2016–17 Valparaiso Crusaders men's basketball team

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2016–17 Valparaiso Crusaders men's basketball
Men Who Speak Up Main Event champions
Horizon League regular season co-champions
NIT, First round
ConferenceHorizon League
Record24–9 (14–4 Horizon)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
Home arenaAthletics–Recreation Center
Seasons
2016–17 Horizon League men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
Oakland 14 – 4   .778 25 – 9   .735
Valparaiso 14 – 4   .778 24 – 9   .727
Green Bay 12 – 6   .667 18 – 14   .563
Northern Kentucky † 12 – 6   .667 24 – 11   .686
Wright State 11 – 7   .611 20 – 12   .625
UIC 7 – 11   .389 17 – 19   .472
Detroit 6 – 12   .333 8 – 23   .258
Cleveland State 5 – 13   .278 9 – 22   .290
Youngstown State 5 – 13   .278 13 – 21   .382
Milwaukee 4 – 14   .222 11 – 24   .314
† 2017 Horizon League Tournament winner

The 2016–17 Valparaiso Crusaders men's basketball team represented Valparaiso University during the 2016–17 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Crusaders, led by first-year head coach Matt Lottich, played their home games at the Athletics–Recreation Center as members of the Horizon League. They finished the season 24–9, 14–4 in Horizon League play to finish in a tie for the Horizon League regular season championship. As the No. 2 seed in the Horizon League tournament, they lost to Milwaukee in the quarterfinals. They received an invitation to the National Invitation Tournament where they lost in the first round to Illinois.

This was the Crusaders' final season as a member of the Horizon League as the school announced on May 25, 2017 that it would be joining the Missouri Valley Conference effective July 1, 2017.[1]

Previous season

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The Crusaders finished the 2015–16 season 30–7, 16–2 in Horizon League play to win the regular season championship. They lost in the semifinals of the Horizon League tournament to Green Bay. As a regular season conference champion who failed to win their conference tournament, the Crusaders received an automatic bid to the National Invitation Tournament. As one of the last four teams left out of the NCAA tournament, they received a No. 1 seed in the NIT where they defeated Texas Southern, Florida State, Saint Mary's, and BYU to advance to the championship game where they lost to George Washington.

This season marked Bryce Drew's final season as Valparaiso head coach. He accepted the Vanderbilt head coaching job on April 5, 2016.[2] He finished at Valpo with a five-year record of 124–49 and went to the postseason every year as head coach. On April 7, the school promoted assistant coach Matt Lottich to head coach.[3]

Offseason

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Departures

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Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Notes
Keith Carter 0 G 6'1" 180 Senior Maywood, IL Graduated
E. Victor Nickerson 1 G/F 6'8" 185 Senior Atlanta, GA Graduated
Darien Walker 5 G 6'3" 220 Senior Chicago, IL Graduated
David Skara 10 F 6'8" 205 Sophomore Zadar, Croatia Transferred to Clemson
Vashil Fernandez 14 F 6'10" 260 Senior Kingston, Jamaica Graduated

Incoming Transfers

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Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Previous school
Bakari Evelyn 3 G 6'2" 175 Sophomore Detroit, MI Transferred from Nebraska. Under NCAA transfer rules, Evelyn had to sit out the 2016–17 season, and would then have three years of remaining eligibility.
Joe Burton 10 G/F 6'6" 215 Junior Houston, TX Transferred from Oklahoma State. Under NCAA transfer rules, Burton had to sit out the 2016–17 season, and would then have two years of remaining eligibility.
John Middleton 13 G 6'4" 215 Sophomore Atlantic City, NJ Transferred from Utah State. Under NCAA transfer rules, Middleton had to sit out the 2016–17 season, and would then have three years of remaining eligibility.

2016 recruiting class

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US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Micah Bradford
PG 		Bradley, Illinois Bradley-Bourbonnais Community High School 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 150 lb (68 kg) Nov 18, 2015 
Recruiting star ratings: Rivals:3/5 stars   247Sports: N/A
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

2017 recruiting class

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US college sports recruiting information for 2017 recruits
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Parker Hazen
#42 SF 		Columbia City, Indiana Columbia City High School 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 188 lb (85 kg)  
Recruiting star ratings: Rivals:2/5 stars   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 78
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

Preseason

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In a poll of the League’s coaches, media, and sports information directors, Valparaiso was picked to win the conference, receiving 35 of the 39 first-place votes.[4] Alec Peters was named the Preseason Horizon League player of the year.[4] Shane Hammink was also named to the Preseason All-Horizon League second team.

Roster

[edit]
2016–17 Valparaiso Crusaders men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown
G 1 Micah Bradford 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 150 lb (68 kg) Fr Bradley-Bourbonnais Community High School Bradley, Illinois
G 2 Tevonn Walker 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Jr Vanier College Montreal, Quebec, Canada
G 3 Max Joseph 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Jr Vanier College Montreal, Quebec, Canada
G 4 Bakari Evelyn (I) Current redshirt 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 180 lb (82 kg) So Nebraska Detroit, Michigan
G 5 Jason Karys (W) 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 175 lb (79 kg) Sr Newton South High School Newton, Massachusetts
G/F 10 Joe Burton (I) Current redshirt 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Jr Oklahoma State Porter, Texas
G 11 Shane Hammink 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 210 lb (95 kg) RS Sr LSU Millingen aan de Rijn, Netherlands
G 13 John Middleton (I) Current redshirt 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 215 lb (98 kg) So Utah State Atlantic City, New Jersey
C 14 Jaume Sorolla 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 240 lb (109 kg) Fr Sunrise Christian Academy Tortosa, Spain
G 15 Lexus Williams 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 165 lb (75 kg) RS Jr Marist Chicago, Illinois
C 21 Derrik Smits 7 ft 2 in (2.18 m) 240 lb (109 kg) RS Fr Zionsville Community High School Zionsville, Indiana
G 22 Nick Davidson 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Sr Andrean High School Munster, Indiana
F 23 Jubril Adekoya 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 230 lb (104 kg) Sr Victor J. Andrew High School Tinley Park, Illinois
F 25 Alec Peters 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 235 lb (107 kg) Sr Washington Community High School Washington, Illinois
F 30 Chandler Levingston Simon (W) 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 220 lb (100 kg) RS Jr UMKC Vernon Hills, Illinois
G/F 33 John Kiser (W) 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Fr Noblesville High School Noblesville, Indiana
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster

Schedule and results

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Date
time, TV 		Rank# Opponent# Result Record Site (attendance)
city, state
Exhibition
11/05/2016*
7:30 pm 		Hillsdale W 78–63 
Athletics–Recreation Center 
Valparaiso, IN
Non-conference regular season
11/11/2016*
7:00 pm 		Southern Utah
Men Who Speak Up Main Event 		W 79–65  1–0
 Athletics–Recreation Center (3,560)
Valparaiso, IN
11/12/2016*
7:00 pm 		Trinity Christian W 89–75  2–0
 Athletics–Recreation Center (2,588)
Valparaiso, IN
11/14/2016*
7:00 pm 		Coppin State
Men Who Speak Up Main Event 		W 78–58  3–0
 Athletics–Recreation Center (1,972)
Valparaiso, IN
11/17/2016*
8:00 pm, P12N 		at No. 4 Oregon L 54–76  3–1
 Matthew Knight Arena (7,509)
Eugene, OR
11/21/2016*
11:00 pm, YouTube 		vs. Alabama
Men Who Speak Up Main Event semifinals 		W 68–60  4–1
 MGM Grand Garden Arena (2,107)
Paradise, NV
11/23/2016*
10:59 pm, ESPN2 		vs. BYU
Men Who Speak Up Main Event championship 		W 92–89  5–1
 MGM Grand Garden Arena 
Paradise, NV
11/27/2016*
1:30 pm 		Ball State W 79–73  6–1
 Athletics–Recreation Center (3,166)
Valparaiso, IN
11/29/2016*
7:00 pm, ESPN3 		No. 21 Rhode Island W 65–62  7–1
 Athletics–Recreation Center (4,149)
Valparaiso, IN
12/07/2016*
7:00 pm, SECN 		at No. 6 Kentucky L 63–87  7–2
 Rupp Arena (21,805)
Lexington, KY
12/10/2016*
7:05 pm, ESPN3 		at Missouri State W 84–81  8–2
 JQH Arena (6,147)
Springfield, MO
12/17/2016*
7:03 pm, ESPN3 		Indiana State W 89–71  9–2
 Athletics–Recreation Center (2,172)
Valparaiso, IN
12/22/2016*
7:00 pm 		Santa Clara L 80–87 OT 9–3
 Athletics–Recreation Center (1,854)
Valparaiso, IN
12/28/2016*
7:00 pm 		Chicago State W 80–61  10–3
 Athletics–Recreation Center (2,024)
Valparaiso, IN
Horizon League regular season
12/30/2016
4:00 pm, ESPNU 		at UIC W 70–59  11–3
(1–0) 		UIC Pavilion (3,826)
Chicago, IL
01/06/2017
8:05 pm, ESPN2 		Oakland L 66–78  11–4
(1–1) 		Athletics–Recreation Center (3,872)
Valparaiso, IN
01/08/2017
12:00 pm, ASN 		Detroit W 81–74  12–4
(2–1) 		Athletics–Recreation Center (1,776)
Valparaiso, IN
01/12/2017
6:45 pm, ESPN3 		at Youngstown State W 78–62  13–4
(3–1) 		Beeghly Center (2,517)
Youngstown, OH
01/14/2017
2:30 pm, ESPN3 		at Cleveland State W 78–67  14–4
(4–1) 		Wolstein Center (1,831)
Cleveland, OH
01/16/2017
7:00 pm, ESPN3 		Green Bay W 80–56  15–4
(5–1) 		Athletics–Recreation Center (3,625)
Valparaiso, IN
01/22/2017
2:00 pm, ASN 		UIC W 96–65  16–4
(6–1) 		Athletics–Recreation Center (3,881)
Valparaiso, IN
01/27/2017
7:00 pm, ESPN3 		Wright State W 70–55  17–4
(7–1) 		Athletics–Recreation Center (3,461)
Valparaiso, IN
01/29/2017
1:30 pm, ESPN3 		Northern Kentucky W 65–58  18–4
(8–1) 		Athletics–Recreation Center (3,578)
Valparaiso, IN
02/02/2017
2:00 pm, ESPN3 		at Milwaukee W 71–53  19–4
(9–1) 		UW–Milwaukee Panther Arena (2,267)
Milwaukee, WI
02/04/2017
2:00 pm, ESPN3 		at Green Bay L 69–86  19–5
(9–2) 		Resch Center (3,963)
Green Bay, WI
02/09/2017
7:00 pm, ESPN3 		Cleveland State W 78–57  20–5
(10–2) 		Athletics–Recreation Center (2,455)
Valparaiso, IN
02/11/2017
7:00 pm, ESPN3 		Youngstown State W 82–72  21–5
(11–2) 		Athletics–Recreation Center (4,823)
Valparaiso, IN
02/16/2017
6:00 pm, ESPN2 		at Oakland L 71–82  21–6
(11–3) 		Athletics Center O'rena 
Rochester, MI
02/19/2017
1:00 pm, ESPN3 		at Detroit W 83–63  22–6
(12–3) 		Calihan Hall (2,003)
Detroit, MI
02/21/2017
7:00 pm, ESPN3 		Milwaukee W 67–61  23–6
(13–3) 		Athletics–Recreation Center (3,512)
Valparaiso, IN
02/24/2017
6:30 pm, ESPN3 		at Wright State W 84-74  24–6
(14–3) 		Nutter Center (5,028)
Dayton, OH
02/26/2017
1:00 pm, ESPN3 		at Northern Kentucky L 78–82  24–7
(14–4) 		BB&T Arena (3,304)
Highland Heights, KY
Horizon League tournament
03/04/2017
8:00 pm, ESPN3 		(2) vs. (10) Milwaukee
Quarterfinals 		L 41–43  24–8
 Joe Louis Arena (8,481)
Detroit, MI
NIT
03/14/2017*
6:15 pm, ESPN2 		(7) at (2) Illinois
First round – Illinois State Bracket 		L 57–82  24–9
 State Farm Center (4,719)
Champaign, IL
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in Central Time.

References

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  1. ^ "It's Official. Welcome, Valparaiso" (Press release). Missouri Valley Conference. May 25, 2017. Archived from the original on June 12, 2017. Retrieved May 26, 2017.
  2. ^ "Sources: Vandy, Bryce Drew reach 6-year deal". ESPN.com. Retrieved April 5, 2016.
  3. ^ Technologies, Streamline. "Matt Lottich Hired as Valparaiso University Men's Basketball Head coach". ValpoAthletics.com. Retrieved December 2, 2016.
  4. ^ a b "Horizon League Announces Men's Basketball Preseason Awards | Horizon League". www.horizonleague.org. Archived from the original on January 3, 2017. Retrieved July 12, 2017.
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