John McGurk's Coaching Career(NCAA 10)

[Coach_McGurk]

NEWCOMER STARTS OWN CRUSADE
Valparaiso, IN - When a list of top ten March Madness moments ever enters a conversation between college basketball fans, someone will eventually chime in with "The Shot", a phenomenal Cinderella story buzzer beater that Valpo rode all the way to the Sweet 16 in 1998. It has been eleven years long years since that magical moment with nothing of note to show for it. Enter unknown John McGurk, who says he can build the team back up to it's . . .



2009-2010 Roster


Starters
PG Michael Rogers (76)
SG Brandon McPherson (69)
SF Cameron Witt (77)
PF Chris Halvorsen (76)
C Hrvoje Vucic (64)

Key Players
Witt, Little, Rogers

Conference Prediction: 9th

[Coach_McGurk]

Game Preview


Valparaiso Crusaders (0-0)

vs.


Ball State Cardinals (0-0)

Valpo Starters
PG Michael Rogers, JR
SG Brandon McPherson, SR
SF Cameron Witt, SO
PF Chris Halvorsen, FR
C Hrvoje Vucic, FR
Notable Bench
PG Howard Little, JR

Ball State Starters
PG Randy Davis, SO
SG Pierre Sneed, SO
SF Mo Hubbard, SO
PF Malik Perry, JR
C Jarrod Jones, SO
Notable Bench
SG Brawley Chisolm, SR

Plan of Attack
1. Keep the paint on lockdown.
2. Push the ball hard off misses.
3. Rebound.
4. Be physical.

[Coach_McGurk]

Valparaiso Crusaders (0-0) vs. Ball St. Cardinals (0-0)

1ST HALF Highlights

Cameron Witt sends a message.
EA Sports: DENIED


Ball State took an early 8 point lead, but Valpo locked down hard defensively and held them to three points in 20 minutes of playtime. Early shooting woes kept the score low on both sides of the court, but Valpo ended the half with a 20-7 run sparked by 6th man Howard Little to take a 30-22 lead.

Valpo 30
Ball St 22

2nd Half Highlights
EA Sports: posterized

EA Sports: posterized



Michael Rogers explodes to the basked and posterizes Terrence Watson to take a 50-48 lead.
EA Sports: throwdown


The second half starred Brawley Chisolm, who off the bench played 39 minutes and scored 18 points for the Cardinals. He was the reason Ball State kept it close the entire game. He helped them take a 46-44 lead near the half-way point of the half, but thankfully that is as large as their lead got. Howard Little hit two crucial free throws down the stretch that put the nail in the Cardinals coffin.

Final Score
Valpo 56
Ball St 51

Players of the Game
VU
Cameron Witt: 6 pts, 11 rbs, 2 asts, 3 blk

BSU
Jarrod Jones: 8 pts, 10 rbs, 2 blk

Keys to the Game
Rebounds: VU 43, BSU 27
FG%: BSU 30%, VU 43%
FT%: BSU 60% (12 made)

[Coach_McGurk]

Game Preview


Valparaiso Crusaders (1-0)

Starters
PG Michael Rogers, JR (76)
SG Brandon McPherson, SR (69)
SF Cameron Witt, SO (77)
PF Chris Halvorsen, FR (76)
C Hrvoje Vucic, FR (64)
Notable Bench
PG Howard Little, JR (76)

vs.


#10 North Carolina Tar Heels (1-0)
Last Game: Won 102-57 vs FIU

Starters
PG Larry Drew, SO(82)
SG Dexter Strickland, FR(78)
SF Marcus Ginyard, SR(84)
PF Deon Thompson, SR(83)
C Ed Davis, SO(82)
Notable Bench
PF John Henson, FR(83)

Keys to Victory
1. Pray
2. Massive Flu Strain

[Coach_McGurk]

Valparaiso Crusaders (1-0) vs. #10 North Carolina Tar Heels (1-0)

1st Half Highlights

EA Sports: goodD

A rare moment of good defense late in the first half.

It was as bad as I thought it'd be. UNC was hitting jumpers at will, a lot of times with more than one hand in their face. VU joined the Dub-Club by the end of the first half.

End of 1st Half
VU 31
UNC 53

2nd Half Highlights

More of the same. Horrendous shooting from my team. Cameron Witt finished 4/16, Halvorsen finished 5/16, McPherson 3/11, and Rogers 1/8. Simply outclassed. Minor success came when I switched to 1-3-1 Trap defense, but that success ended when UNC figured out they were way faster than us. A lone bright spot was Milos Milosevic, who had 8 points in 13 minutes of garbage time.

Final Score
VU 57
UNC 105

Players of the Game
VU: H. Vucic (8 pts, 10 rbs, blk, stl)
UNC: E. Davis (21 pts, 16 rbs, 2 blk, 2 stl)

Keys to Victory
UNC 13 offensive rebounds.
VU Turnovers: 16
VU 27/81 FGs - 33%

Next game is vs. #13 Michigan St. [Ed Note: Bumped this game to All-Conference. Will be playing that way from now on.]

[Coach_McGurk]

Game Preview


Valparaiso Crusaders (1-1)

Starters
PG Michael Rogers, JR (76)
SG Brandon McPherson, SR (69)
SF Cameron Witt, SO (77)
PF Chris Halvorsen, FR (76)
C Hrvoje Vucic, FR (64)
Notable Bench
PG Howard Little, JR (76)

vs.


#20 Michigan State Spartans (2-0)
Last Game 84-58 W vs. Toledo

Starters
PG Kalin Lucas, JR(87)
SG Durrell Summers, JR(83)
SF Raymar Morgan, SR(84)
PF Draymond Green, SO(80)
C Delvon Roe, SO(83)
Notable Bench
PG Chris Allen, JR(81)

Keys to Victory
1. Great shot selection
2. Someone needs to take charge.

[Coach_McGurk]

Valparaiso Crusaders (1-1) @ #20 Michigan State Spartans (2-0)

Game Summary

VU    41    17    58
MSU   48    40    88

Michigan State
Top Scorers: Kalin Lucas(39), Raymar Morgan(16)
Top Rebounders: Delvon Roe(15), Draymond Green(8)
Others
Raymar Morgan: 7 blks

Valparaiso
Top Scorers: Chris Halvorsen(17), Michael Rogers(13)
Top Rebounders: Cameron Witt(7), Howard Little(5)
Others
Chris Halvorsen: 3 blks

Simmed. Next up is Troy.

[Coach_McGurk]

Game Preview


Valparaiso Crusaders (1-2)

Starters
PG Michael Rogers, JR (76)
SG Brandon McPherson, SR (69)
SF Cameron Witt, SO (77)
PF Chris Halvorsen, FR (76)
C Hrvoje Vucic, FR (64)
Notable Bench
PG Howard Little, JR (76)

vs.


Troy Trojans (1-2)

PG Michael Vogler, SR(78)
SG Brandon Hazzard, SR(74)
SF Richard Delk, SR(77)
PF Trayce Macon, JR(67)
C Yamene Coleman, JR(67)
Notable Bench
SF Antywan Jones, SR (6.3 ppg)

Keys to Victory
1. Contain Vogler.
2. Defend the perimeter.
3. Be physical.