1 MVC game Tuesday, Dec. 25

[Da Coach]

There is one MVC game Tuesday, Dec. 25-
Indiana State plays TCU for the Championship of the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic
http://www.espn.com/mens-college-bas.../date/20181225

TCU is 11 point favorite, but Indiana State has been playing very well, especially since their two transfers became eligible, Cooper Neese and Christian Williams.
The game is on ESPN2.

[Da Coach]

Indiana State loses to TCU 83-69

http://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/boxscore?gameId=401107113

Their record drops to 8-4.

[tornado]

definite difference in size & athleticism - Indiana State has only 3 guys who are frontcourt players - Rickman, Thomas & Kessinger -
and those 3 guys COMBINED for only 1 rebound, zero assists, 1 steal, 0 blocks...
On top of that - 2 of their 3 big men shoot UNDER 40% on FTs!
The key when we play them is to control the perimeter and not allow easy shots...

[SycamoreFanatic]

Have to respond to your dismiss of our Sycamore inside game. In the just completed tourney in Hawaii vs three respectable opponents the key inside guys (Rickman & Kessenger) combined for 33 minutes, 4-9 FG, total 8 points vs Colorado. 34 minutes, 11-17 FG, total 24 points vs UNLV and 31 minutes, 7-11 FG. total 14 points vs TCU & both work hard on defense .... I will take it! Plenty of scoring & sufficient rebounding comes from several guards & wings with a good amount of depth and they all play well together. Barnes is good ...... actually very good but this team is not a one-head snake. Will be very interesting to see how the Valley shakes out this season ...... good luck to BU in all but games with the Sycamores.

[Braves2006]

“good luck to BU in all but games with the Sycamores.”

Thanks SycamoeFanatic. We will take all the luck we can get. You guys won’t need much luck to beat this squad.

[Da Coach]

Have to respond to your dismiss of our Sycamore inside game....

I didn't think it was so much a diss of the Sycamores as it was an attempt to find a weak part of what has been one of the 2 best teams in the MVC so far. Barnes is obviously the key (no pun intended) to Indiana State winning, and any team that wants to beat them will have to find a way to limit him like TCU did. TCU held him to 14 points on 4-12 shooting. That 14 points was his lowest output of the season, and his lowest output since Bradley held him to 13 points last February 24, and beat the Sycamores 66-64.

[SycamoreFanatic]

I was at Robertson Fieldhouse in the 1978-79 season when Dick Versace decided to "shutdown" Larry Bird. His plan worked as Larry stood in the corner with two defenders & only scored 4 points that game .......BUT the Sycamores played four against a 3-man Bradley zone and won by +20 ............. lol.

[Da Coach]

Yes, I was at that game, too, February 10, 1979, and have a vivid memory of it. That 4 points by Bird (one basket on a steal and breakaway layup and 2 free throws) was the lowest scoring output in Bird's entire career, high school, college, or pro. He only attempted one other shot beside the layup, and missed. So he then became content to stand in the corner on offense, drawing 2 Bradley defenders away from the action, and allow his teammates to play 4 on 3.
That was Dick Versace's first year as head coach at Bradley. Indiana State came into that game undefeated and ranked #2 in the country, while Bradley was not a very good team that year. BU finished tied for last in the MVC that year (1978-79). The following year, they won the MVC and swept through the MVC Tournament. It could have been a much worse rout if Versace hadn't tried the novel defense. It came to be known as "The Bird Cage", and might have worked, except Carl Nicks and Steve Reed got hot and made their open shots, and Indiana State won 91-72 (only 19 points ).
In the next poll after the game, on Feb. 13, 1979, Indiana State rose to become the #1 team in the country, which they maintained until the Championship game loss to Michigan State.
Versace's "Bird Cage" game is mentioned in this Wikipedia page, and in other sources-
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1979_N...#Indiana_State
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn...2502310_2.html

[tornado]

I didn't think it was so much a diss ...

not a diss, just an observation - surely SycFanatic can't be saying his team's big strength is their inside game???
They are, of course, a very guard-dominant team and if a weak spot exists, it is their inside game...
Bradley, if they have a strong suit - it is our inside game with both Childs & Bar among team leaders in scoring and helping us win games..