Valparaiso (11-13, 4-8 MVC)
at Missouri State (18-8, 9-4 MVC)

Game No. 25 – Saturday, Feb. 12, 3 p.m.
JQH Arena (11,000) – Springfield, Mo.

Next Up in Valpo Basketball: After returning from Normal, Ill. late on Wednesday night, a busy week of travel continues as the Valparaiso University men’s basketball team makes its way to Springfield, Mo. to clash with Missouri State on Saturday afternoon in a regionally-televised game on the MVC TV Network (including NBC Sports Chicago). The Beacons will attempt to garner a split in the season series with the Bears as each game is crucial in the standings with six regular-season contests remaining. This marks one of only two instances all season where Valpo plays consecutive true road games (at Drake, at Western Michigan).

Last Time Out: Valpo played its sixth overtime game of the season and second straight on Wednesday night at Redbird Arena in Normal, Ill., succumbing to the host Redbirds who received a 34-point performance from Antonio Reeves. Valpo built up a 16-point lead, but Illinois State returned the favor two years after Valpo roared from 17 down to win at Redbird Arena. The defeat, which came in spite of a season-high 26 points from Kevion Taylor, snapped Valpo’s eight-game head-to-head winning streak against Illinois State.

Following the Beacons: Television – MVC TV Network (NBC Sports Chicago, Bally Sports Midwest, Bally Sports Indiana, Bally Sports Kansas City) – John Rooney (play-by-play) and Rich Zvosec (analyst)

Streaming – ESPN3 (available out of market only, subject to local blackout)

Valpo Radio – 95.1 FM, WVUR, ValpoAthletics.com, TuneIn Radio App – Todd Ickow (play-by-play) and Brandon Vickrey (analyst)

Twitter updates - @ValpoBasketball

Links for video, audio and live stats will be available at ValpoAthletics.com.

Head Coach Matt Lottich: Matt Lottich (94-91) is in his ninth season overall at Valparaiso University and sixth as the head coach of the men’s basketball program in 2021-2022. The 2020-2021 season saw Valpo improve its Arch Madness seeding for the fourth straight year as the program continued to make positive strides in each season as a Missouri Valley Conference member. The team earned a first-round bye in the State Farm MVC Tournament for the first time since joining the prestigious league. Valpo upset previously-undefeated Drake, the nation’s No. 25 team, 74-57 on Feb. 7, 2021 at the ARC, the fourth win over an AP Top 25 team in program history and second under Lottich. The Bulldogs were one of three undefeated teams in the nation prior to that setback, joining Gonzaga and Baylor. Just two years removed from finishing in last place and being knocked out in the first round of the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament as a first-year Valley member, Lottich’s team did more than hold its own in 2019-2020, ascending into a tie for sixth in the league standings before finishing as the conference tournament runner-up. Valpo became the first team in the history of Arch Madness to reach the title game after playing in the opening round. Lottich, hired as the 22nd head coach of the Valpo men’s basketball program in April 2016, graduated from Stanford University in 2004 and New Trier High School (Illinois) in 2000.

Jan. 15 – Missouri State 74, Valpo 57: Valpo incurred a 74-57 setback to Missouri State in the first matchup of the season in a nationally-televised affair at the Athletics-Recreation Center. Isiaih Mosley posted 32 points for visiting Missouri State. Valpo scored nine straight spanning the end of the first half and start of the second half to cut what had been a 14-point deficit to five with 19:23 to play, but Missouri State scored the next eight points and never looked back. Ben Krikke paced the Beacons with 14 points, while freshman Darius DeAveiro chipped in eight points, four rebounds and two assists off the bench. 

Series Notes: Valpo holds a 10-23 record in the all-time series with Missouri State including a 3-9 mark since joining the Missouri Valley Conference. Valpo will look to reverse its recent fortunes in the series as the Bears have won the last four matchups, all by 10 points or more. Valpo ended Missouri State’s 2019-20 season with an 89-82 MVC semifinal victory, but the Bears returned the favor last year by bringing Valpo’s season to a halt with a 66-55 quarterfinal triumph in St. Louis.

Century Mark in Sight: Valpo head coach Matt Lottich earned his 94^th career win on Feb. 5 vs. Indiana State. He needs just six more to become the fourth head coach in program history to reach 100 career victories, joining Homer Drew, Bryce Drew and J.M Christiansen. Lottich’s victory over the Sycamores elevated him into sole possession of fourth place in program history, surpassing the legendary Gene Bartow (1964-1970). On a side note, Valpo assistant coach Matt Bowen worked under Bartow at UAB in 1995.

Down to the Wire & Working Overtime

• Fans prone to bite their fingernails in tense moments may have no nails left to bite as seven of Valpo’s 11 games in the calendar year of 2022 have been decided by three points or fewer or required overtime.
• Overall this season, half of Valpo’s 22 games against Division-I opponents have been decided by four points or fewer or needed OT.
• The Feb. 9 setback at Illinois State was Valpo’s sixth game this season that went beyond the regulation 40 minutes and the fifth time in 12 conference contests that the Beacons have played overtime. Valpo is 3-3 in the six OT games this year.
• Valpo has played back-to-back overtime games (Feb. 5 vs. Indiana State and Feb. 9 at Illinois State) for the first time since 1993 (Feb. 6 at UIC, Feb. 8 vs. Green Bay).
• This is the first time Valpo has played six overtime games in a single season since the program tied an NCAA Division-I record with eight overtime games in 1993. Valpo was the most recent NCAA D-I team with eight OT games in a single season as the program shares the record with Western Kentucky (1978) and Portland (1984). This year’s version of the Beacons is two OT games away from tying that mark.
• When Valpo and Illinois State played beyond 40 minutes on Feb. 9, it was the sixth overtime game of the year for both teams. The two teams are tied for the national lead for number of OT games this season.
• Valpo has played eight overtime periods this season (including two double OT games) and now holds the outright national lead in that area. UT Arlington and Illinois State are tied for second with seven. Bradley owns the NCAA Division-I record for number of overtime periods in a season with 14 in 1982 (seven of those came in a single game).
• The Feb. 5 game vs. Indiana State was Valpo’s second double overtime game of the season, joining Jan. 11 at Loyola. The last time the program played multiple double overtime games in the same season was 1992-1993, when the team played double overtime on three occasions.
• Both Valpo vs. Illinois State matchups this season went to overtime. The last time Valpo played multiple OT games against the same opponent in one season was 1992-1993 (UIC).

Mr. 2,000?

• Kevion Taylor is coming off a season-high 26 points on Feb. 9 at Illinois State. He topped his previous season best of 22 that occurred on Jan. 22 vs. UNI.
• Taylor has scored 20 points or more in back-to-back games and has a total of 46 points over his last two contests. After reaching 20 points just once in his first 22 Valpo games, he has done it in back-to-back outings. Including his four years at Division-II Winona State, Taylor has now reached the 20-point threshold 40 times in his collegiate career.
• In the game against the Redbirds, Taylor tied a season high with seven made field goals, his fourth game this year with seven made shots. He also equaled his season best with five made 3s, his third such game. Taylor set a season high for makes at the free-throw line, where he was 7-for-7. He also swiped a career-high-tying three steals in the stellar individual effort.
• Taylor scored his 1,900^th collegiate point in Valpo’s Feb. 5 victory over Indiana State. He scored 1,635 points over four seasons at Division-II Winona State before joining the Beacons as a graduate transfer prior to the 2021-22 campaign. Entering Feb. 12 at Missouri State, Taylor has 1,932 points, just 68 away from 2,000.
• Taylor is averaging 12.4 points per game this season, and if he continues that average he is on pace to reach 2,000 in the Feb. 26 regular-season finale at Bradley.
• If Taylor reaches that hefty milestone, he would become just the third player in program history to score his 2,000^th collegiate point while playing for Valpo, joining program legends Alec Peters and Bryce Drew.
• Taylor’s third and final 3-pointer of the Feb. 5 victory over Indiana State was the 300^th made triple of his collegiate career.
• In the game against the Sycamores, Valpo outscored Indiana State by 18 points when Taylor was on the floor. In regulation, Taylor owned a +11 in the plus-minus column while playing 37 of the 40 minutes, but Indiana State outscored Valpo 11-0 in the time he was not on the court.
• Entering Feb. 12 at Missouri State, Taylor has reached double figures 14 times in 24 games this season including 10 performances featuring 15 points or more.

The Rookie Report

• With sixth-year senior point guard Trevor Anderson out for the season with a back injury, Valpo has relied upon a pair of freshmen in Preston Ruedinger and Darius DeAveiro at the point guard spot.
• Ruedinger owns an impressive ratio of 22 assists to four turnovers, while DeAveiro has handed out 46 assists against 19 giveaways.
• In a four-game stretch from Jan. 8 vs. SIU to Jan. 22 at Indiana State, DeAveiro had 11 assists against no turnovers.
• Ruedinger has not had more turnovers than assists in any of his 13 Valpo appearances. He made one turnover on Jan. 30 at Southern Illinois, snapping his streak of four straight games without a giveaway. He’s made just two turnovers over his last seven games despite totaling 131 minutes of action during that stretch.

Turnover Talk

• On Feb. 9 at Illinois State, Valpo committed just nine turnovers despite the game going to overtime, the 14^th time in 24 games this year that Valpo had committed 10 turnovers or fewer.
• Valpo had an impressive assist-to-turnover ratio in the game against the Redbirds, handing out 15 assists for the second straight contest. That marked the seventh time this season Valpo had 15 or more assists.
• The Beacons have turned it over just 11.2 times per game this season, a mark that ranks second in The Valley and 44^th Plus, Valpo’s per game number is inflated because the team has played a full game’s worth of overtime (40 minutes) this season.
• Valpo won the turnover battle in eight straight games prior to Jan. 5 at UNI, the team’s longest stretch of winning the turnover battle over the last 28 seasons.
• Valpo made just seven turnovers on Jan. 22 at Indiana State. All seven of the giveaways against the Sycamores came after halftime. In the opening 20 minutes, Valpo did not turn it over, the first time the team did not commit a first-half turnover since Nov. 15, 2007 at IPFW. The first half at Indiana State marked the first time Valpo played turnover-free basketball in any half since the second half on Feb. 13, 2010 at Youngstown State.

20-20 Vision

• Sheldon Edwards is one of just three Missouri Valley Conference players with 20 or more blocks and 20 or more steals this season. He is joined in that club by Drake’s Tremell Murphy and Illinois State’s Kendall Lewis.
• Edwards leads the Beacons in both of those defensive categories with 28 steals and 22 rejections.
• Edwards has a chance to become the first Valpo player to finish a season as the team leader in both steals and blocked shots since Raitis Grafs had 45 steals and 38 blocks during the 1999-2000 season.
• On the offensive side of the ball, Edwards is 15 points away from reaching 500 for his career as only a sophomore, well on pace to reach 1,000 before his collegiate tenure reaches its conclusion.

Inside Kobe’s Kingdom

• After missing the first nine games of the season in order to gain NCAA eligibility, Kobe King is averaging a team-high 14.9 points per game in 15 contests (14 starts).
• Most recently, King produced 14 points and three steals on Feb. 9 at Illinois State.
• He has scored at least eight points in every outing, including 13 appearances in double figures. He has been in double figures in six straight games and 11 of his last 12, entering Feb. 12 at Missouri State.  
• King has scored 15 points or more in seven of his first 15 games in a Valpo uniform.
• On Feb. 5 vs. Indiana State, King went for a double-double of 24 points and 11 rebounds, both career highs. King’s previous scoring career high was 19 and his prior personal best on the boards was nine. He enjoyed a balanced stat line against the Sycamores, also dishing out three assists, rejecting a career-high three shots and swiping one steal.
• King’s double-double against Indiana State was the fifth by a Valpo player (three Thomas Kithier, one Trevor Anderson) this season. King enjoyed the team’s second 20&10 game of the season and first in conference play, joining Kithier’s 28-point, 11-rebound output vs. UIC on Nov. 13.

Ben Coming Up Big

• Ben Krikke has scored in double figures in five straight games, including a stretch of three straight where he scored 18 points or more from Jan. 22 to Jan. 30 (at Indiana State, vs. Bradley, at SIU).
• In the Feb. 9 game at Illinois State, the Edmonton native scored in double figures for the 15^th time in 21 games this season. However, he snapped a 14-game streak of shooting 50 percent or better by making just six of his 14 attempts.
• In the visit to Normal, Ill., Krikke blocked a career-high four shots. He joined Sheldon Edwards (Nov. 13 vs. UIC) as the only Valpo player with four-rejection games this season. Krikke had reached three blocked shots in a contest just twice in his career and hadn’t notched more than two in any game this season.
• Entering Feb. 12 at Missouri State, the junior is 134 points away from 1,000 for his collegiate career and has an opportunity to get there by season’s end.
• Entering Feb. 12 at Missouri State, Krikke ranks third in the conference and 38^th nationally with a shooting percentage of 54.9.
• This marks the second consecutive year that Krikke closed the month of January with a string of three straight games with 18 points or more. Last year, that came at Illinois State, vs. Bradley and at Evansville.
• Krikke’s rebounding totals have been on the rise as he’s squeezed five boards or more in six of his last eight games after doing so just once in his previous seven contests. His season peak in terms of rebounds came on Jan. 30 at Southern Illinois, when he pulled down nine.
• In addition, Krikke handed out a career-high five assists while committing no turnovers on Jan. 26 vs. Bradley. He became the first Valpo player with a 15-5-5 game (15+ points, 5+ rebounds, 5+ assists) since Zion Morgan on Feb. 27 of last season vs. Indiana State.
• In the Jan. 26 game against Bradley, Valpo held a two-point advantage in the 31 minutes that Krikke played but was outdone by 17 in the nine minutes that Krikke was not in the game.
• Krikke delivered the game-winning shot with six seconds remaining in the victory over Indiana State on Jan. 22, the latest Valpo game-winner since Eron Gordon’s memorable buzzer-beater in the 2020 MVC quarterfinal vs. Loyola.

Other Notes Wrapping Up Feb. 9: Illinois State 78, Valpo 75 (OT)

• Eron Gordon squeezed a team-high six rebounds, his highest output since a season-high eight in Valpo’s first matchup with Illinois State back on Jan. 2.
• Illinois State’s Antonio Reeves finished with a career-high 34 points, surpassing Noah Carter’s 33 on Jan. 19 for UNI as the most by a Beacon opponent this season. The 34 points was the most scored by an individual against Valpo since Southern Utah’s Randy Onwuasor had 35 on Nov. 11, 2016. Reeves scored 20 of his 34 points in the second half.
• Valpo shot 44.4 percent (8-of-18) from 3-point distance, the team’s highest 3-point shooting clip in a conference contest this year. This was Valpo’s second-best 3-point shooting day overall this season behind a 12-of-22 (54.5 percent) performance on Dec. 22 vs. William & Mary.
• Valpo blocked five shots (four from Ben Krikke), tying the team’s highest single-game total in MVC play this year. On the flip side, Valpo allowed five blocked shots for just the second time this season, both against Illinois State.
• Valpo was outrebounded 42-21, just the third time this season the team has been outrebounded by 11 or more, with two of them coming against Illinois State. The Redbirds held a 13-rebound advantage in the Jan. 2. matchup. The Beacons will hope to turn around the rebounding going forward as they’ve been outdone on the glass in four straight games coinciding with the injury to leading rebounder Thomas Kithier.
• Kithier was out with a back injury for the fourth straight game. The Beacons are also without starter Trevor Anderson due to a season-ending back injury.

Scouting the Bears

• Led by Isiaih Mosley, who leads the league and ranks 14^th nationally at 20.4 points per game.
• Coming off a 66-62 road win at Drake on Wednesday.
• Have won seven of their last nine games with the setbacks coming vs. Loyola and at Indiana State.
• Picked to finish fourth in the MVC preseason poll.
• One of four teams in the conference with either three or four losses in a tightly-packed upper echelon of the league standings.

Sweeping the Sycamores

• Both contests came down to the wire, but Valpo came away with the season sweep of instate foe Indiana State thanks to a 75-73 win on Jan. 22 in Terre Haute and a 79-72 double overtime victory on Feb. 5 at the ARC.
• The two teams had split the regular season series in three of Valpo’s first four Valley seasons. This represented the first time Valpo swept two regular-season meetings with Indiana State in the same season since 1957-58 when Kenneth Susens’ team swept a pair of Indiana Collegiate Conference showdowns.
• Indiana State is the first team this season that Valpo has completed a two-game sweep against.
• Valpo had dropped its first three Missouri Valley Conference games at Indiana State prior to notching the 75-73 victory on Jan. 22. Valpo’s previous win in Sycamore territory came 69-63 in a nonconference matchup on Dec. 9, 2015. The team’s first three MVC trips to the house that Larry Bird built resulted in losses by an average margin of 13 points per game.

Down But Not Out: When Valpo transformed a 34-33 halftime deficit into a 79-72 overtime victory on Feb. 5 vs. Indiana State, it represented the sixth time this season the Beacons have trailed at the game’s midway mark before rallying to prevail. Over half (six out of 11) of Valpo’s wins this season have come when trailing at the break. Valpo faced a five-point halftime deficit in back-to-back games on Jan. 19 vs. UNI and Jan. 22 at Indiana State, both eventual victories. In addition, the Beacons also came from down at half to beat Eastern Michigan (Dec. 20), Tulane (Nov. 24) and Jacksonville State (Nov. 22). This marks the team’s most wins when chasing at the break since rallying from seven halftime disparities during the 2011-2012 campaign.

Starter Shuffle

• Valpo used its 12^th different starting lineup combination of the season on Feb. 5 vs. Indiana State. The latest combo featured Eron Gordon, Kevion Taylor, Ben Krikke, Preston Ruedinger and Kobe King, and has now been used in back-to-back games after Feb. 9 at Illinois State.
• Only one lineup combination has been utilized more than three times this season – Kithier/Gordon/Taylor/Krikke/Anderson (7 times, 5-2 record).
• In the first 12 conference games, the Beacons have used nine different starting lineups.
• No Valpo player has started every game this season.
• The only three players who have played in all 24 contests are Kevion Taylor, Sheldon Edwards and Eron Gordon.
• Gordon has played in all 87 Valpo games since the beginning of the 2019-20 season.
• Freshman Preston Ruedinger made his first collegiate start on Jan. 8 vs. SIU. Ruedinger became the second nonscholarship player to start a game for Valpo during the Matt Lottich Era as John Kiser started on March 4, 2017 vs. Milwaukee at the Horizon League Tournament in Detroit as a freshman walk-on before earning a scholarship prior to his sophomore campaign.

Injury Bug: Valpo’s shuffling lineup has been caused in part by the injury bug. Valpo holds a 5-2 record in seven games this season where Trevor Anderson, Thomas Kithier and Kobe King were all available. King did not play the first nine games of the season before gaining NCAA eligibility, Kithier missed two games due to COVID-19 health and safety protocols (vs. Illinois State, at UNI) and four with a back injury (vs. Bradley, at Southern Illinois, vs Indiana State, at Illinois State), while Anderson missed two games with a back injury (vs. SIU, at Loyola) and was shut down for the season on Jan. 28 due to the back injury. Furthermore, Ben Krikke missed the first three games of the season with an ankle injury (vs. Toledo, vs. UIC, at Stanford). During its last several games, Valpo has had six scholarship players in street clothes.

Other Notes Wrapping Up Feb. 5: Valpo 79, Indiana State 72

• In addition to the aforementioned double-figure scoring performances by Kobe King, Kevion Taylor and Ben Krikke, sophomore Sheldon Edwards reached double digits with 14 points. Edwards snapped a streak of six straight games with fewer than 10 points. He canned four triples, his third time this season with four or more 3s and first in MVC play (vs. Charlotte, vs. Tulane).
• Valpo prevailed despite being outscored from the 3-point line for the sixth straight game and eighth time in the last nine outings. The only times Valpo had more made 3s than the opponent in MVC play were the games at Loyola (9-8 in 3ptFGM) and vs. Illinois State (7-5 in 3ptFGM).
• The Beacons grabbed nine steals, their highest total in the last nine games.
• The two matchups between Valpo and Indiana State during the regular season totaled 29 ties and 29 lead changes. The 18 ties in the Feb. 5 game marked the most in a Valpo game during the Missouri Valley Conference era.

All Good Things Must End

• Kevion Taylor saw his impressive streak of consecutive games with a made 3-pointer end at 84 when he was held without a triple on Jan. 30, 2022 at Southern Illinois. In the previous game, Taylor extended the streak by the skin of his teeth with a 3 as time expired on Jan. 26 vs. Bradley.
• Taylor was held without a made 3 for the first time since Dec. 15, 2018 while playing for Winona State in a game at Concordia St. Paul. His streak, one of the longest in the history of NCAA college basketball, started on Dec. 19, 2018 at Michigan Tech.
• The highest of the NCAA records (Division I, Division II or Division III) for consecutive games with a made 3 is 93 and belongs to Daniel Park of D-II Rollins from Jan. 26, 1994 to Feb. 28, 1997.
• If Taylor’s streak came in all D-I games, it would rank third in Division-I history. The D-I record is held by Mack Smith (91), who Valpo played against on Dec. 5 at Western Michigan. Smith set the record while at Eastern Illinois. Second is Corey Bradford of Illinois (88).
• Taylor has made multiple 3-pointers in 16 out of 23 games this season. He hit at least one triple in each of the first 21 contests this season.
• Taylor became the first Valpo player since at least the start of the 1989-90 season (nearly all the way back to the addition of the 3-point line) to make a 3 in each of his first 21 games of a season. He surpassed the program’s previous longest season-opening streak of 14 by Lance Barker in 1994-95. Three other Valpo players made a 3 in each of the first 13 games of a season – Bryce Drew (1995-96), Casey Schmidt (1992-93) and Mike Jones (1989-90).

#SCTop10 Again: Kobe King nailed a three-quarters court shot to beat the buzzer on Dec. 11 vs. Charlotte. Although the desperation heave was not enough as Valpo fell 68-67, the play checked in at No. 9 on SportsCenter’s Top 10 Plays that evening. It was highlighted again two days later on ESPN’s popular “SportsCenter with Scott Van Pelt” show. This marks the fourth time in a three-year span that Valpo basketball has produced an #SCTop10 play. The previous appearance came courtesy of a Sheldon Edwards dunk in a victory over No. 25 Drake on Feb. 7 of last season. Since joining the Missouri Valley Conference, Valpo Athletics has been featured on the iconic daily countdown on 10 occasions spanning five sports – men’s basketball (four times), softball (twice), volleyball (twice), women’s basketball and soccer.

#ChampionsInCommunity

• The Valpo basketball program received recognition from the Valparaiso University Student Philanthropy program on Sunday, Nov. 14.
• The team was recognized as part of the University’s annual Generosity Awards Celebration. Head coach Matt Lottich’s group was selected as the 2021 Athletic Team Awardee for the program’s community service and engagement.
• The team’s community engagement activities include participating in the Popcorn Fest, Valparaiso Downtown Trick or Treat, Valpo Day of Caring and beach cleanup at the Indiana Dunes National Park.
• In addition, the team hosts youth camps in the summer, working with children ages 6-14 to provide a fun and positive basketball experience.
• The program makes it a priority to attend as many Valpo Athletics events as possible to support other teams. The Beacons also make an effort to actively participate in the University community and support student organizations while also having an active presence as members of the broader City of Valparaiso and Northwest Indiana communities.
• Of the six core values that make up the foundation of the Valpo men’s basketball program, servanthood and appreciation are among the most prominent.

Beacon Bits

Random off-the-court facts on each Valpo player.

• #0 Thomas Kithier – Is an avid Detroit Lions fan and can name every player on the roster... Mother Jane played college volleyball at Eastern Michigan... Works in Valpo Athletics in ticketing, marketing and sports information.
• #1 Cam Palesse – Enjoys building fish-tank ecosystems.
• #2 Preston Ruedinger – Is an avid golfer in his spare time... Has an interest in coaching in the future.
• #3 Connor Barrett – Is also an avid golfer whose best score is a 73.
• #4 Darius DeAveiro – Father David is the former head coach at McGill University in Montreal and is now the head coach of the Ryerson Rams.
• #5 Keyondre Young – Enjoys observing nature and sightseeing... Enjoys watching movies and lists Blue Chips as his favorite.
• #10 Eron Gordon – Comes from a basketball family including brother Eric who has played in the NBA since 2008 and is currently a member of the Houston Rockets... Enjoys editing videos and podcasting.
• #11 Emil Freese-Vilien – Civil engineering major who spends a lot of time drawing blueprints and houses... His first basketball practice came at age 14... Played serious badminton growing up.
• #12 Kevion Taylor – High school teammates with Tyler Herro of the NBA’s Miami Heat.
• #13 Sheldon Edwards – Has six siblings... Enjoys listening to music... Played for his uncle Louis Graham at TLAP Sports Academy for one year prior to coming to Valpo.
• #15 Luke Morrill – Walk-on who enjoys wakesurfing.
• #20 Tyler Fricke – Walk-on whose father Scott coached Matt Lottich in high school and brother Zach pitches for the Valpo baseball team.
• #21 Trevor Anderson – Father Scott was his high school coach at SPASH and played at UW-Stevens Point... Enjoys visiting coffee shops, traveling and cheering for the Dallas Cowboys.
• #22 Brock Pappas – Walk-on who is majoring in nursing and hopes to one day become a pediatric nurse and work at Riley Children’s Hospital.
• #23 Ben Krikke – Spent over 100 days in quarantine before and during the 2020-2021 season... Enjoys mountain biking and chess, which he learned from his grandfather... Credits his father’s Michael Jordon DVD set for helping hone his skills.
• #32 Joe Hedstrom – Is an avid fisherman and Valpo’s proximity to Lake Michigan added to his desire to play at Valpo... Grandfather Burt Hedstrom played basketball, football and baseball at Northwestern University (1944-47) and both of his parents played college basketball, mother Sharon (Bethel) and father Peter (St. Olaf).
• #33 Trey Woodyard – Maintained a 4.0 GPA throughout high school, earning a place on the honor roll every year.
• #35 Kobe King –Enjoys making music and writing song lyrics.

Forward Trajectory

• Valpo has improved its conference tournament seeding in each of its four Missouri Valley Conference seasons.
• The team entered Arch Madness as a No. 10 seed in 2017-18, a No. 9 seed in 2018-19, a No. 7 in 2019-20 and a No. 6 in 2020-21.
• With Year 4 in The Valley now in the books, Valpo has surpassed Loyola’s conference win total over its first four seasons in the league. Valpo garnered its 29^th MVC victory in the 2020-21 regular-season finale vs. Indiana State.
• The Ramblers went 27-45 over their first four seasons before going 57-16 over the following four seasons.
• Valpo has improved its conference finish in each season during the four-year transitional period after elevating to the prestigious and competitive conference.

More on 2020-21

• The 2020-21 season was highlighted by an upset victory over previously-undefeated Drake, the nation’s No. 25 team, 74-57 on Feb. 7, 2021 at the Athletics-Recreation Center, the fourth win over an AP Top 25 team in program history and second under Lottich. The Bulldogs were one of three undefeated teams in the nation prior to that setback, joining Gonzaga and Baylor.
• Valpo came close to two other victories over ranked foes, falling 80-77 vs. No. 25 Drake on Feb. 6 and 54-52 at No. 22 Loyola on Feb. 17.
• Valpo closed the regular season with a stretch of 16 Missouri Valley Conference games in a 39-day span. By comparison, Valpo had played three games over the previous 31 days before beginning the stretch of seemingly nonstop competition. Six of Valpo’s first eight MVC games were postponed due to COVID-19, causing the backlog of makeup games during the busy stretch.

2021-22 Preseason Picks

• Ben Krikke was named to the Preseason All-MVC Second Team.
• Valpo was picked seventh in the 10-team league based on a preseason survey of the conference’s head coaches, media members and sports information directors.
• Drake was tabbed the preseason favorite to win the league, while UNI’s AJ Green earned Preseason Player of the Year accolades.

Sustained Home Success

• The Athletics-Recreation Center has provided a distinct homecourt advantage over the years as Valpo has not finished with a losing mark at the ARC since 1991-92.
• Thanks to a victory in the 2020-21 home finale vs. Indiana State, the program finished with a record of .500 or better at home for the 29^th consecutive season.
• Valpo enjoyed double-figure home win totals in nine of 10 seasons prior to the unusual, pandemic-altered 2020-21 season. Due to health and safety regulations, fans were unable to pack the ARC as they have in years past.
• The ARC is back open to spectators without any capacity restrictions during the 2021-22 season, restoring the home court advantage Valpo has come to expect over the years.

Big Ten U

• Prior to this season, Valpo had just a pair of Big Ten transfers join the program over the last two decades (Bakari Evelyn and Bobby Capobiano).
• This year, the program has been bolstered by four additions from the Big Ten Conference. Trevor Anderson, Joe Hedstrom and Kobe King have all come in from Wisconsin, while Thomas Kithier joins the fold after beginning his career with three seasons at Michigan State.
• Four of the five transfers that have come in join the team from the Big Ten, while a fifth impact transfer began his career with four seasons at Division-II Winona State. Kevion Taylor was a three-time all-conference performer and was his conference’s preseason player of the year in 2020-21.
• King started all 19 games he played at Wisconsin in 2019-20, Anderson appeared in 60 of Wisconsin’s 62 games over the last two seasons and Kithier appeared in 86 games and made 19 starts for Tom Izzo’s team over his three seasons in East Lansing.

Who’s Back

• Although the team features five freshmen and the five aforementioned transfers, five scholarship players do return from last season.
• The squad brings back 47.9 percent of its scoring and 42.4 percent of its rebounding.
• Four of the team’s top six scorers are back.
• A pair of MVC postseason award winners remain in the fold for the Beacons as Sheldon Edwards was a member of the 2020-21 MVC All-Freshman Team, while Ben Krikke earned All-MVC Third Team, MVC Most-Improved Team and MVC Scholar-Athlete First Team, the lone player in the league to receive all three honors.
• Seven letter winners are back from last year’s team, while nine have departed. Three starters return and three left. (Note: Starters based on top five players in number of games started. Six players were considered starters due to a tie for fifth).

Staff Sidebars

• Associate head coach Luke Gore is in his 20^th year on staff and has served under four different head coaches. The Valpo veteran has helped the team to eight postseason berths in the last 11 years and was on staff for the three winningest seasons in program history. He serves as the team’s defensive coordinator in addition to leading Valpo’s scheduling and scouting efforts.
• Assistant coach Matt Bowen returned to Valpo’s staff in 2018-19 after previously spending four seasons with the Brown & Gold from 2002-2006. He was the head coach at the University of Minnesota Duluth from 2012-2018. Bowen coordinates the team’s offense.
• Assistant coach Rob Holloway is back for his fourth season after spending the previous two years on staff at Eastern Illinois, his alma mater.
• Director of Basketball Operations Peter Funk is in his first season in that role after spending the previous two years as a graduate assistant and the three years prior to that as a student manager.
• Bob Brooks is in his 18^th year as Valpo Director of Strength & Conditioning at Valpo and returned to oversight of men’s basketball strength & conditioning in 2020-21. He has worked with Valpo teams since 1994.
• Athletic trainer Ken DeAngelis is in his third season full-time at Valpo after previously earning his master’s degree from the University in 2012 while spending two years as a graduate assistant athletic trainer.

Tradition of Excellence

• Valpo has 14 NCAA Tournament appearances and four NIT berths in the program’s proud history, with the team’s postseason success highlighted by a Sweet Sixteen run in 1998.
• The program has produced nine All-Americans, won 18 regular season conference championships and 10 conference tournament crowns.
• Valpo also boasts eight NBA players, 10 conference players of the year and 20 20-win seasons.
• Nine of the team’s NCAA appearances have come since 1996.
• Valpo has qualified for the postseason eight times in the last 11 years, including 2019-20 where Valpo accepted a postseason berth but the tournament was not played due to COVID-19.
• Valpo has developed a myriad of professional basketball players over the last quarter century, most notably a pair of NBA players in the last four years. Ryan Broekhoff (class of 2013) signed a contract with the Dallas Mavericks in the summer of 2018 after spending five seasons playing internationally in Russia and Turkey. Alec Peters (class of 2017) was the 54th pick in the 2017 NBA Draft by the Phoenix Suns. Peters appeared in 20 games for the Suns in 2017-18, highlighted by a 36-point performance in the season finale against Dallas – a new single-game high by a Valpo alum in the NBA. He has gone on to a successful career overseas with CSKA Moscow (2018-2019), Anadolu Efes (2019-2020) and Kirolbet Baskonia (2020-present).
• Valpo has produced over 50 professional players in the last 25 years.