Valparaiso (13-16, 6-11 MVC)
at Bradley (16-13, 10-7 MVC)

Game No. 30 – Saturday, Feb. 26, 7 p.m.
Carver Arena (11,060) – Peoria, Ill.

Next Up in Valpo Basketball: The 2021-2022 regular season will come to an end on Saturday night for the Valparaiso University men’s basketball team. The Beacons visit Bradley to round out the regular year in a final tune-up prior to Arch Madness, the State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Tournament, which begins on Thursday, March 3. Regardless of Saturday’s results, Valpo is guaranteed to occupy the seven seed in St. Louis and face off with 10^th-seeded Evansville in the opening round on Thursday, March 3 at 8:30 p.m.

Last Time Out: Valpo celebrated seniors Eron Gordon, Kevion Taylor and Trevor Anderson on Senior Night at the Athletics-Recreation Center, a 71-65 setback to Drake on Wednesday. Playing without a pair of starters as Thomas Kithier (back) and Preston Ruedinger (ankle) were sidelined, Valpo was led in scoring by Kevion Taylor with 20 points. Taylor, who surpassed the 2,000-point milestone for his collegiate career during the game, was joined in double figures by Ben Krikke (16) and Kobe King (13). Valpo limited Drake to just 1-of-10 from 3-point territory, but the Bulldogs scored 40 points in the paint.

Following the Beacons: Streaming –ESPN+ –

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 (96-94) 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.

Series Notes: Bradley owns a 6-4 edge in games played since Valpo joined the Missouri Valley Conference prior to the 2017-18 season. Prior to this season, the two teams have split the regular season series each year and Bradley prevailed in the 2020 MVC title game. The Braves hold an 8-5 advantage in a baker’s dozen all-time matchups, a series that dates back to 1980. Valpo has not faired particularly well when visiting Peoria as the Beacons are seeking their first-ever win at Bradley with the Braves owning an average margin of victory of 21.8 points per game in home games against Valpo.  

Jan. 26: Bradley 71, Valpo 56: Valpo played Bradley even in the second half in the first matchup of the season at the Athletics-Recreation Center with each team scoring 34 points, but the Beacons couldn’t take a bite out of a 15-point halftime hole as the Braves prevailed 71-56. Ben Krikke was a Valpo bright spot with a balanced stat line of 18 points, six rebounds, five assists and no turnovers. He was joined in double figures by Kobe King (11), who also swiped three steals. The Beacons were plagued by a tough shooting night as they converted just 21.1 percent of their 3-point attempts (4-of-19). It was Valpo’s roughest 3-point shooting showing since going 3-of-22 (13.6 percent) on Feb. 26 of last season vs. Indiana State. The Beacons committed a season-low eight fouls, the team’s cleanest game as far as fewest fouls committed since Feb. 22, 2020, also against Bradley (8).

Glancing Ahead to the Arch: Valpo’s first-round opponent (Evansville) is etched in stone, but Saturday’s Missouri Valley Conference games will dictate who the winner of the Beacons and Purple Aces will face in Friday’s quarterfinal round. Should Valpo continue to advance after opening the tournament at 8:30 p.m. on Thursday, game times would be 6 p.m. on Friday, 5 p.m. on Saturday and 1 p.m. on Sunday. The Valpo/Evansville winner will play the No. 2 seed in Friday’s quarterfinal round. That could be UNI, Loyola, Missouri State or Drake.

The 2,000 Club

• Kevion Taylor achieved a noteworthy milestone on Feb. 23 vs. Drake as he surpassed the 2,000-point threshold for his collegiate career. That includes 1,635 points over his four seasons at Winona State before joining Valpo prior to this season as a graduate transfer.
• In the game against the Bulldogs, he scored 20 points and made four of his six 3-point tries, finishing with his fifth 20-point output of the season and 41^st of his collegiate career.
• Taylor became 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.
• He became the 27^th active player at all levels of NCAA basketball to reach that milestone.
• Entering Feb. 26 at Bradley, Taylor has reached double figures 17 times in 29 games this season including 13 performances featuring 15 points or more.
• Taylor also reached a milestone on Feb. 12 at Missouri State, when he secured six rebounds to push his career total over 700. Taylor became just the 14^th active player nationally with over 1,900 points and over 700 rebounds.

Notes Wrapping Up Feb. 23: Drake 71, Valpo 65

• Valpo limited Drake to just 1-of-10 from 3-point territory, the worst clip by a Valpo opponent in conference play this season. This marked the second time Valpo contained an opponent to one made triple this year, joining Dec. 20 vs. Eastern Michigan.
• Valpo held Drake to its second-worst 3-point shooting day of the season (1-16, Jan. 2 vs. Missouri State).
• This marked the first time Valpo held an opponent to one made 3 or fewer in a conference game since Feb. 21, 2015 vs. Wright State.
• Valpo outscored the Bulldogs by 21 points from the 3-point arc (eight made 3s to one), but Drake owned a 40-22 advantage in terms of points in the paint.
• The Beacons had just seven turnovers, their 15^th time this season with 10 or fewer.
• Drake shot 61.5 percent in the second half, attempting 24 of 26 shots from 2-point territory. They finished at 53.4 percent for the game.

Scouting the Braves

• Coming off an 83-67 loss at Missouri State on Wednesday.
• Have dropped two of their last three games after a three-game winning streak that was highlighted by wins over Loyola and Drake.
• Positioned to be the No. 5 seed at the State Farm MVC Tournament.
• Picked to finish sixth in the MVC preseason poll.
• Led in scoring by Terry Roberts at 14.8 points per game. Rienk Mast is the team’s top rebounder at 8.2 boards per contest while also scoring 11.3 ppg. Ja’Shon Henry (10.4 ppg) and Malevy Leons (10.3 ppg) are also averaging in double figures.
• Hold an 11-2 home record and have won six consecutive home games.

Starter Shuffle

• On Feb. 23 vs. Drake, Valpo used yet another starting lineup combination as Darius DeAveiro and Eron Gordon started together for the first time. That represented Valpo’s 14^th different starting lineup combination this season.
• The Beacons have used 11 different starting lineups in conference play alone.
• No Valpo player has started every game this season.
• The only three players who have played in all 29 contests are Kevion Taylor, Sheldon Edwards and Eron Gordon.
• Gordon has played in all 92 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.

Ben Coming Up Big

• After posting 16 points for the second straight game on Feb. 23 vs. Drake, Ben Krikke has scored in double figures in 10 consecutive contests.  
• During his current 10-game double-figure streak, Krikke has reached the 20-point threshold three times and scored 15 points or more on seven occasions. He has shot 50 percent or better in 18 of his last 20 games.
• As of Feb. 24, Krikke (55.2 percent FG / 84.0 percent FT) is one of four players in the Missouri Valley Conference shooting above 50 percent from the field and above 80 percent from the free-throw line. He joins Isiaih Mosley (Missouri State), Malevy Leons (Bradley) and Tate Hall (Loyola). Krikke owns the highest field-goal percentage and second-highest free-throw percentage in that elite group.
• Krikke and Thomas Kithier are both shooting above 55 percent. Valpo hasn’t finished a season with two players above 55 percent since 2013-14 (Vashil Fernandez and Moussa Gueye). Valpo currently accounts for two of the top seven players in the league in terms of field-goal percentage.
• Krikke has scored in double figures in 20 of his 26 games this season.
• Entering the Feb. 26 regular season finale at Bradley, the junior is 55 points away from 1,000 for his collegiate career.
• Krikke’s rebounding totals have been on the rise as he’s squeezed five boards or more in five straight games and nine of his last 10.
• 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.

The 30-20 Club

• As of Feb. 24, Sheldon Edwards is one of two players in the Missouri Valley Conference with 30 or more steals and 20 or more blocked shots, joining Illinois State’s Kendall Lewis.
• Edwards leads the Beacons in both of those defensive categories with 33 steals and 25 rejections.
• The Florida native 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.
• Edwards saw a six-game double-figure streak come to an end when he was held to nine points on Feb. 23 vs. Drake. The six games in double figures came after a stretch of five straight single-digit performances.
• The sophomore is one of just six players in the nation with at least 20 blocks, 30 steals, 30 assists and 60 made 3s, as of Feb. 24.
• Edwards is just the third different Valpo player to notch 20 blocks, 30 steals, 30 assists and 50 made 3s in a season since 1992-1993, joining Ryan Broekhoff (three times) and Lubos Barton (twice).

Inside Kobe’s Kingdom

• After missing the first nine games of the season in order to gain NCAA eligibility, Kobe King is averaging 14.1 points per game in 20 contests (19 starts).
• The Feb. 16 game vs. Loyola marked a rare aberration as he was held to just two points on 1-of-5 shooting. King responded to that in a positive manner in the Feb. 19 game at Evansville, bouncing back with 21 points by knocking down nine of his 12 field-goal attempts. It marked his second-highest scoring output of the season behind a 24-point showing on Feb. 5 at Indiana State.
• King continued the success on Feb. 21 vs. Evansville by posting his second career double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds.
• King has made 17 appearances in double figures in his 20 contests. He has scored 15 points or more in eight of his first 20 games in a Valpo uniform.

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.
• In the Feb. 16 game vs. Loyola, Ruedinger tied a career high with eight points, equaling a mark that came in the first matchup with the Ramblers back on Jan. 11 in Rogers Park. The rookie point guard also matched a personal best by dishing out four assists in the Feb. 16 contest.
• Ruedinger owns an impressive ratio of 27 assists to six turnovers, while DeAveiro has handed out 49 assists against 23 giveaways.
• Ruedinger is one of eight players in the nation with 25 or more assists and 10 or fewer turnovers this season. Furthermore, he’s the only player in the nation with more than 25 assists and fewer than seven turnovers this year.
• 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 15 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 four turnovers over his last 10 games despite totaling 169 minutes of action during that stretch.

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 the Feb. 21 victory over Evansville, the program finished with a record of .500 or better at home for the 30^th consecutive season.
• Valpo finished the season with an 8-8 home record.

Century Mark in Sight: Valpo head coach Matt Lottich earned his 96^th career win on Feb. 21 vs. Evansville. He needs just four more to become the fourth head coach in program history to reach 100 career victories, joining Homer Drew, Bryce Drew and J.M Christiansen. Earlier this season, Lottich moved 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.

A No-Quit Attitude: Valpo rallied from 10 points down in the second half to beat Evansville 74-69 on Feb. 21 at the ARC. That represented the 19^th time during the Matt Lottich Era (sixth season) that Valpo has erased a double-figure deficit to come away victorious. It marked the third such victory this season, joining the third-place game of the Nassau Championship vs. Tulane in The Bahamas and the Dec. 20 game vs. Eastern Michigan, when Valpo flipped a double-figure deficit into a double-figure victory. The 19 double-figure comebacks are listed below.

Erasing Double-Figure Deficits Under Lottich

Year                Opponent                   Largest Deficit          Outcome

2021-22           Evansville                   10                                W 74-69

2021-22           Eastern Michigan       11                                W 67-55

2021-22           Tulane                         12                                W 68-64

2020-21           Bradley                       14                                W 91-85 (2ot)

2019-20           Loyola                         18*                              W 74-73 (ot)

2019-20           Bradley                       13                                W 90-78

2019-20           Illinois State               17                                W 65-62

2019-20           Indiana State               11                                W 86-77

2019-20           SIUE                           10                                W 89-76

2019-20           Toledo                         14                                W 79-77

2018-19           Illinois State               12                                W 58-56

2018-19           George Washington    10                                W 82-79

2018-19           UNLV                         11                                W 72-64

2017-18           Bradley                       10                                W 77-64

2017-18           UNCW                        10                                W 79-70

2016-17           Wright State                10                                W 84-74

2016-17           Cleveland State           12                                W 78-67

2016-17           BYU                            12                                W 92-89

2016-17           Trinity Christian         16                                W 89-75

*largest comeback since Jan. 17, 2012 vs. Detroit Mercy

Double the Double-Doubles

• For just the second time in the last five seasons, Valpo had two players enjoy double-doubles in the same game on Feb. 21 vs. Evansville. Kobe King notched 12 points and 10 rebounds, while Sheldon Edwards registered a 13-point, 12-rebound performance.
• The last time Valpo had two players achieve double-doubles in the same game was Jan. 23 of last season at Illinois State (Eron Gordon and Donovan Clay). Prior to that, it hadn’t occurred since Jan. 16, 2017 vs. Green Bay (Alec Peters and Tevonn Walker).
• Edwards attained his second straight double-double after he had 11&11 on Feb. 19 at Evansville. He became the first Valpo player to post back-to-back double-doubles since Alec Peters on Jan. 27 and Jan. 29, 2017 (vs. Wright State, vs. Northern Kentucky).
• The 12 rebounds marked the second straight game that Edwards established a career high in that area. Prior to the weekend series with Evansville, Edwards’ season best was seven and career best was eight. He did not have a double-figure rebounding output in any of his first 53 career contests but has now achieved that feat in consecutive games.
• King’s double-double was his second of the year with the previous coming vs. Indiana State on Feb. 5.
• As a team, Valpo has eight double-doubles this season, the program’s most since 2016-17 (21, 16 of which were Alec Peters).

Other Notes Wrapping Up Feb. 21: Valpo 74, Evansville 69

• Eron Gordon had four blocked shots, his first career game with more than two. He boasted a team-best plus-minus of +17, including +14 in the first half alone. The Valpo veteran also had seven points on 3-of-6 shooting.
• Valpo prevailed despite shooting just 22.2 percent from 3-point distance (4-of-18). That marked Valpo’s lowest 3-point percentage in a win since going 0-for-10 on March 5, 2020 in the opening round of the State Farm MVC Tournament, also a win over Evansville. Valpo went 23-of-36 (63.9 percent) from 2-point territory.
• Evansville had only five free-throw attempts, the fewest by a Valpo opponent since Drake’s four on Jan. 11, 2020.

Down to the Wire & Working Overtime

• Fans prone to bite their fingernails in tense moments may have no nails left to bite as eight of Valpo’s 16 games in the calendar year of 2022 have been decided by three points or fewer or required overtime.
• Overall this season, 13 of Valpo’s 27 games against Division-I opponents have been decided by four points or fewer or needed OT.
• The two-point loss to Loyola on Feb. 16 continued a trend of close calls in the head-to-head series. That marked the sixth time in the last seven matchups between the two teams that the game was decided by three points or fewer or went to overtime.
• 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 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 along with UT Arlington.
• Valpo has played eight overtime periods this season (including two double OT games) and is tied with UT Arlington for the national lead. 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).

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).
• 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... Thomas 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.

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.