Huge policy change in scheduling for ISU

[tornado]

Jank had made it widely known he would NEVER do a guarantee game for any reason - not even to land an opportunity to play a Top 10 team...

New head coach Dan Muller has also made it quickly known he has a different philosophy!
He has scheduled a guarantee game for ISU to play at Louisville on December 1, 2012.
I believe this is and will be good for ISU and for the Valley - if we're ever gonna get respect we need to beat them wherever we can play them!

This Louisville release even notes how unusual this is...
"Though Valley teams don't typically engage in "guarantee" games, this deal requires no return trip for Louisville."

http://www.cardchronicle.com/2012/6/13/3082270/louisville-to-face-illinois-state-on-dec-1

[PTownHawkeye]

This is great to hear. I really like what I am hearing and seeing from Mueller...he is going to be a great asset to ISU and the Valley.

[LittleBrave]

This is great to hear. I really like what I am hearing and seeing from Mueller...he is going to be a great asset to ISU and the Valley.

No doubt.
Good to have some former Valley players taking the reigns - and young guys like Muller & Lusk who experienced success as MVC players.

[tornado]

...Good to have some former Valley players taking the reigns - ..

but we just lost Les, Lowery, and McKenna...

[LittleBrave]

but we just lost Les, Lowery, and McKenna...

But are they young? (aside from Lowery)

[LittleBrave]

UNI's non-conf. schedule to this point looks very impressive, as I think was brought up in another thread.

3 games in Battle 4 Atlantis tournament field that consists of
NCAA tourney teams: Duke, Memphis, Louisville, Missouri, VCU
NIT championship game teams: Stanford, Minnesota

Top 25 RPI opponents:
@ UNLV (MWC-MVC challenge)

Top 50 RPI opponents:
(HM) against St Marys

51-100 RPI opponents:
@ George Mason

101-125 RPI opponents:
(Neutral) against Iowa (in Des Moines)
(HM) against Milwaukee


Winning even half of these games would go a long way, and they are capable of doing so. They remind me of Creighton last year heading into the season, coming off a non-NCAA tourney season, but with lots of key players returning. These games will prepare them for the conference season.

[tornado]

ISU just announced they are in the South Padre Island Tourney this fall...

http://www.goredbirds.com/sports/m-baskbl/spec-rel/061812aaa.html

The eight teams involved are...
ISU, Prairie View, Fairleigh Dickinson, Delaware State, Navy, Northwestern, UAB, TCU.
Each team will play four games, with the first two held at campus sites, and the final two rounds played at the South Padre Island Convention Center on beautiful South Padre Island, Texas, November 23-24.
Matchups have yet to be finalized...likely ISU will host two of the lesser teams (Prairie View, Fairleigh Dickinson, Delaware State, Navy)
then go to Texas to play two of the relatively stronger ones (Northwestern, UAB, TCU)

[TheGuy]

ISU just announced they are in the South Padre Island Tourney this fall...

http://www.goredbirds.com/sports/m-baskbl/spec-rel/061812aaa.html

The eight teams involved are...
ISU, Prairie View, Fairleigh Dickinson, Delaware State, Navy, Northwestern, UAB, TCU.
Each team will play four games, with the first two held at campus sites, and the final two rounds played at the South Padre Island Convention Center on beautiful South Padre Island, Texas, November 23-24.
Matchups have yet to be finalized...likely ISU will host two of the lesser teams (Prairie View, Fairleigh Dickinson, Delaware State, Navy)
then go to Texas to play two of the relatively stronger ones (Northwestern, UAB, TCU)

That's exactly how it will work. I think next month they will know the exact matchups for at home and then in South Padre. My guess is that it will start out ISU vs. TCU and NU vs. UAB with winners/losers meeting the next day....just as it was with Illinois not wanting to be paired up with us off the bat in the Cancun challenge last year.

[cpacmel]

My guess is that it will start out ISU vs. TCU and NU vs. UAB with winners/losers meeting the next day....just as it was with Illinois not wanting to be paired up with us off the bat in the Cancun challenge last year.

The winners and losers don't meet the next day though. Although it's possible that does happen.

ISU will know who they play both days when the pairings are announced, but there is no winners bracket and no losers bracket.

[TheGuy]

If that's the case then I have a hard time seeing ISU matched up with Northwestern.