Wright St

Horizon Preseason Poll: Cleveland State #1

Press Release — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 09:29:44 -0700

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2008-09 Horizon League Men’s Basketball Preseason Poll

- voted on by league coaches

Votes (1st Place) 2007-08 Results

1. Cleveland State 478 (40) 21-13 / 12-6 T-2nd NIT

2. Wright State 412 (3) 21-10 / 12-6 T-2nd

3. UIC 361 (2) 18-15 / 9-9 T-4th

4. Green Bay 335 15-15 / 9-9 T-4th

5. Butler 326 30-4 / 16-2 1st NCAA

6. Milwaukee 216 14-16 / 9-9 T-4th

7. Valparaiso 207 22-14 / 9-9 T-4th CBI

8. Loyola 189 12-19 / 6-12 8th

9. Detroit 98 7-23 / 3-15 10th

10. Youngstown State 73 9-21 / 5-13 9th

State of '08: Ohio

Shawn Siegel — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 08:33:26 -0700

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Duke or Carolina? BC or UMASS? Gonzaga or Washington.. or Washington State? What is the best program in each state? While there's not much competition in Hawaii.. there are great debates to be had in loaded regions like California, North Carolina, and Texas. The State of '08 is a ranking of every program in every state.. based mostly on recent success (the last five years) mixed in with subjective factors such as conference prestige, historical success, and overall program direction.

For more info, check out the State of '08 introduction.

OHIO

OHIO STATE - While Xavier has had more consistent success since 2001, its hard to match Ohio State's 2007 campaign: Reaching the National Title game while finishing 1st in the RPI. OSU has also won 20 games in 8 of 10 seasons and reached 6 Big Dances.

XAVIER - Sean Miller has picked up where Thad Matta left off, and Matta followed the success of Skip Prosser, who continued the foundation set by Pete Gillen. Since 1986, there's been a continual run of impressive postseason success at Xavier, including 2 Elite Eight trips in the past 5 years.

KENT STATE - Pretty much whatever success you see at Kent State can still be attributed to the job Gary Waters did in the late 90's, turning a dormant program into a winner. In the last decade, the Golden Flashes have made 5 NCAA Tournaments and 4 NITs, and have won at least 20 games in each of those seasons. In 2009, Kent State is once again the projected MAC champ.

CINCINNATI - This is obviously a storied program, but the post-Huggins era has gotten off to a slow start. There hasn't been a tourney trip in the past three seasons, nor a finish above .500 in conference play. 2009 should be better, but the Big Dance will most likely have to wait another season.

DAYTON - After a hot start, Dayton stumbled to an 8-8 finish in A10 play, their third season in a row without a winning league record. From 2000-2005, Dayton won at least 9 league games every season, and made 3 NCAA Tournaments and 2 NITs.

6. MIAMI - The RedHawks have never been bad in Charlie Coles lengthy career. In fact, just one time in 11 seasons has his team failed to go at least .500 in the MAC. His last five teams have finished in the RPI Top 100, and this year's squad looks postseason-worthy once again.

7. AKRON - Keith Dambrot's four year tenure has been highly impressive. The Zips have been finished in the RPI Top 75 the past four seasons, consistently challenged for MAC titles, and advanced to two NITs. The team does lose a lot of talent this year, so it might be Dambrot's most challenging season.

8. OHIO - Ohio is a solid program that has never gone more than couple seasons here or there without contending for the MAC title. The Bobcats have won at least 18 games the past four seasons (including the '05 Big Dance), though the off-season departure of 8-year coach Tim O'Shea was puzzling.

9. WRIGHT STATE - We might be in thee midst of Wright State's best run in program history. Brad Brownell led the Raiders to the '07 Tournament in his first season, and followed that up with another 20+ win season last year. This year, WSU should once again contend for the Horizon League title.

10. TOLEDO - The Rockets haven't made the NCAA's since 1980, but it hasn't been all bad in the meantime. In 2001 & 2007, the Rockets won MAC regular season titles, but couldn't get over the conference tournament hump. Last year was disappointing, and new coach Gene Cross will need to elevate the program's overall talent-level.

11. CLEVELAND STATE - Twenty years after last making the postseason, the Vikings made the NIT in Gary Waters' second season. The Vikings won 10 league games and 20 overall games for the first time since 1993, and there's a legitimate shot they could earn their first Tourney trip since 1986.

12. BOWLING GREEN - Falcons basketball peaked in the 60's. The start of Dan Dakich's tenure, from about 99 to 02, looked promising.. but things went down hill. The last three years have featured sub-200 RPI teams, though the 2009 squad looks promising.

13. YOUNGSTOWN STATE - The Penguins basketball teams have never been able to match the football teams accomplishments. There are occasional hopeful seasons, but 2001 was the last time YSU really did any damage.

Last: North Carolina - Next: Oklahoma

State of '08: The Introduction (& State list/links)

2008-09 Wright State Basketball Preview: #60

Joel Welser — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 06:32:08 -0700

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Wright State Raiders

Overall Rank: #60

Conference Rank: #2 Horizon

2007-08: 21-10, 12-6, 2^nd

2007-08 postseason: none

You can have a small team and still be successful in the Horizon League, but Wright State might be taking that concept a little too far. Sophomore Cooper Land is the most experienced forward on the roster and he only averaged 12.8 minutes per game last season. Senior Gavin Horne and junior Ronnie Thomas played even less last year. Coach Brad Brownell will certainly utilize a four guard lineup at times, but that just does not work against every team.

Who’s Out:

The size concern is due to the graduations of Jordan Pleiman and Scott Wilson, last year’s starters in the frontcourt. The duo combined to average 17.9 points and 13.3 rebounds per contest. Neither were great shotblockers, but they were decent on the defensive end and at least made things slightly more difficult for the opposition in the paint.

Who’s In:

The Raiders did all they could to address the issue with their newcomers, but it remains to be seen how well they can adapt to the system. The one true newcomer is a junior college transfer and has plenty of size. Cory Cooperwood, at 6-7 and 215 pounds, will be asked to play quality minutes right away. If he cannot, the frontcourt will be in a world of hurt. Kyle Pressley is an unproven redshirt freshman who will get an opportunity this year. Scott Grote, a transfer from Duquesne, is only 6-6 and is more of a wing than a forward, but he might find himself starting at the four spot. After averaging 9.9 points and 4.1 rebounds as a freshman with the Dukes, Grote can make a big impact for the Raiders.

Who to Watch:

If the frontcourt can surprise, the backcourt will lead this team to a conference championship. Will Graham and John David Gardner are both experienced point guards and Vaughn Duggins and Todd Brown will do plenty of scoring from the wings. Duggins, who led the team with 13.8 points per game, will get to the basket and hit the long range shot with consistency. Brown added an average of 12.7 points per game, but Wright State will have to find another scorer…whether it comes from the backcourt or the frontcourt.

Final Projection:

Copperwood could be the guy who not only becomes the third scoring option, but also gives the team some much needed presence in the paint. After dominating the junior college ranks for the last two years at Wallace State Community College in Alabama, Copperwood could do the same thing in the Horizon League. The two-time junior college All-American can do some work around the basket on the offensive end, but his ability to rebound could put him in the starting lineup from day one. And if Copperwood can live up to his hype, Wright State will have a great year. The guards are very experienced and talented, so it is just up to the frontcourt to find one guy who can score and a few guys who can grab some rebounds and play some defense.

Projected Post-season Tournament: NIT

Projected Starting Five:

Will Graham, Senior, Guard, 5.9 points per game

Vaughn Duggins, Junior, Guard, 13.8 points per game

Todd Brown, Junior, Guard, 12.7 points per game

Scott Grote, Sophomore, Forward, DNP last season

Cory Copperwood, Junior, Forward, DNP last season

Complete Top 144 Ranking | 2008-09 Preview & Awards | Coach Interviews | Discuss the Preview

Wright State Basketball Schedule: 2008-09

Press Release — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 09:12:44 -0700

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With three returning starters from last year's 21-10 team, head coach Brad Brownell and the Wright State men's basketball team will play nine games this year against teams that advanced to post-season tournaments last March as they released the 2008-09 schedule Wednesday.

"The challenge of scheduling quality non-conference games has become increasingly more difficult each year," Brownell said. "Having said that, I am very pleased with the way our schedule turned out this season. Certainly, Wake Forest on national television and a trip to San Juan are highlights. However, we were also able to schedule good programs within our recruiting scope such as Sam Houston State and Arkansas-Little Rock while keeping some of the regional rivals like Miami and Toledo. I think our fans will enjoy the competition."

The Raiders open the season by hosting Illinois State on Saturday, November 15. The Redbirds went 25-10 and 13-5 in the Missouri Valley Conference last year and lost in the second round of the NIT. The teams met last year in Normal, Illinois as part of the ESPNU BracketBuster series.

The Raiders will welcome Miami, a CBI participant last March, to the Nutter Center November 24 and will visit Central Michigan November 22. The Raiders will travel Sam Houston State, which finished 23-8 last year, on November 29.

December begins with early-season Horizon League trips to Green Bay (Dec. 4) and Milwaukee (Dec. 6). WSU will host Toledo on Dec. 9 before traveling to Arkansas-Little Rock and then to Wake Forest for a nationally-televised FOX Sports game on December 14.

The month continues with a home match-up against Norfolk State on December 17 prior to flying off to the San Juan Shootout to take on NCAA-participant Oral Roberts, South Florida of the Big East and Murray State December 20-22. The month ends with a home league game against NIT-team Cleveland State. CSU has been picked by many to win the Horizon League title this year after playing the finals last year.

January starts at home as the Raiders host Youngstown State January 3 before a three-game trip to Butler (Jan. 8), Valparaiso (Jan. 10) and Detroit (Jan. 17). Loyola and UIC visit the Nutter Center January 22 and 24. Youngstown State and Cleveland State will host Wright State January 29 and 31.The Raiders will play in only two cities in February as WSU will host six games with two contests in Chicago. 2008 post-season teams Valparaiso and Butler visit February 5 and 7. Wright State will play at Loyola February 10 and at UIC February 18. Other games in the month include home matchups against Detroit Feb. 14, Milwaukee February 26 and Green Bay February 28. The other highlight of the month will be a non-conference ESPNU Bracket Buster game at the Nutter Center.The Horizon League Tournament will follow the similar format as in the past, starting March 3 at campus sites followed by quarterfinal and semifinal games at the site of the regular-season champion March 6 and 7. The championship game will be played March 10 on the higher-remaining seed's home floor.

2008-09 Wright State University Men's Basketball Schedule--TENTATIVE

Date	Opponent	Site	Time
Mon., Nov. 10	St. Edward's (TX)--Exhibition (23-7, 19-1-NCAAs)	Nutter Center	7:00
Sat., Nov. 15	Illinois State (25-10, 13-5 MVC-NIT 2nd Round, 31 RPI)	Nutter Center	7:00
Sat., Nov. 22	at Central Michigan (14-17, 8-8 MAC, 184 RPI)	Mount Pleasant, MI	7:00
Mon., Nov. 24	Miami (17-16, 9-7 MAC-CBI, 74 RPI)	Nutter Center	7:00
Sat., Nov. 29	at Sam Houston State (23-8, 16-6 Southland, 99 RPI)	Huntsville, TX	TBA
Thu., Dec. 4	at Green Bay * (15-15, 9-9 HL, 138 RPI)	Green Bay, WI	8:00
Sat., Dec. 6	at Milwaukee * (14-16, 9-9 HL, 148 RPI)	Milwaukee, WI	3:00
Tue., Dec. 9	Toledo (11-19, 7-8 MAC, 187 RPI)	Nutter Center	7:00
Fri., Dec. 12	at Arkansas-Little Rock (20-11, 11-7 Sun Belt, 171 RPI)	Little Rock, AR	8:00
Sun., Dec. 14	at Wake Forest (17-13, 7-9 ACC, 100 RPI)	Winston-Salem, NC	4:00
Wed., Dec. 17	Norfolk State (16-15, 11-5 MEAC, 257 RPI)	Nutter Center	7:00
Sat., Dec. 20	Oral Roberts (24-9, 16-2 Summit-NCAA, 52 RPI)	San Juan, PR	5:30
Sun., Dec. 21	South Florida (12-19, 3-15 Big East, 179 RPI)	San Juan, PR	5:30
Mon, Dec. 22	Murray State (18-13, 13-7 OVC, 188 RPI)	San Juan, PR	3:00
Tue., Dec. 30	*Cleveland State (21-13, 12-6 HL-NIT, 63 RPI)**	Nutter Center	7:00
Sat., Jan. 3	*Youngstown State (9-21, 5-13 HL, 226 RPI)**	Nutter Center	7:00
Thu., Jan. 8	at Butler * (30-4, 16-2 HL-NCAA 2nd Round, 17 RPI)	Indianapolis, IN	TBA
Sat., Jan. 10	at Valparaiso * (22-14, 9-9 HL-CBI 2nd Round, 97 RPI)	Valparaiso, IN	8:00
Sat., Jan. 17	at Detroit * (7-23, 3-15 HL, 286 RPI)	Detroit, MI	7:00
Thu., Jan. 22	*Loyola (12-19, 6-12 HL, 219 RPI)**	Nutter Center	8:00
Sat., Jan. 24	*UIC (18-15, 9-9 HL, 138 RPI)**	Nutter Center	7:00
Thu., Jan. 29	at Youngstown State * (9-21, 5-13 HL, 226 RPI)	Youngstown, OH	7:30
Sat., Jan. 31	at Cleveland State * (21-13, 12-6 HL-NIT, 63 RPI)	Cleveland, OH	TBA
Thu., Feb. 5	Valparaiso * (22-14, 9-9 HL-CBI 2nd Round, 97 RPI)	Nutter Center	7:00
Sat., Feb. 7	Butler * (30-4, 16-2 HL-NCAA 2nd Round, 17 RPI)	Nutter Center	7:00
Tue., Feb. 10	at Loyola * (12-19, 6-12 HL, 219 RPI)	Chicago, IL	8:00
Sat., Feb. 14	Detroit * (7-23, 3-15 HL, 286 RPI)	Nutter Center	7:00
Wed., Feb. 18	at UIC * (18-15, 9-9 HL, 138 RPI)	Chicago, IL	8:00
Sat., Feb. 21	ESPNU Bracket Buster	Nutter Center	TBA
Thu., Feb. 26	*Milwaukee (14-16, 9-9 HL, 148 RPI)**	Nutter Center	7:00
Sat., Feb. 28	*Green Bay (15-15, 9-9 HL, 138 RPI)**	Nutter Center	7:00
Tue., Mar. 3	Horizon League First Round	Campus Sites	TBA
Fri., Mar. 6	Horizon League Quarterfinals	Regular-Season Champ	TBA
Sat., Mar. 7	Horizon League Semifinals	Regular-Season Champ	TBA
Tue., Mar. 10	Horizon League Championship	Higher Remaining Seed	TBA

Home games in bold

* Horizon League Contest

ALL TIMES ARE EASTERN & SUBJECT TO CHANGE

2008 San Juan Shootout: Final Pairings

Press Release — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 19:05:22 -0700

The Wright State men's basketball team will take a trip in December off the mainland for the first time since 1993 as the Raiders have signed a contract to be part of this year's San Juan Shootout December 20-22. Murray State, South Florida and Oral Roberts have also been confirmed.

2008 San Juan Shootout

Dec. 20 South Florida vs Murray State and WSU vs Oral Roberts

Dec. 21 Oral Roberts vs Murray State and WSU vs South Florida

Dec. 22 WSU vs Murray State and Oral Roberts vs South Florida

Horizon League Quaterfinals: Valpo Beats Wright State

Bill Kintner — Fri, 07 Mar 2008 21:34:24 -0800

INDIANAPOLIS –There is a stick that Valparaiso has used three times this year to beat Wright State with and the Raiders are on the short end of it as they lost their third game in a row to the Crusaders 72-67 in the quarterfinals of the Horizon League Championship.

Earlier this year at Wright State, Valpo pulled out a 71-67 win and then last Saturday on ESPN2 Valpo beat the Raiders in overtime 75-73.

“It is a lot like the other games when we played Valpo. Three terrific basketball games, but unfortunately we came up on the short end of the stick each time,” said a very subdued Wright State coach Brad Brownell. “It is a very bitter pill to swallow, but this was a very good season. I am very proud of my kids we just didn’t get it done tonight.”

With 1:55 left in the game the score was 65-65 Urule Igbavboa made one of two free throws to put Valpo (21-12) up by one.

After Wright State’s Scottie Wilson missed two free throws with 1:01 left, Valpo’s Brandon McPherson made two free throws with just :37 left after getting fouled by Jordon Pleiman to make it 68-65.

Wright State (21-10) got back within one at 68=67 with :16 left as Troy Tabler made two free throws after he was fouled by Shawn Huff.

The game ended after Valpo’s Jarryd Lloyd made four free throws after being fouled twice in the last 12 seconds of the game.

Lloyd had a lot going through his head at the end when he made the four big free throws. “I was praying actually that I would make them. We lost games on the free throw line and I was just going through my routine and it worked,” said Lloyd.

Wright State’s poor free throw shooting did them in. They made just four in ten attempts in the second half and shot just 43.8 percent (7-16) for the game, while at the same time the. Crusaders shot 84.2 percent (16-19) for the game.

“It came down to free throws. They can do it in their sleep sometimes because we’ve been practicing so much on free throws to put us in that winning situation,” explained the ever-smiling Valpo coach Homer Drew.

This game was tied 14 times and the lead changed 16 times and the largest lead of the game was just six points when Valpo lead the Raiders 22-16 at the 10:50 mark.

In the first half the lead just see-sawed back and forth. In the last five minutes of the half the biggest lead was two points when Wright State’s Vaughn Duggins made a 3-pointer with 3:55 left.

A free throw by Igbavboa at the 2:46 mark and then two by Lloyd with 1:38 left to put the Crusaders up by one at 37-36. A layup by Pleiman gave the Raiders a one point lead with :51 left at 38-37 and that was the score going into halftime.

Both teams had four players in double figures. For the Raiders Wilson and Pleiman both scored 15 points while Will Graham and Duggins scored 13 points.

Valparaiso’s Huff led all scorers with 21 points, Igbavboa put in17 points, McPherson got 16 points and Lloyd chipped in 14 points.

Drew pointed to the balanced scoring as a factor in the win saying, “We had four in double figures, which is the strength of our team. They really share the ball. They like each other and make the extra pass. Even when we’re small out there we play really, really big in the heart.”

Notes:

-Valpo had more fans than Wright State at the game thanks to a major snowstorm that hit SW Ohio but missed Indianapolis. That is one of the few times in the HL that WSU did not bring the most fans.

-During a second half timeout there was a 3-point shootout between two Valpo students and two WSU students sponsored by a local pizza joint. As each team’s fans cheered them on the Wright State students prevailed 6-4.

-Wright State leads the all-time series 5-4.

-This is a banner year for Division I basketball in Indiana with six teams achieving 20 game win seasons. Those teams are Valpo, Notre Dame, Indiana, Purdue, Butler and IUPUI.

-Valpo plays Cleveland State tomorrow at 3 p.m. in the semifinals.

Wright State Wins 20th, Beats Detroit

Bill Kintner — Thu, 21 Feb 2008 08:31:46 -0800

DAYTON – Wright State’s 20th win was not easy, but this year they really haven’t had any easy wins. The Raiders pulled out a 59-58 win to send most of the 6998 fans home happy.

With 1:38 left in the game Todd Brown hit a 3-pointer to put Wright State up 57-56.

At the 1:16 mark Wright State’s Cooper Land fouled Chris Hayes, after a media timeout he sank both free throws to put the Flames up 58-57.

At the 4 second mark Wright State’s Vaughn Duggins hit a jump shot to put the Raiders back up 59-58.

After each team called a timeout Detroit inbounded the ball and with 4.3 seconds left the Titans inbounded the ball and could not get a shot off before the buzzer.

“Detroit is playing best basketball right now. When (Jon) Goode went out we relaxed just a little bit defensively and they made us pay for it,” explained Wright State coach Brad Brownell. “I told our guys that on a miss to just play and attack the basket, if I see something I don’t like I will call time out.”

Obviously Brownell liked what he saw since he didn’t call timeout and Duggins made the jump shot to win it.

Duggins after the game acted like his heroics were all in a day’s work.

“It played out like the rest of our games,” explained a calm Duggins. “We would make a run and they would make a run. We were confident in that kind of situation.

In the first half the lead changed four times. Wright State (20-6, 12-4) got their biggest lead of the game at eight points at the 3:44 mark when Land hit two free throws to make it 26-18.

A 3-pointer by Detroit’s Nemanja Jokic and a jumper by Eulis Stephens cut the lead to three points at 2:18.

A jumper by Duggins at the 1:10 mark and then two more free throws by Land put the Raiders up 30-23 at the half.

Wright State out rebounded Detroit 35-21.

Detroit (7-19, 3-13 HL) had four players score in double digits. Chris Hayes and Zach Everingham both scored 14 points. Goode scored 11 points and Stephens 10 points for the Titans.

Duggins led the Raiders with 19 points Scottie Wilson had 14 points and 10 rebounds..

Notes:
- Former Wright State coach Jim Brown was in attendance tonight as he was honored on the basketball Wall of Fame. Former Raider coach John Ross was also in attendance.
- Detroit leads the all-time series 19-14. Brownell is a perfect 4-0 against Detroit.
- Jordon Pleiman went over 80 games without uttering a bad word in the post-game press conference. In his very first post game press conference he let slip a bad word, which left those in attendance giggling and asking if really said what they thought he said.
- Tonight the National Anthem was sung by a 12 year old girl who had trouble remembering the words so the crowd joined in and helped her get through the difficult song. At the end there crowd erupted in applause and Brownell came over to congratulate her.
- Detroit’s next game is at home against Bowling Green at home in the Bracket Busters at 4 p.m.
- Wright State’s next game is in the Bracket Busters on Sunday at Illinois State at 6:30 p.m.

Wright State Wins Ninth in a Row

Bill Kintner — Fri, 15 Feb 2008 05:18:54 -0800

DAYTON – Another close game, another win for the Raiders, as Wright State holds on to beat Loyola 55-51

That makes nine straight wins by the Raiders and every win has been by single digits. Wright State (18-6, 10-4 HL) has only played three games that were decided by double digits this year.

Unfortunately for Loyola (9-15, 5-9 HL) that makes 12 straight games decided by less than 10 points and only four of them were wins.

Tonight the Raiders jumped out to an 11-0 lead as Will Graham contributed a jumper and a layup, Vaughn Duggins did the same and Todd Brown sunk a 3-pointer.

But hold on, the Ramblers went on a 22-4 run to go up by seven at 22-15 at the 5:12 mark led by a couple of long-range 3-pointers by Justin Cerasoli.

With 1:34 left in the half Wright State’s Cooper Land sunk a 3-pointer to pull the Raiders to within three points at 30-27.

The two teams battled to a draw and that was the final score going into halftime.

In the second half there were four ties and 12 lead changes.

Wright State took the lead for good at the 2:15 mark when Will Graham made a layup to put the Raiders up by one at 48-47.

Will Graham a player known more for defense and assists had a big game as he scored 17 points by slashing and driving to the basket.

Duggins praised Graham after the game saying, “We are not going to have a good game from every one. I think it is the best I have seen him play. He came out with great energy. They just couldn’t guard him tonight.”

Wright State coach Brad Brownell thought this may have been Graham’s best game.

“He rebounded the ball well. Will goes to the basket real well; he has just a little extra burst of energy. He covers a lot of ground on his dribble,” said Brownell.

Duggins led all scorers with 20 points and Leon Young led Loyola with 13 points.

Although Loyola took 55 shots to Wright State’s 40 shots, the Raiders out-shot the Ramblers 50 percent (20-40) to 36.4 percent (20-55), from 3-point land 27.5 percent (6-16) to 20 percent (4-20) and from the free throw line 81.8 percent (9-11) to 43.8 percent (7-16).

Loyola coach Jim Whitesell said his team just couldn’t get the big basket when they needed it.

“We couldn’t get the basket or two when we needed it. Give them (Wright State) credit they made those shots and we didn’t help ourselves on the Free throw lines,” explained a tired Whitesell.

Brownell thought that his team’s ability to bounce back after several Loyola runs was key to his team pulling out another win.

” I am proud of the way we finished the game again. Our defense was outstanding in the second half,” said Brownell. “I was proud of our guy’s ability to withstand a bad spell or two and to not give into it. A couple of times we were back on our heels and we were able to come back.”

Notes:

-Referee Rick Hartzell was waiting before the game for the cheerleaders to finish up on the court. He spotted a little tot sitting in the courtside seats with his dad. He walked over and handed him ball to hold for a minute. Right before tip-off he motioned for the little guy to throw him the ball. He got it out to him on a single bounce and the kid had a neat memory from the game.
-Wright State leads that all-time series 15-14.
-Loyola’s next game is on Saturday at Detroit at 2:30 p.m.
-Wright State’s next game is Saturday at home against UIC at 7 p. m.

Wright State Spanks the Blue Hose 58-42

Bill Kintner — Mon, 04 Feb 2008 20:26:20 -0800

DAYTON – Presbyterian College visited the Nutter Center and the result of the game were pretty predictable; Wright State beat the dog crap out of the Blue Hose 58-42.

I will get to the game a little later but first let’s take a look at Presbyterian College (3-22).

PC is a liberal arts small college of 1200 students from Clinton, SC. playing their first year of Division I basketball. They play one of the tougher schedules in the country if for no other reason than they play all their games but five are on the road.

It is a tough way to win basketball games, but a great way to raise money to finance a fledgling Division I athletic program.

Presbyterian coach Greg Nibert said that his team had raised $650, 000 from their travels and that included the $40,000 plus rooms that the Blue Hose received from Wright State for the pleasure of getting creamed by the Raiders.

“We did bring in $650,000, so if I need some new things for my office I can remind the AD of that,“ said a smiling Nibert.

The Blue Hose, and that nickname is enough to make most basketball fans scratch their heads, opened at Nebraska and then played a schedule that included New Mexico, Clemson, Ohio State, Georgia, Wake Forest, North Carolina State, Georgia Tech, Auburn, Ole Miss, Tulsa and South Alabama.

Nibert said playing at all those places was a dream come true for his players and himself.

“We wanted to take our seniors back (home), we are not in a league, so there is nothing to play for. We went on the road so the country knows who we are.”

Nibert said next year some of the teams they played this year will be visiting their campus and they would have 12 or 13 home games including the games from their new conference, the Big South.

He said that when he looked up and saw Wright State’s NCAA Division II championship banner and the NCAA banners hanging next to it that it inspires him to shoot for the same success that Wright State has experienced since moving to Division I in the 1987-88 season.

Now for that crazy nickname.

Does it refer to blue socks? Or maybe they got hosed in a game and were feeling blue? Well according to the media guide a blue hose is a fierce Scotch-Irish warrior kind of like what we saw in the movie Braveheart.

Another version in the media guide has to do with someone wearing blue stockings in the 1930s, there is also a term in the Presbyterian Church called “Blue Stocking Presbyterian.”

Are you more confused now than when I started trying to explain the nickname?

I hope that their mascot is a hot girl, with great-looking legs that wears blue socks. That is probably wishful thinking.

Okay, now for the game.

Wright State (15-6) went 8-12 from 3-point land in the first half including12 points from Vaughn Duggins which were all the points he scored in the game.

“The threes were significant because it loosened things up a little tonight. The offense was a result of our good defense,” said Wright State coach Brad Brownell.

The Raiders led 40-18 at the half and were well on their way to a 40 point blowout.

“We watched all kinds of tape on WSU. You have a great one in Brad and they are a very well coached team. We thought we were going to take the three away by picking them up and challenging them,” explained Nibert as he chuckled about the lack of success of their game plan.

In second half the Raiders scored only 18 points as they got a little sloppy in the second half and allowed the Blue Hose to make all four of their 3-pointers in the last five minutes of the game.

All nine Raiders that dressed played double digit minutes, but Al’lonzo Coleman for Presbyterian led all scorers with 18 points.

Notes:

-The quote of the night was from Wright State’s Ronnie Thomas. “They are better team than their record indicates. We approached it like any other game.” No they are not, their record is a good indication of how they play. Thomas will make a good coach someday as he looks like he has the coach speak down pat.

-Nibert who has seen a lot of really good teams up close said, “They are one of the top teams that we played. We played Clemson and Ohio State and these guys (Wright State) are one of the best in the country.”

-Wright State had a pathetic announced crowd of 4168 after 6700 showed up for the Milwaukee game last Saturday. This is an indication that Wright State fans or maybe it is basketball fans in Dayton want a winner and a good team or they won’t come out to a game unless the team playing is called the Flyers. The Raiders lost their fan base almost 10 years ago and it has been a struggle to get a good number of fans out for anything other than the bigger games.

-Brownell said this about Bobby Knight stepping down today. “It is sad for those of us who admired the way he got the most out of his players. He was a teacher of coaches.”

-Presbyterian plays their next game on February 11th at Ole Miss at 8 p.m.

-Wright State’s next game is Thursday at Cleveland State at 7 p, m,

2008 BracketBusters Schedule

Press Release — Mon, 04 Feb 2008 16:15:33 -0800

2008 O'Reilly ESPNU BracketBusters Television Matchups

Friday, Feb 22
Davidson at Winthrop
UCSB at Utah State

Saturday, Feb 23
Creighton at Oral Roberts
George Mason at Ohio
Kent State at St. Mary’s (Ca.)
Marist at Cleveland State
Miami at Valparaiso
Nevada at Southern Illinois
Rider at CS Northridge
Siena at Boise State
UWM at Bradley
Virginia Commonwealth at Akron

Sunday, Feb 24
Wright State at Illinois State

2008 O'Reilly ESPNU BracketBusters Non-Television Matchups
* Times to be Announced

Albany at Canisius
Ball State at Eastern Kentucky
Binghamton at Manhattan
Boston U at St. Peter's
Bowling Green at Detroit
Bucknell at Old Dominion
Cal Poly at Fresno State
UC Davis at Loyola MD
Delaware at Toledo
Evansville at Eastern Illinois
Fairfield at Drexel
Georgia Southern at Austin Peay
Georgia State at Jacksonville State
Hawaii at Riverside
High Point at Towson
Hofstra at Iona
Idaho at Irvine
Indiana State at Murray State
LBSU at New Mexico State
Loyola Ill at William & Mary
Morehead State at James Madison
Niagara at Appalachian State
Portland State at CS Fullerton
Samford at La Tech
San Jose State at Pacific
Southeast Missouri State at Eastern Michigan
Tennessee-Martin at Elon
Tennessee State at Northern Illinois
Tennessee Tech at ETSU
UIC at Northern Iowa
Vermont at UNCW
Western Michigan at UW-Green Bay
Wichita State at Holy Cross
Youngstown State at Buffalo