Three more games, three more wins for Valpo. After the season-opening victory over IPFW, Valpo has beaten Iona, Rhode Island, and IU Kokomo to become the first team in Division I to four official (not counting exhibition) wins on the season. Shockingly, the victory over Iona on Sunday afternoon, in the first game of the Beaver Classic, was the easiest. The Gaels entered the game 6th in the Mid-Major Top 25 from collegeinsider.com, but were shut down by the Valpo defense. The Crusaders played possibly their best game of the Bryce Drew era, with shutdown D and firepower on offense leading to the win. Valparaiso opened the game quick, led 18-2 at one point, and never let the lead drop below 15 the rest of the way. Tevonn Walker led the Crusaders with 17 points, 3 assists, and a steal, while Shane Hammink chipped in a career-high 16 points to go with 7 rebounds off the bench. Shockingly for Valpo, Alec Peters didn't take a shot until after the under-4:00 media timeout in the first half and only scored 12 points, but added 7 rebounds, 3 steals, and an assist and block. Valpo shut down the preseason MAAC Player of the Year AJ English of Iona to just 12 points on 2-7 shooting. He scored 8 of his 12 on free throws.
As if that wasn't enough, Valpo went on the road for the first time this season, traveling to Kingston, RI to take on the Rams of Rhode Island, another mid-major garnering votes in the AP Top-25 poll at the start of the year. As part of the Tip-Off Marathon on ESPN networks, this game began at 9:00 AM Central Time. The Crusaders seemed to be affected by the early start, and possibly the big stage, with the game being televised on ESPN2. Valpo was down 20-18 after the first half, and it probably should have been more. Ouch. No initiative to score, no fight, and none of the drive that has been common from the Crusaders the last two years. Luckily, that was missing from the Rams as well, opening the door for Valpo to take advantage in the second half. Led by strong guard play from Keith Carter and Tevonn Walker, who each had 12 points, Vashil Fernandez, who also added 12, and Alec Peters, with a team-high 14 points, Valpo pushed the lead as high as 9 in the second half before hanging on in the final seconds to pull out the win. Only four players saw action off the bench, with Shane Hammink scoring 2 points and Jubril Adekoya 4, but that still bettered Rhode Island's four total bench points from three players. Although it was a win, Valpo will lose the services of Darien Walker for a spell. He scored just 2 points in 24 minutes and seemed affected by some injury, just as he had in the first two games. David Skara didn't make the trip with an injury, joining Derrik Smits on the injury list.
Last night, the Crusaders cruised in an uneventful Beaver Classic victory over the Cougars of IU Kokomo. Valpo sat three players, as joining Derrik Smits in sweats were Darien Walker, David Skara, and Shane Hammink (who served the first of a two game suspension). The only time the Crusaders didn't lead was at 2-2, as Valpo would lead 53-18 at the half. In the second half, Valparaiso would play zone defense and run a stall offense, not running a play until there was less than :15 on the shot clock. IU Kokomo would only be outscored 25-22 in the second half, but it made no real difference on the outcome of the game. Valpo would be led by Jubril Adekoya, who had a career-high 20 points to go with 8 rebounds and an assist. Off the bench, Nick Davidson had a career-high 13 points, and chipped in 2 rebounds, 4 assists, and a steal. Valpo only played eight players, with Vashil Fernandez and Keith Carter not appearing in order to get rest. Chandler Levingston Simon took advantage of that to make his Valpo debut, fouling out after 11 minutes of action with 4 points and 4 rebounds. The biggest news of the game came postgame, when it was announced that Derrik Smits will be out for the season with two torn ligaments in his ankle. The freshman center will redshirt and return next season as a redshirt freshman.
Tonight, the Crusaders play the final of three games in three days, this one also at the ARC. The Trinity Christian Trolls (4-2) come to town out of the NAIA, fresh off of a loss to Olivet Nazarine University last night.
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