Final: SIU 70 Bradley 59

[Da Coach]

Bradley (6-13, 1-5) plays at Southern Illinois (8-11, 1-5) on Wednesday, Jan. 21, at 7:00 PM.
SIU is coming off a win at home over Loyola-

http://www.siusalukis.com/sports/m-baskbl/recaps/011815aaa.html

Bradley is coming off a 4-game losing streak, including Saturday's 82-72 loss to ISU.

http://www.bradleybraves.com/ViewArticle.dbml?SPSID=25965&SPID=1498&DB_LANG=C&ATCLID=209854471&DB_OEM_ID=3400

The game will be televised on ESPN3.com.

SIU website-

http://www.siusalukis.com/sports/m-baskbl/silu-m-baskbl-body.html

[Vent]

This was one of the road games I thought BU could win going into the season. Now I think they'll lose.

[CubbieBear]

Even though it is early--I think we've gotta win this game to have any chance of staying out of the Thursday night game in St. Louis----BU by 6 over a struggling Salookee team

[Vent]

If BU gets lucky and wins at SIU they will still be in the play in round at
St. Louis. They blew their chance at home against Evansville.

[Da Coach]

BU Game Center-

http://www.bradleybraves.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=3400&ATCLID=209856450

[Buesch N Chips]

I am very quickly losing any interest at all in watching this team.

[molar50]

I know. It is painful to watch this team. I have probably purchased more beer at the Civic Center watching Geno's teams the last 3.5 years than in the previous 30 years watching Bradley basketball.

[BUBraves04]

I have probably purchased more beer at the Civic Center watching Geno's teams the last 3.5 years than in the previous 30 years watching Bradley basketball.

Did you notice that draft beer prices have went down at the PCC?

[tornado]

I saw where our media now says...

http://www.pjstar.com/article/20150120/SPORTS/150129892/10962/SPORTS

"With Jones back, Ford has gone to a smaller three-guard lineup with
Josh Cunningham and Auston Barnes up front to create more offense."
...then proceeds to explain we aren't getting offense out of our other low post players...

but haven't we been told since last spring that this team has a far more talented, powerful, tough, aggressive, deep, TOP-100, and capable frontcourt & low post -
and that we are as deep, talented, and strong down low as any time since the trio of Reese, Thirdkill, & Anderson!!!

If that was indeed the case - then why is it that not one of our four deep, talented, low post players can even crack the starting lineup on a team that's in desperate need of anyone who can play the low post??
It never ceases to amaze that every day they come up with something new that exposes everything they've been saying for 3 years as foolish, and badly misjudged.

[Da Coach]

Dave Reynolds also started out that article with the following extreme hyperbole-
Since Bradley hosted Southern Illinois 18 days ago, both Missouri Valley Conference teams have faced a Murderers Row in MVC play.

Really? Since they last met, Bradley has played Wichita State away, Evansville and UNI at home, then ISU away. SIU has played UNI away, Indiana State at home, Wichita State away, and Loyola at home (which they won).

Since when does anyone who wants to be taken seriously call mediocre teams like Evansville, Illinois State, Indiana State, and Loyola "murderer's row"?
Maybe I'll grant that WSU and UNI are legitimate top caliber teams that are tough to beat, but Loyola? Indiana State? Evansville? ISU?
Wow, talk about putting lipstick on a pig- those are middle-of-the-pack MVC teams that Bradley should be able to compete with and beat in the 4th year of this regime, especially at home!
Going into this 7th round of MVC games 3 of those 4 teams (Evansville, Loyola, and ISU) all had .500 records in the league, and the 4th team, Indiana State, is just 9-9 overall with an RPI of 195! Murderer's row? Only Loyola has an RPI of better than 90, and even that is a sham. By the season's end, likely none of those "murder's row" will be in the top 100 RPI.

Is Dave admitting that we have no chance to even expect to compete with the mediocre, 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 6th place teams in the league that hover around a .500 record?
If we are going to consider those kinds of mediocre opponents a "murderer's row", then just how far has the Bradley program fallen?
And if those kinds of records equate to a "murderer's row", then why did we fire the last coach who was able to equal or exceed those team's level of success nearly every year?
What a joke!

[BU212121]

From a post a few above...

This game has no barring on a Thursday Play in.

Bradley, Drake, SIU, and Mo State are the 4 Play In teams. That is already clear. It will just come down to seeding. I can only imagine drake and siu have 9,10 locked up and BU / Mo state are playing for 7/8

[Tulsa Brave]

From a post a few above...

This game has no barring on a Thursday Play in.

Bradley, Drake, SIU, and Mo State are the 4 Play In teams. That is already clear. It will just come down to seeding. I can only imagine drake and siu have 9,10 locked up and BU / Mo state are playing for 7/8

Indiana State is still in the mix as well. The Drake loss likely started a 1-7 stretch for them.

[tornado]

as bad as both teams are shooting and clanking the ball off the rim...
maybe letting a couple pounds of air out of the balls would help!!

[Vent]

The Missouri Valley Conference is just another mid-major conference. It is no where near as good as most people think it is. The loss of Creighton was a major blow to the quality of the league. Take away Wichita and occasionally Northern Iowa and you have a bunch of teams that generally, over a 10 year period will wind up around .500 in league play. There is a lot of positive spin put on the league to generate interest and sell tickets to the post season tournament. Very few players from the league play in the NBA. We here at BU brag about how great Patrick O'Bryant was. He was great by BU and maybe Valley standards, but can't cut it in the NBA. Once in a while, the Valley will get a team like Wichita and Bradley, that wins two games and gets to the Sweet 16 or farther. But by and large, we really want to celebrate when we get more than one team in the NCAA.

That is what makes it so frustrating to see Geno Ford produce the product he has at Bradley. It's not like he's playing against teams from the Big 10, ACC, Big East, Big 12, SEC or Atlantic 10. He's playing against teams that can't crack the top 150 in RPI and still can't compete. If he can't win in the Valley, he can't win anywhere.

[Vent]

You've got to be pretty bad, to be the underdog against what may be the weakest SIU team I've seen, since BU started playing them in the 70's. Those were the days of Mike Glenn, Joe C. Merriweather, Corky Abrams and etc., and they played good basketball.

SIU will get better. BU will not, until a change is made, starting with the priorities of the Board of Trustees.

By the time the Valley Tournament is held in St. Louis, I predict BU will be the worse team in the league. They may not have the worst record, but they will be the worst team. Other teams will get better and BU will stay the same or regress.