– The battle against the Missouri Valley’s best continues
This Saturday our #5 ranked Cards (5-1) return to the KFC Yum Center after their second place finish in The Battle 4 Atlantis. They will face the Illinois State Redbirds (5-1) from the Missouri Valley Conference.
In the off season the Redbirds hired an alumnus Dan Muller to be their head coach. He was hired after Tim Jankovich left to be the coach in waiting at SMU. This is Muller’s first head coaching job, and often when a new coach takes over, he inherits trouble, plus lots of losses. But that’s not the case here. The Redbirds return all of their core players and are currently ranked in the top 20 in three division 1 categories. 10th in points with 85 per game, 11th in assist with 18.3 a game and 14th in field goal% at .505. They also have decent wins against UAB and Drexel on their 5-1 record. On Thursday Jay Bilas put out a list of his top 68 teams in the country and the Redbirds came in at 64. This is another very good team in the very underrated Missouri Valley conference and the combination of talent and experience, plus the enthusiasm of a new coach who knows the place, could land them a spot in the postseason.
Coach Dan Muller: “We’ve got good talent level,” “We’ve got good athleticism. We’ve got good skill. We have depth.”
In-conference offense: 1.04 points per possession (4th)
In-conference defense: 1.05 points allowed per possession (8th)
The Redbird Players:
Jackie Carmichael SR (16.2 ppg, 6.8 rpg) 6-9 F is one of the top returning players in the Missouri Valley. A year ago he led the league in rebounding and defensive rebounding, was third in blocked shots and eighth in field-goal percentage (.533). He has scored 97 pts this season and 41 rebounds in 157 min.
Tyler Brown SR (18.8 ppg, 3.3 rpg) 6-4 G is the number 2 returning scorer and a year ago, he was the best shooter on a team full of them, making .454 of his 3-point attempts (79 of 174). During the NIT last season he shot 97% from the three point line through 2 games. He’s shooting 40% this season and 50% from the field. He has scored 113 pts this season and played 159 min.
Anthony Cousin SR (2.5 ppg, 0.5 rpg) 5-11 G is a combo guard, but can play multiple positions. Coach Muller: “he is more of a quiet competitor, but he has shown great leadership.” He has scored 10 pts this season and played 32 min.
John Wilkins SR (3.0 ppg, 3.3 rpg) 6-9 G/F is the fourth returning starter. He has good perimeter skills and adds versatility to this team. He has scored 18 pts this season and played 113 min.
Bryant Allen JR (13.0 ppg, 2.5 rpg) 6-0 G started his collegiate athletic career on the University of Minnesota football team, was a scoring spark off the bench in his first Redbird season and should continue in that role. He is a really good shooter 44 % from 3 pt land and is a really defender. Has has 78 pts this season and has played 158 min.
Jon Ekey JR (8.5 ppg, 5.5 rpg) 6-7 F posted the Redbirds’ best offensive rating last season he shot .407 from 3 (59 of 145) and was the Redbirds’ second-leading rebounder. He has scored 51 pts this season and has played 144 min.
Zeke Upshaw JR (1.8 ppg 1.0 rpg) 6-6 G has scored 9 pts this season and has only played 28 min.
Johnny Hill SOPH (6.0 ppg, 2.3 rpg) 6-3 G is one of the players sharing minutes in the back court. He has 36 pts this season and played 125 min.
Jordan Threloff SOPH (4.2 ppg, 3.2 rpg) 6-10 C is a really good rebounder on both ends if the floor. He has 25 pts and has played 59 min.
Geoffrey Allen SOPH (3.8 ppg, 2.8 rpg) 6-6 G has 15 pts and has only played 37 min.
John Jones SOPH Has not played this season.
Kaza Keane FR (4.5 ppg, 2.7 rpg) 6-1 G who was on schedule to join the college ranks in 2013-14 until he reclassified. He averaged 11 assists in his final season at Christian Faith Center (N.C.) Academy. He has 27 pts this season and has played 134 min.
Nick Zeisloft FR (5.2 ppg, 1.7 rpg) 6-4 G redshirted las year. He has 31 pts this season and played 104 min.
“Louisville gives our team a chance to play in an unbelievable environment,” Muller said. “It’s something I wanted our guys to experience.”
Our cards had a good run in Atlantis and in the game against Missouri they found good shots and hit them. But like last season they continue to shoot a low percentage from the field and are currently ranked 198th among division 1 schools at .428. They are also not getting to the free throw line enough which is one of the biggest reasons they lost to Duke. In these next 2 games we have teams that are capable of wearing that giant killer label. First up is Illinois State on Saturday and then College of Charleston on (Dec.4). Poor shot selection and not getting to the free throw line are a few of the things that could allow teams like this to sneak out a win. Will be watching to see if these things are addressed and if our Cards start to improve on these areas.
Will also be watching to see what adjustments have been made in response to Gorgui Dieng being out of action. Chane, Stephan, and Montrezl will need to step up. Russ and Peyton will need to be more conservative in their defensive approach and not take the risk they normally take with Gorgui in the paint.
I am always impressed by these Missouri Valley teams. They play with a lot of pride and don’t like to be taken lightly. I think the Redbirds will give our Cards a good challenge but superior talent is enough to see us through.
The Beak Prediction:
Louisville 86 Illinois State 78