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
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