers in the second half after missing four shots behind the arc in the first half.
Henry Uhegwu scored a career-high 35 points for Southern Utah (9-19, 7-8), hitting 7-of-10 from 3-point range.
Severovas and Wooten teamed up with an inside-outside attack that kept Southern Utah defenders off balance until midway through the second half. The duo combined to score the Grizzlies first 24 points of the half, giving Oakland a 59-49 lead with 10:27 left.
The Thunderbirds pulled within 67-66 when Justin Allen made a layup off the board at 2:37, but Severovas responded with a three-point play and a layup to put the Grizzlies up 72-66 with 1:42 left.

MEN’S ROUNDUP--The Oakland Press
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Mid-Continent
Chicago St. 74, IUPUI 66
CHICAGO — David Holston scored 17 points, while Kevin Jones Jr. scored 13 points and grabbed eight rebounds as Chicago State beat IUPUI.
Nikko Briteramos chipped in 10 points and 11 rebounds off the bench for the Cougars (8-18, 7-8), who got 30 points from their reserves.
George Hill led IUPUI (18-8, 13-2) with 22 points on 9-of-15 shooting. David Barlow added 14 for the Jaguars, who couldn’t overcome 29.5 percent first-half shooting that saw just three of 13 3-point attempts go down.
Chicago State hit 21 of 28 free throws in the second half.
UMKC 73, Valparaiso 70
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Quinton Day scored a career-high 37 points, including a 22-footer with 2.7 seconds left, to lift Missouri-Kansas City past Valparaiso.
Day helped the Kangaroos overcome double-digit deficits in both halves, scoring all 17 of his first half points during a 25-9 run.
The Crusaders (16-10, 8-7) were led by Dan Oppland with 20 points, followed by Ron Howard with 15, Jimmie Miles with 11 and Ali Berdiel with 10.
Kalu Guasco added 14 points for UMKC (13-13, 10-5).
Oral Roberts 83, Centenary 57
SHREVEPORT, La. — Caleb Green scored 26 points to lead Oral Roberts.
Green was 8-of-11 from the fi eld and 10-of-11 from the free-throw line for the Golden Eagles (17-11, 12-3). Ken Tutt added 16 points, Larry Owens had 13 and Chris Riouse had 12, all 3-pointers.
Chris Watson led the Gents (4-23, 2-14) with 16 points, and Xavier Burnette added 11.
The loss put an end to Centenary’s season.

Cold early shooting derails Jaguars--The Indy Star

Day’s 37 carries UMKCThe Kansas City Star

MEN’S BASKETBALL: Crusaders can’t contain Kangaroos--The Post-Tribune

Feb. 24, 2006

Post-Tribune staff report

It came down to Valparaiso not being able to stop one player and a missed opportunity in the final minute as UMKC blew a late lead, but came back to defeat VU 73-70 in Kansas City on Thursday.

Quinton Day scored a career-high 37 points for the Kangaroos, including the game-winning 3-pointer with 2.7 seconds left from the top of the key.

“Day was unbelievable. Our whole philosophy was to guard the others and hold them to single-digit points,” said VU coach Homer Drew. “He’s so quick. Since he came (to UMKC), we haven’t beaten them. We’ve tried to use different people to guard him, box-and-one. This time we tried letting him score and work on the rest and it almost worked.”

Almost, but not quite with Day’s teammate Kalu Guasco scoring 14 points. Drew noted that if Guasco was held to single-digits like they planned, the Crusaders (16-10, 8-7) would have notched the win.

Day’s heroic moment was needed because UMKC turned the ball over twice in the span of 30 seconds, leading to a game-tying three by Valparaiso’s Ali Berdiel.

But in the end, all Drew could look back on was his own team’s failures at key moments in the game.

“At times we really played well, but we missed some lay-ups and shot 46 percent (7-of-15) from the line,” Drew said.

He also noted that if half of those eight missed free throws were made, victory would have been theirs.

Two of those misses came with less than a minute by senior Dan Oppland, who led the Crusaders with 20 points and 12 rebounds.

Ali Berdiel chipped in with 10 points and seven assists, putting him at 501 for his career, third on the VU all-time list behind John McIlvain (586) and Bryce Drew (626).

Dog 'Day' night for Crusaders--The NWI Times

WIU hopes to end on a high note--The Peoria Journal Star

Uhegwu's 35 not enough--The Spectrum

Gents fall in finale--The Shreveport Times

Gents Season Ends With 83-57 Loss to Oral Roberts--GoCentenary.Com

Chicago State Overrides Number One Team in Mid-Continent Conference--Chicago State Athletics

CHICAGO STATE SOLVES JAGS, SNAPS IUPUI'S NINE-GAME WINNING STREAK--IUPUI JAGUAR ATHLETICS

UMKC Women To Host Valparaiso On Saturday--UMKC Kangaroos

Day's 37 Points Leads Kangaroos To Season Sweep Over Valparaiso--UMKC Kangaroos

Oakland Knocks Off Southern Utah on the Road, 78-75--OUGrizzlies.com

Golden Eagles Cruise Past Centenary, 83-57--Oral Roberts University Golden Eagles

Uhegwu’s 35 Not Enough, Oakland Tops T-Bird Men--SOUTHERN UTAH THUNDERBIRDS

Lights-Out Day Buries Crusaders--www.valpo.edu

Seeds and tiebreakers

OK, presmably this mess has now been cleared up considerably, though after listening to Greg Rakestraw and Todd Ickow tonight, something still seems to be confused, either on my part or on their part.

Todd thinks that IUPUI has clinched the #1 seed, while Greg Rakestraw is disappointed that VU couldn't beat UMKC and clinch the #1 seed for IUPUI, neither of which was true unless I goofed somewhere.

Anyway...

School  W-L  Home  Away   Sweeps            Swept By             Split
------  ---  ----  ----   ------            --------             -----
IUPUI  13-2  8-0   5-2    OU,UMKC,WIU,VU,CC                      ORU,CSU
ORU    12-3  7-0   5-3    CSU,SUU,OU,UMKC,CC                     WIU,IUPUI
UMKC   10-5  6-2   4-3    CC,CSU,OU,VU      IUPUI,ORU            SUU
Valpo   8-7  6-2   2-5    CC                IUPUI,UMKC           OU,SUU,WIU,CSU
SUU     7-8  5-2   2-6    WIU               ORU                  VU,CSU,CC,UMKC,OU
CSU     7-8  5-2   2-6    CC,WIU            ORU,UMKC             SUU,VU,IUPUI
OU      6-9  3-5   3-4    WIU               IUPUI,ORU,UMKC       VU,CC,SUU
WIU     3-12 2-5   1-7    CC                OU,IUPUI,VU,SUU,CSU  ORU
CC      2-14 1-7   1-7                      UMKC,VU,WIU,CSU,ORU  SUU,OU
                                            IUPUI

IUPUI has a game left at SUU
ORU has a home game left against VU
UMKC has a game at WIU
VU has a game left at ORU
SUU has a home game left against IUPUI
CSU has a home game left against OU
OU has a game left at CSU
WIU has one home game left against UMKC
CC is done. Stick a fork in 'em, they're done.

Both ORU and IUPUI have clinched at least the #2 seed, so one of them will be #1 and the other #2.

UMKC has clinched the #3 seed.

If IUPUI loses to SUU and ORU beats VU and CSU loses to OU, the following would be the top-half standings (we'll give UMKC a win over WIU as well, since that game literally means nothing)

ORU   13-3         1-1 vs. IUPUI
IUPUI 13-3         1-1 vs. ORU
UMKC  11-5         0-2 vs. IUPUI, 0-2 vs. ORU
SUU    8-8         1-1 vs. IUPUI, 0-2 vs. ORU
VU     8-8         0-2 vs. IUPUI, 1-1 vs. ORU
CSU    7-9         1-1 vs. IUPUI, 0-2 vs. ORU
OU     7-9         0-2 vs. IUPUI, 0-2 vs. ORU

Here we'd have our deadlock again (SUU split with VU), having to sidestep SUU-VU, and look at CSU-OU. Here, it doesn't matter which of those two comes out on top. OU doesn't break the tie, but CSU does, and it would give ORU the #1 seed and IUPUI the #2 seed.

Then SUU would get the 4 seed and VU the 5 seed, CSU the 6 seed and OU the 7th seed, giving us these pairings:

Saturday game 1 - ORU vs. WIU, game 2 - IUPUI vs. OU
Sunday game 3 - SUU vs. VU, game 4 - UMKC vs. CSU

If, on the other hand, CSU beats OU:

ORU   13-3         1-1 vs. IUPUI
IUPUI 13-3         1-1 vs. ORU
UMKC  11-5         0-2 vs. IUPUI, 0-2 vs. ORU
SUU    8-8         1-1 vs. IUPUI, 0-2 vs. ORU
VU     8-8         0-2 vs. IUPUI, 1-1 vs. ORU
CSU    8-8         1-1 vs. IUPUI, 0-2 vs. ORU

Here, SUU is 2-2, VU is 2-2, and CSU is 2-2, so once again we have the dilemma, and we have to skip all 3 and go to OU, who also does not break the tie, having been swept by both IUPUI and ORU. Next is WIU, swept by IUPUI but split with ORU, therefore, IUPUI would get the #1 seed, ORU #2.

With their 0-2 record against IUPUI, VU would be eliminated from the 3 way tie, and end up with the #6 seed, and SUU would play CSU. That gives us:

Saturday game 1 - IUPUI vs. WIU, game 2 - ORU vs. OU
Sunday game 3 - SUU vs. CSU, game 4 - UMKC vs. VU

If VU beats ORU or IUPUI beats SUU, then IUPUI has the #1 seed and ORU has the #2 seed. If the first happens and OU beats CSU:

IUPUI 13-3
ORU   12-4
UMKC  11-5
VU     9-7
SUU    8-8
CSU    7-9
OU     7-9

OU wins the tiebreaker by having swept CSU, so:

Saturday game 1 - IUPUI vs. WIU, game 2 - ORU vs. CSU
Sunday game 3 - VU vs. SUU, game 4 - UMKC vs. OU

If CSU beats OU, then we have:

IUPUI 13-3
ORU   12-4
UMKC  11-5
VU     9-7
SUU    8-8    1-1 vs. IUPUI, 0-2 vs. ORU, 1-1 vs. UMKC
CSU    8-8    1-1 vs. IUPUI, 0-2 vs. ORU, 0-2 vs. UMKC

CSU and SUU split, but SUU split with UMKC while CSU was swept by them, so:

Saturday game 1 - IUPUI vs. WIU, game 2 - ORU vs. OU
Sunday game 3 - VU vs. SUU, game 4 - UMKC vs. CSU

If instead, IUPUI beats SUU and OU beats CSU:

IUPUI 14-2
ORU   13-3
UMKC  11-5
VU     8-8
SUU    7-9
CSU    7-9
OU     7-9

OU is 3-1, SUU is 2-2, CSU is 1-3, so:

Saturday, game 1 - IUPUI vs. WIU, game 2 - ORU vs. CSU
Sunday, game 3 - VU vs. OU, game 4 - UMKC vs. SUU

If CSU beats OU, we have:

IUPUI 14-2
ORU   13-3
UMKC  11-5
VU     8-8      0-2 vs. IUPUI
CSU    8-8      1-1 vs. IUPUI, but who cares?
SUU    7-9
OU     6-10

Saturday, game 1 - IUPUI vs. WIU, game 2 - ORU vs. OU
Sunday, game 3 - VU vs. CSU, game 4 - UMKC vs. SUU

Finally, if VU beats ORU AND SUU beats IUPUI, and OU beats CSU:

IUPUI 13-3
ORU   12-4
UMKC  11-5
VU     9-7
SUU    8-8
CSU    7-9
OU     7-9

IUPUI gets the #1 seed, ORU 2, VU 4, SUU 5.

OU swept CSU, so they get 6 and CSU 7.

Saturday, game 1 - IUPUI vs. WIU, game 2 - ORU vs. CSU
Sunday, game 3 - VU vs. SUU, game 4 - UMKC vs. OU

If CSU beats OU:

IUPUI 13-3
ORU   12-4
UMKC  11-5
VU     9-8
CSU    8-8      1-1 vs. IUPUI, 0-2 vs. ORU, 0-2 vs. UMKC
SUU    8-8      1-1 vs. IUPUI, 0-2 vs. ORU, 1-1 vs. UMKC
OU     6-10

SUU wins the tiebreaker by splitting with UMKC:

Saturday, game 1 - IUPUI vs. WIU, game 2 - ORU vs. OU
Sunday, game 3 - VU vs. SUU, game 4 - UMKC vs. CSU

Let me see if I can summarize all this....

IUPUI: #1 if they beat SUU OR ORU loses to VU OR CSU beats OU. Otherwise #2.

ORU: #1 if they beat VU AND IUPUI loses to SUU AND OU beats CSU. Otherwise #2.

UMKC: #3.

VU: #6 if VU loses to ORU AND SUU beats IUPUI AND CSU loses to OU. Otherwise #4 or #5.

SUU: #6 if they lose to IUPUI. Otherwise #4 or #5.

CSU: #4 or #5 if they beat OU AND ORU beats VU AND IUPUI loses to SUU. #7 if they lose to OU AND SUU loses to IUPUI. Otherwise #6.

OU: #5 if they beat CSU AND SUU loses to IUPUI. #6 if SUU beats IUPUI AND OU beats CSU. Otherwise #7.

WIU: #8

CC: eliminated from tourney field.

Post-game Remarks

ORU yawned at the Gold Dome and won 83-57 over Centenary, and the less said about that, the better. Some Senior night for the Gents.

IUPUI, meanwhhile, picked tonight to struggle, big-time. Greg Rakestraw was under the mistaken impression that Valpo could lock up the #1 seed for the Jags by beating UMKC. Maybe the team had the same bad karma going for it. Chicago State controlled the game, save for the middle of the 2nd half when IUPUI finally tied the score for first time since it was 15-15, but down the stretch, they just couldn't get it done this time. CSU wins, 74-66.

And of course, Valpo failed tot do what IUPUI thought was needed anyway, blowing two double-digit leads, thanks largely to Quinton Day's 30+ points, shooting lights out from the field, sometimes falling out of bounds. Berdiel tied the score with about 30 seconds to go by hitting a 3, so just like last year, Quinton Day hit's a 30 footer and UMKC wins, 73-70. UMKC clinches the #3 seed with this victory.

Oakland and SUU fought tooth and nail in Cedar City, with OU usually ahead. OU held on to win, 78-75.

Men's Updated Standings after tonight's games:

        Conf.      Overall      Remaining Conf. Games
School  W L  Pct    W  L  Pct    Home               Away
IUPUI  13 2  0.867  18 8  0.692                     SUU
ORU    12 3  0.800  17 11 0.607  VU
UMKC   10 6  0.625  13 13 0.500                     WIU         #3 seed
Valpo   8 7  0.533  16 10 0.615                     ORU
SUU     7 8  0.467  9  19 0.321  IUPUI
CSU     7 8  0.467  8  18 0.308  OU
Oakland 6 9  0.400  11 16 0.407                     CSU
WIU     3 12 0.200  7  19 0.269  UMKC                           #8 seed
CC      2 14 0.125  4  23 0.148

Today in the Mid-Con

Today's Men's Standings

        Conf.      Overall      Remaining Conf. Games
School  W L Pct     W  L  Pct    Home        Away
IUPUI  13 1  0.929  18 7  0.729                     CSU,SUU
ORU    11 3  0.786  16 11 0.593  VU                 CC
UMKC    9 5  0.643  12 13 0.480  VU                 WIU
Valpo   8 6  0.571  16 9  0.640                     UMKC,ORU
SUU     7 7  0.500  9  18 0.333  OU,IUPUI
CSU     6 8  0.429  7  18 0.280  IUPUI,OU
Oakland 5 9  0.357  10 16 0.385                     SUU,CSU
WIU     3 12 0.200  7  19 0.269  UMKC                           #8 seed
CC      2 13 0.133  4  22 0.154  ORU

Today's Midcon Sagarin Ratings

College Basketball 2005-2006
Div I games only    thru 2006 February 22 Wednesday
HOME ADVANTAGE=  3.93           PREDICTOR  
 128  Oral Roberts            77.07  110
 139  IUPUI                   73.20  154
 163  Valparaiso              73.40  150
 253  Chicago State           67.30  242
 258  UMKC                    65.01  274
 265  Oakland-Mich.           66.69  256
 267  Southern Utah           67.04  248
 304  Western Illinois        63.83  287
 316  Centenary               60.70  313

No wins against Top 10 or Top 30 teams.

Today's Games (links for webcasts):

IUPUI at Chicago State, 7:00 pm CT
Sagarin Picks: IUPUI (73.20 to 71.23)

Valparaiso at UMKC, 7:00 pm CT
Sagarin Picks: Valpo (73.40 to 68.94)

ORU at Centenary, 7:00 pm CT
Sagarin Picks: ORU (77.07 to 64.63)

Oakland at Southern Utah, 8:05 pm CT
Sagarin Picks: SUU (71.97 to 66.69)

Seeds and tiebreakers

UPDATED with CORRECTIONS!

Thanks to ORU Tex for pointing out a serious error. The changes can be found in bold.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Thanks to tmh8286 on the ORU message board, we are reminded of the tiebreaker rules for any of you who want to make sense of the seeding possibilities in the final week of the conference regular season.

And thanks to Blevins on the same board, I now know I was wrong to state in an earlier article that IUPUI has locked up the #1 seed, because they haven't:

We're NO. 1 if...

We win out and
IUPUI loses out and
SUU wins out and
Valpo loses out and

because...

if SUU wins out, they leap-frog Valpo in the standings, therefore giving us the tiebreaker due to our sweep of Southern. UMKC never factors in because we both swept the Kangaroos.

So it's a bit of a longshot, but very possible considering IUPUI and Valpo both finish on the road.

Hence, I thought it would be a good time (before tomorrow's games) to be a little more diligent in my "reporting".

School  W-L  Home  Away   Sweeps            Swept By             Split
------  ---  ----  ----   ------            --------             -----
IUPUI  13-1  8-0   4-2    OU,UMKC,WIU,VU,CC                      ORU
ORU    11-3  7-0   4-3    CSU,SUU,OU,UMKC                        WIU,IUPUI
UMKC    9-5  5-2   4-3    CC,CSU,OU         IUPUI,ORU            SUU
Valpo   8-6  6-2   2-4    CC                IUPUI                OU,SUU,WIU,CSU
SUU     7-7  5-1   2-6    WIU               ORU                  VU,CSU,CC,UMKC
CSU     6-8  4-2   2-6    CC,WIU            ORU,UMKC             SUU,VU
OU      5-9  3-5   2-4    WIU               IUPUI,ORU,UMKC       VU,CC
WIU     3-12 2-5   1-7    CC                OU,IUPUI,VU,SUU,CSU  ORU
CC      2-13 1-6   1-7                      UMKC,VU,WIU,CSU,     SUU,OU
                                            IUPUI

IUPUI has games left at SUU and CSU
ORU has a home game left against VU and a game at CC
UMKC has a home game left against VU and a game at WIU
VU has games left at UMKC and ORU
SUU has home games left against IUPUI and OU
CSU has home games left against IUPUI and OU
OU has games left at CSU and SUU
WIU has one home game left against UMKC
CC has one home game left against ORU

Both ORU and IUPUI have clinched at least the #2 seed, so one of them will be #1 and the other #2. UMKC is the only one who can tied with either one of them and they lose the tiebreaker with either one.

If IUPUI loses their last 2, ORU wins their last 2, Valpo loses their last 2, and SUU wins their last 2, the following would be the top-half standings (we'll give UMKC a win over WIU as well, since they don't figure in the tie-breakers)

ORU   13-3         1-1 vs. IUPUI
IUPUI 13-3         1-1 vs. ORU
UMKC  11-5         0-2 vs. IUPUI, 0-2 vs. ORU
SUU    9-7         1-1 vs. IUPUI, 0-2 vs. ORU -------- ORU wins the tiebreaker
VU     8-8
...

Thus ORU would be #1, IUPUI #2 (either way, both would play Saturday night), UMKC would be #3, SUU #4, and VU #5. Even if UMKC loses at WIU, they would still be 10-6 and have the #3 seed in this scenario.

Now, suppose VU wins one of their remaining games. If it is against ORU, then IUPUI has the #1 seed without any tiebreaker, and ORU ends up with the #2 seed. UMKC would be 11-5 or 10-6 with the #3 seed. We could tackle the question of who gets the #4 seed between VU and SUU, but it really doesn't matter. They'd play each other Sunday night on a neutral court either way.

If instead, VU beats UMKC but loses to ORU, then that question DOES become important because we have to figure out which team to use as tiebreaker first. If VU finishes higher than SUU, then IUPUI wins the tiebreaker because they swept VU while ORU split with them.

So in this case, the standings would be:

ORU 13-3
IUPUI 13-3
UMKC 10-6 or 9-7 depending on WIU game
SUU 9-7
VU 9-7
CSU 8-8 or 7-9 depending on OU game
OU 6-10 or 5-11 depending on CSU game
WIU 4-12 or 3-13 depending on UMKC game
CC 2-14

Assuming UMKC beats WIU, VU split with ORU, but SUU was swept by ORU, while VU was swept by IUPUI, but SUU split with them. In this case, we'd a deadlock condition, which means the deadlock has to be broken (see below for analogy to computer science) by swapping out the lower priority tie-breaker (and that would be this VU-SUU tie). In that case, we'd have to look to CSU, and in this scenario, ORU swept CSU while IUPUI split with them, so ORU gets the #1 seed.

If instead UMKC loses to WIU, we'd have the same thing as in the preceding paragraph, except with a 3-way tie, so ORU gets the #1 seed once again.

So the only ways that IUPUI secures the #1 seed is by winning one more game (on the road) OR by Valpo finishing 1 game ahead of SUU.

Phew...

UMKC can lock up the #3 seed by beating VU tomorrow, giving them a 2 game lead with 1 game to go, never mind that they would also own the tiebreaker having swept VU. If they tie with VU, it will have to be in part because VU beats them tomorrow. Valpo would also have to beat ORU or UMKC lose to WIU. If both happen, VU gets the #3 seed, and UMKC would play in the 4-5 game. If VU beats ORU, then both teams would be 10-6. Moreover, having split their 2 games, we'd have to look elsewhere for a tiebreaker. Both were swept by IUPUI, but VU would have swept ORU while UMKC was swpet by ORU, so VU would get the #3 seed in that scenario as well. If instead, UMKC loses to WIU, both teams would be 9-7, but even then, VU would still split with ORU, so either way, VU gets the #3 seed. Of course, if VU loses to ORU and UMKC beats WIU, then UMKC still gets the #3 seed.

Except(!) - If SUU also finishes 9-7 (VU beats UMKC and loses to ORU, UMKC beats WIU, and SUU beats OU and IUPUI), then we have a 3 way tie between UMKC, VU, and SUU. VU's record among the 3 in this case is 2-2, SUU's record is 2-2, and UMKC's record is 2-2, so we look at either IUPUI or ORU. VU and UMKC are 0-2 against IUPUI, but SUU is 1-1, so that would give SUU the #3 seed. That again leaves VU and UMKC playing each other, and who cares which is which? On the other hand, VU is 1-1 against ORU, while UMKC and SUU are both 0-2 against ORU, so that would give the #3 seed to VU, and UMKC and SUU would play each other.

If IUPUI beats CSU, then it would go to SUU.

If, on the other hand, IUPUI goes 0-2 (also losing to CSU) and ORU also beats CC, we have a mess:

ORU 13-3
IUPUI 13-3
UMKC 9-7
VU 9-7
SUU 9-7
CSU 8-8 or 7-9 depending on OU game
OU 5-11 or 6-10 depending on CSU game
WIU 3-13
CC 2-14

We have to break the ORU-IUPUI tie first. Again they split with each other, but who do we look to next to break the tie????? At first glance it looks like an unresolvable circularity (need to break the UMKC-VU-SUU tie to break the IUPUI-ORU tie, but the IUPUI-ORU resolution depends in turn on the UMKC-VU-SUU resolution).

Well, we can look at each one individually and see if we come up with the same result occurs, but I think we know already it won't:

UMKC: Both 2-0
VU: IUPUI 2-0, ORU 1-1
SUU: IUPUI 1-1, ORU 2-0

Unfortunately, both VU and SUU break the tie and each one breaks it the opposite way. We have ourselves a deadlock condition.

All I can do as a software engineer is fall back on my computer science background. The way to resolve a deadlock is through priorities. Obviously, the top-most tiebreaker has the priority, and as describe above, CSU breaks the tie in ORU's favor.

Now we can break the 3-way tie.


VU is 1-1 against ORU while the other 2 are 0-2, so VU gets the #3 seed, and UMKC would play SUU in the 4-5 game.

WOW!!!! .... OK, hangin' in there with me?

VU has clinched at least a #6 seed since they are 3 games ahead of Oakland. Likewise, UMKC has clinched at least the #5 seed, since they are 3 games ahead of CSU. Again if VU ends up in a two-way tie with SUU at 9-7 (we already covered the 3-way tie with UMKC above), then they play each other and who cares which is which? If they end up tied together with CSU at 8-8, then VU's record in the 3-way tie is 2-2, SUU is 2-2, and CSU is 2-2. At this point it matters if SUU's one win is against Oakland or IUPUI. If Oakland, then IUPUI has #1 seed and is first up in any tiebreakers. All 3 were swept by IUPUI so we go to ORU, who swept CSU and SUU but split with VU, hence VU would have the #4 seed, and with SUU splitting with CSU, it would fall next to UMKC to break the tie. SUU split with UMKC, but CSU was 0-2 against them, so SUU would play VU and CSU would get the #6 seed.

If, on the other hand, SUU's one win was against IUPUI, we have another mess. SUU would be 1-1 against IUPUI while VU and CSU are 0-2, but VU would be 1-1 against ORU while SUU and CSU are 0-2 against them. So it depends on who wins the tiebreaker between IUPUI and ORU. In this scenario, IUPUI would definitely be 13-3 because they have to lose to CSU for CSU to be 8-8. If ORU doesn't go 2-0 - i.e., if they lose to CC - then it would be IUPUI and SUU would have the #4 seed. Since VU split with CSU, it would fall to ORU to break the tie, with VU 1-1 and CSU 0-2, so again VU would play SUU and CSU would be #6.

If ORU DOES go 2-0, then we have:

ORU 13-3
IUPUI 13-3
UMKC 11-5 or 10-6 depending on WIU game
VU 8-8
SUU 8-8
CSU 8-8
OU 6-10
WIU 3-13 or 4-12 depending on UMKC game
CC 2-14

We have to break the ORU-IUPUI tie first. Again they split with each other, they both swept UMKC, but who do we look to next to break the tie?????

Here we go again...

VU: IUPUI 2-0, ORU 1-1
SUU: IUPUI 1-1, ORU 2-0
CSU: IUPUI 1-1, ORU 2-0

All 3 teams break the tie this time, but unfortunately they don't all break it the same way! We have our deadlock situation again. Since we've resolved that above, ORU gets the #1 seed.

Now back to breaking this tie: VU wins the tiebreaker based on splitting with ORU, so they get the #3 seed. This leaves a tie between CSU and SUU. SUU split with UMKC while CSU was swept by them, so SUU gets the #5 seed and CSU gets the #6 seed..

Blimey...

SUU, CSU, and OU have all clinched at least a #7 seed. If they end up in a 3 way tie at 7-9, it will mean that IUPUI finishes 14-2 and has the #1 seed.

Head-to-head-to-head: OU would be 3-1, SUU would be 2-2, CSU 1-3, so CSU would end up with the #7 seed.

Head-to-head: OU split with SUU. Both were swept by IUPUI and ORU, both split with UMKC and VU, so CSU would break the tie with OU 2-0 vs. SUU 1-1, giving OU the #5 seed and SUU the #6 seed.

If OU and CSU end up in a 2-way tie at 7-9 or 6-8, OU wins the tiebreaker by having swept CSU and would get the #6 seed.

Western Illinois has simply clinched the #8 seed because they swept CC. So they will open either against ORU or IUPUI.

Let me see if I can summarize all this....

IUPUI: #1 if they to 1-1 or 2-0 OR if ORU goes 1-1 or 0-2 OR if VU finishes ahead of SUU. Otherwise #2.

ORU: #1 if they go 2-0 AND IUPUI goes 0-2 AND SUU goes 2-0 and VU goes either 1-1 or 0-2. Otherwise #2.

UMKC: #3 if they beat VU OR they go 1-1 and VU goes 1-1 OR they go 0-2 and VU goes 1-1 and SUU goes 2-0. Otherwise #4 or #5.

VU: #3 if (VU goes 2-0 AND SUU goes 1-1 or 0-2) OR (VU goes 1-1 and UMKC goes 0-2 and SUU goes 1-1 or 0-2) OR (VU goes 0-2 AND CSU goes 2-0 AND SUU beats IUPUI and loses to OU). Otherwise #4 or #5.

SUU: #3 if UMKC goes 0-2 AND SUU goes 2-0 AND (VU goes 1-1 AND IUPUI beats CSU) OR (VU goes 0-2 AND IUPUI goes 0-2 AND ORU goes 2-0). #6 if they go 0-2 AND CSU goes 1-1 AND OU goes 2-0. Otherwise #4 or #5.

CSU: #4 or #5 if ORU goes 2-0 AND IUPUI goes 0-2 AND VU goes 0-2 AND CSU goes 2-0 AND SUU goes 1-1. #7 if they go 1-1 AND SUU goes 0-2 AND OU goes 2-0. Otherwise #6.

OU: #5 if they go 2-0 AND SUU goes 0-2 AND CSU goes 1-1. #6 if SUU wins at least 1 AND (OU goes 2-0 AND CSU goes 1-1) OR OU goes 1-1 AND CSU goes 0-2). Otherwise #7.

WIU: #8

CC: eliminated from tourney field.

Clear as mud?