So today is really the beginning...

The beginning of basketball practice, and thus the beginning of the 2011-2012 basketball season.

The actual start of full team practice is not until the middle of October, but beginning today, the NCAA allows the coaching staff and strength and conditioning staff to have 2 hours per week to work with players and it can even be on-court in groups of up to 4 at a time and no more, thus you could not actually have a basketball practice.
You can work on skills, moves, and conditioning...then on September 15, the rules change to allow a larger number of players at the same time on the court and even some scrimmaging in smaller numbers.... but then on October 15 full practices & scrimmages for up to 20 hours per week are allowed. Off the court, the groups can be larger but any actual scrimmaging or player(s) vs. player(s) competing are still un-allowed until Sept. 15, with full 5-on-5 scrimmages allowed only after Oct. 15 arrives.

As is always the rule year-round, the players can meet and have their own un-coached scrimmages but if any of the coaching staff other than the strength or training staff are present, then it constitutes a violation.



Here's a really funny article on Greg McDermott...
http://widerightnattylight.com/2010/08/27/greg-mcdermott-dan-hawkins/


The PJS had a weird happening this morning -- this morning I got tweeted about 50 brand new tweets as if they were current news...but most were blurbs and stories from some time ago -- like James Haarsma leaving Evansville & even a bit of breaking news about Ricardo Johnson verballing to Ohio -- which actually happened almost a FULL year ago, and BU arranging a scrimmage with DePaul last fall as if it was news!!
Actually - most of their tweets from this morning led to dead-end links, but obviously it was a glitch or someone pushing all the wrong buttons and sending out tons of automated tweets of really on articles and news.
Then, just as suddenly and weirdly -- all those 40 or more erroneous tweets that were really old articles and news, were totally removed and things went back to pretty much usual.

Update - various topics...

Another BIG, exclusive, and incredibly well attended Bradley function tonight....with ALL players fully in attendance, and all in good standing......
Will even tweeted about the event...and had a super great time...
http://twitter.com/willFREEMAN21/status/22477141188


BTW -- in case you haven't heard it before...the new arena is awesome and now that it's been seen by a lot of people, it's being widely proclaimed as on par with the on-campus facilities of most every school outside the BCS...and some even inside the BCS!!
Oh -- and if you are going to catch all the BU basketball games this year, you'd better get a little familiar with the new parking deck and traffic patterns up there....if you know what I mean...
http://bradleyfans.com/vb/showthread.php?p=189826#post189826


DePaul is taking a page from the same playbook - and moving one of their games (vs. Ball State) to their very small on-campus arena.


Speaking of tweets, keep up on some of the instant BU news via twitter right here...
http://twitter.com/xb7


Check this out -- the folks at Bradley are working hard to be sure there's NO SHORTAGE of various events that can show off the new arena and all the players...get in on some of thse events..and more to be added!!!
http://bradleyfans.com/vb/showthread.php?t=16198


SIU just got a verbal for fall of 2011...Rivals has Dantiel Daniels ranked as a 2-Star, he is a 6-5 post player...sort of a smaller version of Randall Falker...
But is 6-5 big enough to get it done in the Valley?
http://basketballrecruiting.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1119161

Creighton just got a verbal from 6-11 center from Texas...
Geoff Groselle, an unheralded, skinny center that has been billed as 6-9 then all of a sudden jumps to 6-11...is rated as 2-Star by scout.com...
Groselle is a virtual carbon copy and mirror image of the centerpiece of their 2010 recruiting class, Will Artino -- who is already being discussed as a redshirt candidate...
http://scouthoops.scout.com/a.z?s=75&p=9&c=2&cid=996776&nid=4310123&fhn=1
http://www.omaha.com/article/20100829/BLUEJAYS/100829659
http://scouthoops.scout.com/a.z?s=75&p=8&c=1&nid=4373545

ISU working on their 2011-2012 schedule -- and likely they already have Savannah State and Grambling all locked up, but they are trying to get into the Cancun Tournament...and Jank reiterates that he simply does not want to ever go on the orad and play any tough games....read his own words..
http://www.pantagraph.com/sports/college/illinois-state/article_4c62f556-b23a-11df-a4f1-001cc4c03286.html

But note the highlight of that article...
"This is the third straight year that ISU does not have a BCS team on its regular season schedule"
.....duh.....like this isn't by design??


Terry Carroll, the junior college head coach at Southeast Iowa Community College (junior college) who stabbed Bradley in the back by shopping John Wilkins and his girlfriend as a package deal to numerous schools -- is reportedly one of the top choices for the final assistant spot at Iowa State...he is an Ames, IA native...


Chattanooga, Belmont, Arkansas State, MTSU, Oakland, Charlotte, Belmont, Tennessee-Martin, College of Charleston, etc....
sounds like maybe ISU's schedule, right???...or maybe the schedule of a pretty mediocre mid-major, right??
Nope this is Bruce Pearl's masterpiece schedule designed just for the purpose of helping his guys get 20 wins in a projected down year...and the Tennessee fans are duly unimpressed with those no-name opponents coming into Knoxville, TN!!


With all the mess at Kansas and the crimes and scandals.....with all the ticket scandal, tickets stolen and sold on the black market, blackmail, riots on campus and players getting DUI's...
here's how the athletic department at Kansas keeps the local police in Lawrence, Kansas off their back....
seriously....can you even believe this...
The University of Kansas Athletic Department has hired away the Lawrence police chief from his civic job and given him a hefty salary as
"director of security for the University of Kansas athletics department"

It's a totally newly, arbitrarily created position and it kinda comes at a convenient time to get the cops off their backs, doesn't it??
You really don't need to ever read the Sunday morning funnies to get laughs, just read the latest news about Bill Self & Kansas!!!
http://www.kansas.com/2010/08/29/1468761/lawrence-police-chief-to-work.html


Wow-- for you soccer fans, here's a real shocker ---
Saint Louis -- perennially one of the top D-I soccer programs scheduled SIUE as a softie early season opponent...
They played badly and were lucky to escape with a 0-0 tie!!
After 3 early season warm=ups against cupcakes in the soccer world....so far this season, SLU has yet to win a game and has only scored ONE goal!!


Then there's this...Paris Hilton arrested on a drug charge...
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/30/arts/30arts-PARISHILTONA_BRF.html
...and in other news.....the sun came up this morning and the government is considering new taxes....


Lastly a very sad thing...
the brother of Illinois recruit Mycheal Henry was shot and killed in apparent stupid, random violence...
http://bradleyfans.com/vb/showthread.php?p=189813#post189813

Michael Ochereobia Followup & Men's Basketball Cookout/Barbecue

Michael Ochereobia has enrolled and will attend Highland CC in Freeport, IL on a basketball scholarship..

He is listed by his real full name...

Name:
Ochereobia, Ifeanyichukwu

High School:
Blessed John Roche, London, England



And then news of this event........note Coach Les makes reference to the "Team BBQ"...
http://twitter.com/CoachJimLes/status/22143500274

Well, that specific event was held last night at the home of the head coach and was attended by all the players coaches and few fortunate other invited individuals!
Actually, all the players weren't there (nobody was "gone", and especially not the one implied elsewhere), since a couple have evening classes and to show you how great of students these kids are -- they did NOT miss their classes, and chose instead to miss the cookout & barbecue.
But it was really a great time and a lot of the very best Bradley fans and supporters....even more reason if you are NOT one of those who support Bradley athletics, get on the phone now and get going!! You won't regret it ...the awesome barbecued pork alone is worth it!!

Anyway...more later, but suffice to say nobody on the team's in a cast, everyone is fully healthy and individual player workouts start in just a couple days.
Also word that numerous upcoming visits are going to take place and that September is a very important contact period where visits can take place.
There's already a buzz out there among recruits as far away as Texas that are talking about Bradley's new facilities and how impressed kids are when they see the new digs!!
Kids are showing up on campus having already heard and been told to expect to be impressed, and indeed they ARE impressed.
Chris Roberts was also there, he's in Chicago working out with Tim Grover, and waiting out a couple of contract negotiations before selecting among teams & offers - maybe going overseas to play with someone or getting a slot in the NBDL.
He is not going to do the Globetrotter thing, as it's generally a long-hour, exhausting travel, dead end job that prevents any pro teams from ever taking you seriously as a competitive player thereafter..

Just a bit more news......if you check the boards you see BU still linked to a lot of kids in Texas...that's no fluke, there's a ton of talent in that state..
http://www.bradleyfans.com/vb/forumdisplay.php?f=9



Wow -- a whole lot of the big boys have scheduled soft...none any worse than Big Ten's Indiana...
If they are going to make it back to the big time, then they;re gonna have to beat someone other than NC-Central or Savannah State!!
http://www.bradleyfans.com/vb/showthread.php?t=16205

Even the Hoosier folks are quite UNDERWHELMED...
http://www.insidethehall.com/2010/08/27/some-serious-schedule-musings/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+insidethehall+%28Inside+the+Hall+|+An+Indiana+Hoosiers+basketball+blog%29&utm_content=Twitter



Lots of buzz among MVC fans as many if not most of the Valley teams are set to release their basketball schedules today......
http://www.bradleyfans.com/vb/showthread.php?t=16203

Missouri State is still short one game...
http://twitter.com/Lscranton/status/22266265911

and Wichita State is reportedly still in need of perhaps two or more games!!
http://blogs.kansas.com/shockwaves/

Get involved and have a great time in the process!!

I just saw a communication from the Bradley Athletics Department -- some of you at various levels of the Chiefs Club (now known as the Braves Club) have probably also seen it..

I just wanted to highlight it a bit as I have also heard some things personally that also go with this...

--First the BU Athletic Department thanks everyone for their support, and there's been a huge effort
to add some things and some events FOR THE BENEFIT OF THE FANS and Braves Club members..
...as you know, there's a Meet & Greet tomorrow night at the arena before the volleyball game, open to everyone,
and all the athletes from the various Bradley teams are all going to be there...
so get there and greet the basketball players!!
http://www.bradleyfans.com/vb/showthread.php?t=16190

Last night was Bradley night at the Chiefs game, but if you weren't there, you missed it...
and they've already had numerous tours and the practice floor dedication to Mitchell JJ Anderson...
http://www.bradleyfans.com/vb/showthread.php?t=16096

But these are only a few of numerous events slated to give people a chance to see and meet the coaches & players.
Many events are NEW events and are added to give people more chance to feel like they are part of the program.
In addition to tonight's event, don't forget there are numerous events during the homecoming week...including Midnight Madness and arena tours...
http://www.bradleyfans.com/vb/showthread.php?t=16149

There are also some events for the members at the top of the Braves Club and the Scholarship Society - two of which are this week...;)


Then I have also heard there will be MORE pre-game parties this season, and numerous other new things, especially for Braves Club members, like upgrades pregame rooms & meeting rooms at the Civic Center, more restaurant discounts, and other significant new benefits like discounts and freebies at the Bids for the Braves (on Oct. 23) & the pre-game luncheons...etc..
There is also a BEAUTIFUL, new Braves Club room at the new on-campus arena that will be available...more on that later...
Added to the list of restaurants that Braves Club members will get a substantial discount just by showing their Braves Club membership cards...are...
Buffalo Wild Wings (all local ones), Alexander's Steakhouse, area Culvers, Kouri's, The Locker Room Sports Bar & Grill in downtown, Jillian's Sports Grille (@Grand Prairie), and even an across the board 10% discount at the BU Bookstore on apparel & gifts.

If nothing else, this all makes me even more enthusiastic for the season to start since we go to BWW and a few of those places ALL THE TIME!

I strongly encourage everyone to click here and sign up for the Braves Club....the "entry level" of support is only $125 and it's tax deductible...(only about 42 a week!) --
but every penny helps the recruiting budget and makes you part of improving BU's programs....
http://www.bradleybraves.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=3400&ATCLID=204786931
http://www.bradleybraves.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=3400&ATCLID=777154

Some interesting followups...incl. Tony Bennett, Josh Tabb, etc..

First -- numerous followups on some of the past Braves players...
http://bradleyfans.com/vb/showthread.php?t=16192



Also Bradley posts a followup on Dyricus' trip to Europe...
http://www.bubraves.com/ViewArticle.dbml?SPSID=25965&SPID=1498&DB_OEM_ID=3400&ATCLID=204982319



One other report I ran across was from the "Malcolm X Pro-AM"...this is a pro-am league in Chicago this past month, at Malcolm X Junior College & IIT and guess who was one of the stars of the league??
Tony Bennett......I found a report that he was consistently the best player on the floor...and in one game he even kicked Detroit Pistons' guard Will Bynum's a**....and scored 59 points!!!!!
(that description of kicking Bynum's a** was according to the report of an observer who was more than a little foul-mouthed in his descriptions!!)

One other report of the head to head matchup between Bynum and Bennett...went this way...
"The play-off action at the Chicago Pro-Am Summer Basketball Tournament is indeed red hot.
The hottest team in the Pro-Am play-offs thus far has been the Eight Foundation led by NBA all-stars Antoine Walker and Shawn Marion.
Leak and Sons wiped out a 12-point deficit early in the fourth quarter to defeat JPMX Media, 108-106.
Leading the way for Leak and Sons was Tony Bennett, who scored a play-off high 59 points. Will Bynum had 51 for JPMX Media."
http://www.chicagodefender.com/article-1545-pro-am-tourney-heats-up-at-iit.html



Then it was reported that Missouri State's Michael Porter will be headed to SEMO, but here's a really odd one.......

Remember Josh Tabb?? Highly touted but really made a waste of his talent by aiming too high and heading to Tennessee....
He really never had much chance to play but he also fell in with the druggie crowd that essentially defines all the players that Bruce Pearl recruits...
Tabb was suspended numerous times for drug issues and failed drug tests...then finally was booted last year before his senior season started.

Well -- there's a report that Tabb will try to gain immediate eligibility and also play at SEMO!!!

"several sources have told me there is a solid chance the other will go to Josh Tabb, a 6-4, 195-pound guard who played three seasons at the University of Tennessee.

Tabb, a Carbondale (Ill.) High School product who began his prep career at Century High School in Ullin, Ill., withdrew from Tennessee in late October to return to Illinois to help care for his sick mother.

That came after Tabb had been indefinitely suspended from team activities on Sept. 18. According to the Knoxville News Sentinel, Tennessee coach Bruce Pearl gave no reason for Tabb's suspension, other than saying he "hadn't taken care of his business like we expect him to as a senior.''

Tabb, who played both guard positions at Tennessee, started 11 games during the 2008-09 season, averaging 3.4 points and 17.4 minutes per contest while shooting 42.4 percent from 3-point range (14 of 33).

Tabb averaged 1.3 points and 9.3 minutes as a sophomore while averaging 3.5 points and 17.6 minutes as a freshman, when he made three starts.

Known best for the Vols as a defensive stopper, Tabb would have just one season of eligibility at SEMO but he would be able to play this year."
http://www.semoball.com/blogs/mishow/entry/36567/#ixzz0wm3fPg1o

Interesting........can he stay clean -- and will he be able to get eligible??



Ex-Creighton Bluejay has resurfaced and will play D-II level basketball this coming season at Missouri Western...
http://bradleyfans.com/vb/showthread.php?p=189472#post189472



Ex-Brave Danny Granger makes the final cut as member of the Team USA, the US basketball team for the World Championships in Turkey...
http://www.pjstar.com/sports/x162772018/Rose-Granger-Iguodala-make-final-roster-for-U-S-basketball-team-at-worlds



Also - another kid, Drew Barham, who had something weird happen after signing a LOI to SIU -- he asked out and chose to walk on at Memphis rather than languish in a program going down the tubes and filling its roster with jucos..
well..he's doing pretty well at Memphis...check out what Jeff Goodman says...
http://community.foxsports.com/goodmanonfox/blog/2010/08/24/coaches_clinic;_pastners_thoughts_on_trip





Additional notes...
Rock Island's Chasson Randle finalizes all his visits..let's hope he stays classy and makes his decision in a dignified fashion instead of silly press conferences then backtracking..
http://www.qconline.com/archives/qco/display.php?id=507250

AAU coach Mike Mullins seems to think Chasson would fit nicely at Illinois..
http://www.illinihq.com/blogs/recruiting_wrap/2010/08/23/mullins_randle_would_fit_in_well_in


Eligible at Memphis but not at Louisville...hmmm..probably had someone taking his tests for him like Derrick Rose did under Calipari!
http://www.cardchronicle.com/2010/8/24/1649053/roburt-sallie-demar-dorsey-and


No decision yet on eligibility for Enes Kanter - the 5-Star Turkish guy headed to Kentucky for Calipari...
apparently nobody in Turkey is cooperating and giving any info -- so the case is stuck in limbo.
Recall when this happened to John Wilkins, Wilkins was deemed fully ineligible to enroll at D-I -- but we see elsewhere that if you go to a big name D-I rules are different so look for Kanter to get a pass from NCAA just like this guy did...
http://www.stltoday.com/sports/college/mizzou/article_9fd998db-7e31-58ce-97ce-f0a7424e9fb5.html


ISU posts something we all knew already -- John Wilkins can't play his first five games..this was a penalty determined in 2008 by NCAA and applies to wherever he plays...
http://www.goredbirds.com/sports/m-baskbl/spec-rel/082510aaa.html

Exposed again....how long will it take before they stop the false claims?

Yet another study by an independent guy who did his research and came up with this...

In the 2009-2010, only 14 football programs in the nation made money...
and when you add the costs of those schools' other programs like volleyball, swimming, etc...they still virtually ALL lost money..
HE ALSO SHOWED THAT ONLY A HANDFUL OF BASKETBALL PROGRAMS AVOIDED LOSING MONEY..
http://www.startribune.com/sports/101351649.html?elr=KArksi8cyaiUo8cyaiUiD3aPc:_Yyc:aUU
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/24/sports/24sportsbriefs-colleges.html


BTW the author, Dan Fulks, has been one of the only honest voices in pointing out that all those athletic departments claiming to be "self-sufficient" are lying...
Whenever you see a claim of "self-sufficiency" or a claim that they "don't use taxpayer revenue"...odd are 99-1 that they are flat-out lying..

"Football and men's basketball are the only two sports you have any chance of making money,"
he said. "If you start splitting that up between 30 or 40 sports, you start losing money."
"..the median amount paid by the 120 FBS schools to support campus athletics grew in one year
from about $8 million to more than $10 million"
"(other than the few BCS schools that made money)...the remaining 302 schools competing in Division I
struggled to break even."
http://money.cnn.com/2006/11/10/commentary/sportsbiz/index.htm
http://abclocal.go.com/wtvg/story?section=news/sports/college/basketball/womens&sa=NCW&eid=5490686
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/collegesports/2010103078_ncaa21.html



Here's one example that went almost unreported....Texas A&M pumped $16 MILLION of GENERAL UNIVERSITY FUNDS
into their athletic department ...
"That included money to pay for coaches’ salaries and new facilities...etc"
This funnelling of general state university funds .."had not been previously disclosed in the media,
but was revealed ...through an open records request."
“The athletics department has been operating in a deficit situation for several years,” Murano wrote, adding that no effort to improve that department’s finances.." has yet to be planned - so likely this money will never be paid back to the state's taxpayers!!
http://www.theeagle.com/local/A-amp-amp-M-lent-athletics--16-million-

So in this example -- the university, Texas A&M, wes taking general university money to make up the multimillion dollar deficits in their athletic departments and help pay coahes, recruiting expenses, etc., then hiding that fact, and even lying about it...and knowing all along that there's never been a plan to pay it back, even thought it was dishonestly drawn up and "a loan"!!
In the end, is there anyone who seriously doubts that it'll never be paid back -- since when does the government in this setting ever pay back money that wasn't theirs to begin with??



This topic comes up often as we seem to always see people bragging or claiming their athletic department is self-sufficient or that their sports programs don't create a drain on taxpayers...
but I can assure you that if you actually look at the facts instead of just their self-serving spin, then you will see different.
THEY ALL LOSE money!!!
Here is further discussion...and proof...
http://bradleyfans.com/vb/showthread.php?t=15677
http://bradleyfans.com/vb/showthread.php?t=15815
http://bradleyfans.com/vb/showthread.php?t=15743
http://bradleyfans.com/vb/showthread.php?t=11994
http://bradleyfans.com/vb/showthread.php?t=13331


Here we have an example -- some guy gets an alumi magazine that says...
"Illinois State does not receive state dollars to operate its Intercollegiate Department of Athletics, unlike other Illinois public universities"
http://www.redbirdfan.net/forum/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=113
http://blogs.ilstu.edu/alumni-magazine/2010/08/10/private-dollars-critical-to-redbird-athletics%E2%80%99-budget/


But note that despite those claims...first just notice that it does NOT come from anyone official at the university...but even if it did, it is still FALSE and simply amounts to lies and spin...
But -- in this case it comes from a guy who writes an alumni blog...and his main purpose is that he's trying to raise funds for the ISU athletics department -- he's basically panhandling to get dollars to support their financially failing sports programs that are sure to lose some of their state sources in this bad economy, and he knows if he's honest and tells people they are already supporting ISU sports with their hard earned salaries via taxes that get funneled in that direction...well, he knows they'd be less enthralled to give even MORE out of their hard-earned money...so he adds the same spin you see all the time!!

It's basically a dishonest sales pitch...and obviously from the comments I have seen by some of the fans, there's a whole lot of gullible people who fall hook, line, and sinker and parrot this line themseleves.
Well, as proven definitively, this is a total fairy tale...just read the facts as done by those in the know and by those who have no self-serving reason to lie like these guys do...read those columns above by Dan Fulks, who has done his research honestly.

In the end, I guess people will believe what they choose to believe - even if it's been shown to be horribly false and deceitful.
The private schools clearly can't dip into the public till, but the public schools that all do are competing unfairly and robbing the taxpayer!
It makes the job done by schools like Creighton, Bradley, Notre Dame, and Duke even more impressive that they don't unfairly have access to picking the taxpayer's pocket.
But at least - now, someone is printing the truth -- so read and believe but if you have even one functioning Betz cell, then you can't help but agree those claims of financial self-sufficiency and no tax dollars being used are LIES at all but, MAYBE, about a dozen of the top football BCS schools.



Lastly, the single biggest reason for the huge financial drains and costs to taxpayers is TITLE IX...
http://www.nwcaonline.com/nwcawebsite/news/09-07-17/Title_IX_puts_schools_in_conundrum.aspx
http://www.dailyemerald.com/2.2357/the-business-of-breaking-even-1.189520

A few items...

Just a couple news items...just click on the lines to see the links..

In a premium column available only by subscription, Illini assistant Jay Price gives a long interview about the GSA Tour team to Europe and sheds some light on how things went for Dyricus Simms-Edwards....

Since most can't get the article, I will cite a few lines...

"Fighting Illini assistant basketball coach Jay Price just returned from a three country tour with a basketball team that won all five games...
"We visited England, Belgium and Germany. We played five games in about eight days. It was a fantastic trip. It was well organized, it was put on well, we were treated with a ton of hospitality by all the countries and all the clubs that we played.
... the team did well, winning all five games. He normally substituted groups of five at a time to give everyone an equal opportunity. He couldn't do that one game.
"The closest game was 81-79. We actually had three guys foul out. So we had to throw the substitution pattern out and play it like a real game."
players with such diverse backgrounds as Illinois, Purdue, Drake, Wisconsin and Missouri State melded quickly into a functioning team.

"It was fun getting to coach those guys. One thing about this team was that they really bonded. They did everything together. You don't know when you put ten guys together with different personalities what will happen. It was amazing to me how much they bonded. ..we had some real good players, we had some unbelievable kids. It was a lot of fun."


Houston Rockets are adding UNI's Jordan Eglseder to their preseason roster.


WIU's Jim Molinari had a fine recruit signed for this year in Mario Redmond from Crete-Monee, however....
now it appears Redmond will not qualify and will head to prep school. In this case it's a new prep school in Iowa.


Indiana State (#131) and Southern Illinois (#127) are the first two Valley teams that appear in CHN's Top 144 countdown...
Is Fay really a "dynamic scorer"?


Team USA coached by Mike Kyzyzewski barely edged Spain 86-85 Sunday night...looks like the rest of the world caught up!


John Wall's inspiration shot dead..




I guess this is appropriate -- since the guy has become a complete joke and a comic book character!


Remember the little town in California whose mayor and top pols were all hauling down half a million dollars or more and ripping off the taxpayer??
Well...just who was really responsible for this cheating scandal...
looks more and more like it is the California Attorney General...formerly disgraced ex-Governor Jerry Brown!!
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/california-politics/2010/08/brown-cooley-announce-coordination-on-bell-investigation.html
http://www.mercurynews.com/news/ci_15736202
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/nov05election/detail?entry_id=70255
http://www.businessweek.com/ap/financialnews/D9HLSSC80.htm

and, uh,oh....don't look now but Bell, CA isn't the only town where the city officials are ripping the he** out of taxpayers...
Here's yet another small California town right next door that maybe got the idea from the greedy jerks in Bell......
Vernon, CA -- where the mayor/city administrator is skimming the civic funds for more than $1 million!!
http://www.mercurynews.com/breaking-news/ci_15836167?nclick_check=1
http://laist.com/2010/08/20/vernon_bells_neighbor_also_has_sky.php

I half wish I lived in California so I could sue these jerks for making a mockery out of civic duty....but, nawww, I guess I really wouldn't want to ever live in California....

Iowa State's All-Transfer team just have to be good swimmers!! (and more...)

Iowa State has a little work to do before their basketball arena is playable after the flooding there.
Here's a picture of the arena with a foot of water sitting on it.
http://www.nptelegraph.com/articles/2010/08/22/sports/local_sports/50002866.txt#small


Daniel West followup--
From Saginaw HS originally got a scholarship offer from Bradley, then the offer was pulled when he failed to get himself eligible. Tennessee and Bruce Pearl took a chance and gave him a scholarship and enrolled, but our staff was right, he was ineligible - so he wasted a whole year at Tennessee then transferred to Pensacola State College (juco).
He missed 8 games there for various reasons in 2009-2010, and averaged 10.5 ppg, 5 apg, and only 24% on 3-pt attempts.
But that's where the mystery starts....West still has NOT signed but had reportedly verballed to Rhode Island.
http://bubravesblogger.blogspot.com/2010/07/whazzup-where-is-coverage-of-bradley.html

But this article says even though Rhode Island is interested, they are already one over the scholarship limit, so TWO players would have to get their scholarships Janked before they'd be able to offer one to West.
http://www.projo.com/uri/content/URI_Rams_Blake_Vedder_NCAA_07-27-10_O0JBC9I_v3.36f436b.html

Now we are a month later - and still no word nor confirmation anywhere of Daniel West - so it might even be doubtful that he's going to Rhode Island....and the talk in an 8-page thread on the Rams' message board expresses some doubt over academics.
His old AAU coach's tweet says he will be a star in the A-10 and that he still has 3 years left...both are very doubtful statements.


Ex-Saluki Nick Evans who got booted by Chris Lowery after lots of problems, is still having both legal and academic problems trying to get transferred to D-II Southern Indiana!
http://www.courierpress.com/news/2010/aug/21/usi-waits-out-evans-mystery/


Houston Rockets have completed their training camp roster by adding Jordan Eglseder.
http://twitter.com/NBA_HEATinsider/status/21701793168


The Celtics' Paul Pierce says that when he can no longer make an NBA roster, instead of retiring he will play in Europe...
http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/blog/ball_dont_lie/post/Paul-Pierce-wants-to-finish-his-career-in-Europe?urn=nba-263910

Bradley's 2010-2011 Basketball Schedule as we know it currently

Oct. 15 - Fri 2PM Dedication Ceremony of Arena and Men's Basketball Practice Facility - part of Homecoming events
Oct. 15 - Fri - 3-5PM Arena tours/Open House, and other events in new facility
Oct. 15 - Fri - 8:30PM Midnight Madness at new Arena during Homecoming
Late Oct. - prob. Oct. 29 or 30 - Red-White Game @ On-Campus Arena
Early Nov. - Exhibition game at new On-Campus Arena
Early Nov. - Exhibition game @ Carver Arena
Mid-Nov. - 1st Home game in Hall of Fame Classic
Mid-Nov. - 2nd Home game in Hall of Fame Classic
Nov. 20 - Sat - USC @ Basketball Hall of Fame Tip Of Tournament
Nov. 21 - Sun. -UMass or New Mexico State @ HOF Top Off Tournament
Dec. 4 - Sat. Utah (@ Carver Arena)
Non-conference games at home vs. NIU & @ Western Carolina - dates TBD
Dec 8. - Duke @ Duke's Cameron Arena
Dec. 20 - Jackson State @ Carver Arena -- ranked #140 by CHN **
Late Dec - Feb. - 18-game home & home MVC schedule
Feb. 18-19 Road game - BracketBusters
(Poss. Drexel return game for BB?)
Mar. 3-6 MVC Tournament

Lots of miscellaneous basketball news...

Dyricus' Euro tour team plays again in Dusseldorf at 8PM -- which means they start in about 4 and a half hours from right now -- at 1PM Central time.


BU recruiting target Phillip Greene has a top 3...
http://www.zagsblog.com/2010/08/17/phil-greene-has-a-top-3/


BU recruiting target Bobo Drummond has a nice, new premium article on him...
"Bobo Drummond Hopes For Illini Offer

Fighting Illini basketball coaches may only have one scholarship to give in 2012, so they must be frugal and study their prospects carefully. One who is working hard to earn a precious scholarship is Peoria Central's Bobo Drummond. His point guard game is continuing to improve.
Antonio Drummond, affectionally called "Bobo," makes no secret of his interest in the University of Illinois.
I think my point guard skills are getting better."

He is considering a transfer to a prep school (Wilbraham & Monson Academy in Massachusetts) to improve his academic standing. If he remains in Peoria, he feels his Central team will be strong this year.

"The schools that are looking at me the most right now are Illinois, Bradley, SIU-Edwardsville...
He will play college ball somewhere, but there is little doubt he would prefer to do it at Illinois."
http://illinois.scout.com/2/992616.html


Will Egolf says he's interested in changing his uniform number back to #54 - his HS #
http://twitter.com/willFREEMAN21/status/21436890393

BU coach Kyle Vogt responds...
http://twitter.com/CoachKyleVogt/status/21437126947


NIU gets a verbal from a 2011 kid..
http://www.daily-chronicle.com/articles/2010/08/17/67392685/index.xml

Indiana's desperation to get more fans....even cutting ticket prices for all college students...except the ones who come from the opponent school!
http://www.pal-item.com/article/20100818/NEWS02/8180327/1004/NEWS02/Hoosiers-try-to-increase-crowds

Indiana's basketball cioach Tom Crean seems to hint that his wife Joanie (sister of FB coach Jim Harbaugh) is actually running the show!!
http://twitter.com/TomCrean/status/21027730201


BTW -- can someone answer me this....why is Tom Crean so absolutely astounded, so incredibly surprised that one of his players graduates??
The kid has been in college since 2005, including TWO redshirt years
....so wouldn't he have been expected to graduate by now??
http://twitter.com/TomCrean/status/21449286769


Sharpshooter Jordan Nelson from Lincon HS gets a D-II offer..
Nelson has been compared to Matt Roth - outstanding shooting ability...
http://www.chicagohoops.com/articles1/nelsonlewis.html

BU recruiting target Derrick Marks is picking up other offers...
http://www.chicagohoops.com/articles1/markswmu.html


And, no, Osiris is NOT talking about a brand of booze here...
http://twitter.com/Osiris_Eldridge/status/21485004106

this is what he's talking about...a brand that quite commonly uses extremely sensuous ads..
http://www.thenewblog.net/tomfordfragrancead.jpg

..and there's even more revealing ads than that one!!


Ex-Northern Iowa guard Brian Conway (scholarship yanked & booted from UNI before ever playing a game) sentenced to 10-years for armed robbery...
http://www.southtownstar.com/news/2606906,conway-robbery-0817.article
http://bradleyfans.com/vb/showthread.php?t=9077


And this guy has the same sentiment that I have...
http://twitter.com/JoshLee32/status/21453227399


Some preseason play...just click on the line to see the linked page...
Idaho State gets narrow 2-pt win in Canada
Drake posts a story about the GSA team Dyricus is on
Nebraska wins in the Bahamas - not much resistance 117-72
Memphis goes 2-0 in Bahamas, Barham gets 20 pts
Quinnipiac wins in Holland


USC's "Basketball Prospectus" doesn't even mention their game vs. Bradley
http://www.usctrojans.com/sports/m-baskbl/spec-rel/081710aaa.html


The NCAA "May cease to exist in 5-8 years"???
http://www.americanchronicle.com/articles/yb/148762735


Lastly in case anyone still isn't sure...
The term "pink slip" is synonymous with getting fired...always has been and always will be...
Definition: "a notice of termination of employment"..
http://www.answers.com/topic/pink-slip
http://www.thefreedictionary.com/pink+slip

Arkansas sports reporter fired for going "PT", and other "provocative" news... ;)

See if you can figure how this is relevant to Bradley basketball...

..but Saturday, an Arkansas radio sports reporter showed up at a University of Arkansas football press conference wearing a University of Florida hat. She asked Arkansas coach Bobby Petrino several questions, then finally Petrino said he wouldn't answer any more of her questions while she was wearing that hat.
Arkansas lost last year to Florida....
http://www.everydayshouldbesaturday.com/2010/8/16/1626043/we-told-you-arkansasanans-were#comments

But the radio station that employs Renee Gork, immediately fired her for this intentional, flagrant, and provocative grandstanding at the UA presser. But don't feel sorry for Gork - she's become an instant national personality and already has appeared on Mike and Mike..

But even stupider than her act was her lame excuse when she learned she was fired....she claimed she didn't know what kind of hat she had on!!!
"..she grabbed the hat without thinking Saturday because it was raining outside"

(even though it was reported she continued to wear the hat even after numerous other reporters in the room cautioned her to take it off).

Talk about stupidity....but older Bradley fans likely find some deja vu in all this.....

Here are some of the stories about this babe from KAKS radio in Arkansas......

http://content.usatoday.com/communities/campusrivalry/post/2010/08/wearing-florida-hat-to-press-conference-gets-arkansas-radio-host-fired/1
http://www.ajc.com/sports/gators-cap-costs-razorbacks-593362.html

But interestingly, the chatter on the Arkansas message boards hints that this is not the first time this reporter has done stupid things...and a lot of fans appear happy she's been canned.
Many people think she was a little less than kind to the Hog fan base and perhaps a bit uninformed...
One person said this of her cluelessness.......LOL

"if she was assigned to cover a NASCAR event from the pole position, she'd show up wearing an exotic dancing outfit and ask where the pole was"

The radio station that has an enormous Arkansas fan base issued an apology for the reporter's behavior.



In an unrelated sports story -- ex-figure skater champion Nichole Bobek got arrested and convicted for her part in a massive drug ring.
Here's a picture of Bobek in court...



"The 32-year-old pleaded guilty in June to a charge of conspiring to distribute crystal meth. She was among 28 people accused last year of running a network that allegedly distributed $10,000 worth of methamphetamine per week."
http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/more_sports/2010/08/16/2010-08-16_former_us_figure_skating_champ_nicole_bobek_gets_five_years_probation_for_involv.html

I guess my question is this....she's guilty of ruining countless people's lives by dealing massive amounts of drugs...and the only sentence she gets is probation??
She goes free and has no real penalty -- just has to avoid getting caught again?
Hmmm...no wonder drugs remain such a serious problem, nobody fears getting caught for the manufacture, sale, or distribution when judges hand down soft sentences.



Now finally -- all the interesting college and pro basketball news....

This one is remotely Bradley related as Bradley was actually recruiting this kid at one time. Fabyon Harris, who now has reneged on his verbal for a third (and maybe even a fourth) time is back on the market -- but this time there's a little more serious reason.
He's unfortunately developed a little reputation as a head case that he may not get a lot of offers now......he may end up at Chicago State!
http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2010-08-16/sports/ct-spt-0816-prep-harris-leaves-houston_1_donnie-kirksey-fasion-robinson-charlene-gultney



A premium Illinois Rivals column gives reports on a ton of the instate 2012 recruits....here are their comments on the ones relative to Peoria...and where they rank them...(plus a look at who they have at the top 5 spots..)

"1. Jay Simpson
2. Steve Taylor
3. Jerron Willbut
4. Aaric Armstead 6-foot-4 Chicago Hales Franciscan (BU is recruiting)
Sort of came out of nowhere and played well for Indiana Elite. He does a lot of work inside, but needs to keep improving his ball skills. Love his potential, however.
5. Antonio Drummond 5-foot-10 Peoria Central or possibly prep school
Solid point guard prospect that can defend and run a team. He doesn't have the upside of some other guys, but his teams do well. Now, does he prep or stay at Peoria Central?
12. Jacobby Roddy 6-foot-5 Peoria Manual
Probably have him too low. He just gets things done, but you keep saying he has to be limited as a 6-foot-5 power forward. However, he just keeps making plays and his perimeter game is getting better. He will be the biggest mover this winter if I were guessing.
16. Jeff Stokes 5-foot-11 Peoria Manual
Peoria toughness with some skills. Watched him play through a bloody lip and a teeth rattler in KC. His shooting is streaky, but he knows how to play."



You wonder why some of these recruiting gurus look so silly and are not taken seriously??
Here's just one little reason...
Read this...if you can stay awake...
http://ilprepbullseye.com/page51.html

It is from Illinois Prep Bullseye and it is an 11-paragraph, 5,000+ word rambling discourse on the recruitment of Chasson Randle.
God only knows what it is they are trying to say, but after 5,000 words, there's not a single new thought or idea in there, and there's not the tiniest hint that they have a clue where Randle might actually verbal to.
The entire rant could have been stated as...
"we haven't a clue what he's going to decide"



Welcome to the NBA Lance Stephenson..
http://foreign.peacefmonline.com/entertainment/201008/71376.php

Lakers' Lamar Odom's wife (Khloe Kardashian) reportedly "storms out on him" in a jealous rage over other women...this must be big news, but I don't know much about her...
http://www.radaronline.com/exclusives/2010/08/exclusive-khloe-kardashian-storms-out-hubby-lamar-jealous-rage

Another NBA'er with a well-known, although in this case actually famous, good looking, and talented, wife....is in the news....
this is a pretty funny picture......
http://www.3am.co.uk/eva-longoria-and-husband-tony-parker-caught-kissing-at-basketball-game-while-lots-of-men-look-at-her-arse-/23777/

Kinda reminiscent of this famous picture...
http://images.dailyradar.com/media/uploads/showhype/story_large/2009/07/10/obama_looking_at_girl_photo.jpg

Basketball news.....

Dyricus Simms-Edwards sends some messages from Europe about the touring team's first win...nice game for the Valley players DSE and Gene Teague...
http://www.bradleybraves.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=3400&ATCLID=204976701

More from Coach Jay Price and BradleyFans...
http://twitter.com/coachjayprice/status/21174196925
http://twitter.com/coachjayprice/status/21179785990
http://bradleyfans.com/vb/showthread.php?t=16128



Check out the video posted from Alaska by Will Egolf -- nice scenery
He titles it "The most beautiful place in the world"http://www.twitvid.com/YA4EJ



Reorganization and some promotions within the Bradley Athletic Department...
http://www.bradleybraves.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=3400&ATCLID=204977268



Osiris sends a picture from his "First night out in Turkey" --
http://twitpic.com/2erx7k

Pologarage is a clothing store..
http://www.pologarage.com/kurumsal/kurumsal.htm
http://www.pologarage.com/kurumsal/gelecek.htm



In a premium article reviewing all of Illinois non-conference basketball opponents, here's what they say about Southern Illinois...
"SIU --
"November 13th Southern Illinois (15-15)
It's the long awaited match up between all of the kids that Illinois didn't take and the ones that they did, right? Well, it would be but most of those kids have transferred from SIU. Former Illinois assistant Chris Lowery has some new kids that are a little tougher and more the way he likes them this season. You can bet they will be hungry for the upset."
http://illinois.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1112600



Ex-SIU player and Chicago area coach passes...
http://www.suntimes.com/news/obituaries/2571438,CST-NWS-xdildy06.article



Ohio State head coach Thad Matta suffers his 2nd serious setback with big men in the past 24 hours!!
First, his top big man target since Greg Oden, Anthony Davis, verbals to Kentucky and spurns Ohio State.
Then one of his only returning big guys bolts and is gonna go play pro ball rather than stay in college...
http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/sports/stories/2010/08/15/sarikopoulos-might-leave-osu.html?sid=101



There's a new basketball league, the Universal Basketball Association...a pro league with teams in the US and Japan..
A few ex-Valley players are signed to play...
http://www.ubabasket.com/
http://www.usbasket.com/UBA/basketball.asp?NewsID=200325



Southern Mississippi head coach Larry Eustachy demonstrated this week, the desperation that must drive college coaches, as he added three new "marginal" players to his Southern Miss basketball roster...
One, Ahyaro Phillips, was just dismissed from Nevada for "carrying a handgun on campus - a felony offense" and also had drug issues and arrests......
Another, DeVonte Newbill was already signed at Marquette but had his scholarship "rescinded" or yanked by Marquette's Buzz Williams, because of behavioral and arrest issues...
(one other Marquette recruit was also cut loose, Monterale Clark - when Clarke was arrested for sexual assault).
The third addition has a broken kneecap and will be "limited this fall because of a broken kneecap"...

One last thing Larry said..."guard Angelo Johnson is close to being fully recovered after being shot in the leg in a drive-by shooting.."

wow - Larry, you really have quite a bunch of players there.....
http://www.clarionledger.com/article/20100814/SPORTS030104/8140338/Forward-with-gun-conviction-among-USM-newcomers
http://www.jsonline.com/blogs/sports/59569142.html



Kansas still having issues...
not only suspicions of cheating and scandals...
but now this.....
A Kansas City article detailing how the Kansas AD, Lew Perkins, who is already hauling in a $4 million per year salary...
is also ripping off the university and the state's taxpayers plenty more...
I guess winning a few basketball games - even though they don't win very many football games or anything else - must cause ignorant Kansas people to just lay down and let these bozos and crooks rob them blind then rape them...
http://www.kansascity.com/2010/08/14/2150280/in-two-years-ku-athletic-director.html

But at least some people appear to have had enough....the giving to their crooked slush fund that's been tied to the criminal activity and ticket scandal is way, way down....too bad...
http://bradleyfans.com/vb/showthread.php?p=188738#post188738



Lastly -- a few of the grumblers are back....
seems that every news release from Bradley is followed by people grumbling about something.....
Now there's a speculative announcement that Bradley may actually play in their new arena, and some find cause to grumble as if it is a personal insult that Bradley would dare want to actually use the $100 million facility they just built!!

For the past 3-4 years many have said publicly and posted on the boards that we need to run certain people out and get new personnel and ideas...
Now we have that and bingo -- it doesn't seem to be making anyone happy....and those that are the most vocal are the very ones who most wanted all the changes!
Please note, that not every decision nor ever personnel change is what I would have done, some took me quite by surprise and shocked me ---BUT --...
regardless.......I am not going to whine and complain.
Those that demanded changes are now the most vocal complainers about EVERYTHING!!!! ...About the new proposed changes such as playing in the new arena, landing Army-recruits, aiming access to tickets at the "elite" and giving them access to special perks, trying to make more profit and generate new revenue with new ideas, and even going on the road to play Duke, etc...
Oh my -- the thought of a university actually showing gratitude and rewarding those who give tremendous supprt and helped build the facility!!
There's a handful of people just never seem happy about anything...

Deja vu.... we went through all this back in 2001-2002...and the whiners got their way.....they ran Mo out then turned their whining again JL and wondered why we were under .500 back in 2002-2004 when Mo had recruited such high caliber kids......and lamented how NBA caliber players left Bradley and went to New Mexico to bash BU...

Does anyone recall all the clammoring we had to get new blood up on the hilltop...
to hire new people with new ideas....to run out the old crowd, bring in people who are going to make changes....etc...
And I even recall for the large part exactly who were the people most loudly clammoring for those changes, and guess what?

Well, as I noted elsewhere, this is PRECISELY what we have....and I find it odd that the people who most strongly applauded those personnel changes we got, are also the ones who are whining about the decisions they are making at Bradley...and the direction they are taking the program!
Hypocrisy - pure and simple... you asked for it, now you have exactly what you asked for, and bingo - not happy....so predictable..
Maybe now some more firings and re-shuffling....

Here's my thoughts on BU and why a school does a D-I basketball program...
sure it's "all about money" to a degree....but the basketball program at Bradley like the one nearly every school has does NOT make a huge profit....but they sure want to work hard so they lose tons of money...
http://bradleyfans.com/vb/showthread.php?p=188743#post188743

Some miscellaneous stories for Friday

Summer classes are over at Bradley and all the players are headed home for at least 10 days....get your well-deserved rest guys!!
Sammy M. hadn't been off campus a few hours and he tweeted that he missed playing ball!
http://twitter.com/Maniscalco_5/status/21022291617

Dyricus landed in Belgium yesterday and is getting ready to play five games on the tour.



Let's hope we throw a monkey wrench in the plans for the Dookies to celebrate!!
http://www.bradleyfans.com/vb/showthread.php?t=16122



Osiris Eldridge elbow injury??
http://twitter.com/Osiris_Eldridge/status/21021102713



TB's mom is getting pretty famous in and around Atlanta!!
http://www.totalimageenhancement.com/
http://c0013454.cdn1.cloudfiles.rackspacecloud.com/x2_24e3e8c



SIU's assistant who got nabbed with a DUI, leaving the scene -- has settled up...but the team, the school, and their local press are giving the guy a pass.
I have no problem with that except to say it wouldn't play in Peoria.
http://www.bradleyfans.com/vb/showthread.php?t=15718



Any doubt the NCAA always goes easy and soft on the big boys?? These delays seem to drag on and on for years -- like with the Reggie Bush case...
http://www.ctpost.com/news/article/UConn-gets-delay-in-NCAA-probe-614544.php



Kentucky's freshman Enes Kanter still not cleared due to play on pro teams...but watch -- he'll get docked 4-5 games all of which will be soft non-conference patsies, then he'll get cleared.



Just an EXTRA BIG thank you to Mitchell JJ Anderson for being so kind and autographing all the stuff for the kids and for my kids.....
and I am proud to have been able to supply JJ with a few of my "doubles" - which any "card collector" knows, means I gave him a few of his NBA collector cards so he can have some and autograph a few for special friends of his own.......
God bless you JJ, and we're pulling for you to get back to 100% health and stay that way for years to come!

Setbacks at Missouri State

Missouri State ended the season 24-12, and 8-10 in the Valley, but they were getting almost everyone back, and prospects for a good 2010-2011 looked good.
But, so far, very early in the preseason of 2010-2011, they have taken the lead among Valley teams' injury concerns........

There was talk near the end of last season of multiple injuries, even a few to some of their key players.
One of their young players who would have been a returnee this season, Cardell McFarland, was booted last year during the season for issues.
http://bradleyfans.com/vb/showthread.php?t=14102

McFarland was averaging 5 ppg but had not play that much.

Then at the end of the season, there were nagging injuries to freshmen Michael Porter and Keith Pickens, averaging 4 ppg each......
Since then, both players have had compounded problems...
Pickens just tore his patellar tendon and has surgery, and this is the type of injury that takes a MINIMUM of 6-9 months to recover, and up to a full year if he expects to play at a high competitive level.
Michael Porter was seriously injured in a car accident in June, dislocated his hip, and has tried hard to come back....but such an injury is extremely hard to recover from in a short interval. It may be difficult to ever come back for either of these two guys and play ball again.
http://bradleyfans.com/vb/showthread.php?t=15809

But now there's word that Porter and his family have decided on leaving school and he will not be at Missouri State this fall. This has not been confirmed yet by the school.

Then Jerome Jones, another freshman who was averaging only 1.2 ppg left school and won't return, and it is said that also one of their incoming freshmen (Corey Copeland) is also rehabbing a serious injury and may not be able to contribute much.
PLUS -- recall MSU was hit hard due to terrible academic performance, and they will NOT be able to fill one of those scholarships the next couple years because of the NCAA penalty.

Then even more significant, returning senior Ryan Jehle - a 2.1 ppg backup guard, also left and is not going to return...

so -- this will leave them with only 10 scholarship players, three of which are new, incoming freshmen.
Their only returning players will be Weems, Creekmore, Leonard, Mallett, Patterson, Rhine, and Ricks.
There's really just NOT a lot of depth and/or experience there......and the season has only just begun.

If the Bears have any more injuries or attrition, they will be in serious trouble, or it's possible that with the long season ahead, they may already be in trouble......

Congratulations to Mitchell JJ Anderson

Bradley honored one of their all time greats,
Mitchell JJ Anderson -- with a ceremony that unveiled his name adorning the new Men's Practice Facility court.

Here's lot more discussion:
http://www.bradleyfans.com/vb/showthread.php?t=16096

And here are several articles .......
http://www.bradleybraves.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=3400&ATCLID=204975067
http://www.bradleyhoops.com/homepage/x1869749665/-J-J-HOLDS-COURT-AGAIN?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter
http://www.bradleyhoops.com/homepage/x1110537643/New-BU-practice-court-named-for-ex-Braves-great

And video features...
http://www.centralillinoisnewscenter.com/sports/Braves-dedicate-court-to-JJ-Anderson-100319049.html?vid=a

Then -- just as a little honor from me -- my favorite Mitchell Anderson memory was right near the end of the great win at Syracuse in the 1982 NIT, JJ grabbed a rebound, dribbled the length of the floor and slammed it home - probably taking a few extra steps along the way, but who cared, the buzzer sounded on the big Braves win!


But here's how Anderson was given the nickname "JJ"...
http://www.bradleyfans.com/vb/showthread.php?p=188404#post188404


But here's a little take on all this that's quite interesting.......

I have absolutely no doubt that our "JJ", Mitchell Anderson has turned out to be a very fine individual who will have a lasting legacy...

But how did the original "JJ" turn out.......

The actor who was JJ (JJ Evans) in the TV sitcom "Good Times" was Jimmy Walker.
Walker was an incredibly popular actor at the end of the run of Good Times in 1979, but simply never was able to parlay his fame and success at that time into a solid career.
Other than a few short "guest" appearances on TV shows like The Love Boat, Fantasy Island, Scrubs, and The Match Game....he has virtually never been seen since, much to the dismay of his loyal fans, many of whom still adore Jimmy/JJ!!
His occasional stand up comedy appearances are still popular....but there's actually more to this....

Jimmy Walker is said to be a bit unpopular in and around Hollywood mainly because of his political views.
Almost all of Hollywood - save for a very, very few already well-established actors like Charlton Heston, are almost all ultra, ultra liberals....yet Jimmy Walker is a solid conservative. Sad that people are dissed because of their views, but it shows a little of the seedy and dark side of what being a real liberal or Hollywood elite really is.

But all this has not stopped Jimmy and he's brave enough and committed enough to hold true to his beliefs...
Here's his web site.....
http://dynomitejj.com/front.html

His views......
http://dynomitejj.com/views.asp

A really conservative viewpoint!!
http://www.dynomitejj.com/display_views.asp?id=20


Then - the final proof if you need one that Jimmy Walker has some very conservative political views....
this is who he hangs around with and is dating...
http://tmottgogo.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/black-and-white-jimmie-walker-ann-coulter-2.jpg
http://i61.photobucket.com/albums/h62/freshcrunkjuice/98521360_10.png

A preseason assessment of Valley teams

I am not going to predict how the Valley will play out in the standings, since there's still a lot of variables including new players, new coaches, injuries, and other unpredictables. I might do that later, but for now just some objective assessment.

It goes without saying that games are won in the Valley with experience and talent. So I have attempted to put some numbers on both of those factors.

First, for experience, I have taken my projection of who each team's top 7 players will be in their rotation, since only rarely does any player outside of the main rotation of players have much impact on a game. I have tried to quantitate their years of experience since high school, and their years of experience in the Valley system that they are playing in now.

Then for a talent assessment, I have totalled the main stats of those guys from their performances last year.
For the players that were NOT on the team last year, I will leave that to you to decide how to assess that. As I looked over the stats, the only teams with significant production from totally NEW guys, were quite regularly the teams who finished at the bottom of the Valley anyway. In other words...if a new guy like Colt Ryan, Tony Freeman, or Ryan Wedel put up some great numbers, then it was generally because that particular team didn't have anyone else more senior, and thus the newbies and freshmen were the ones taking all the shots and scoring the points...regardless....none of the top teams in the Valley had much help from totally new players, but that didn't stop those teams from having good years and being the top teams in the Valley, because it was in almost ALL cases their experienced players who helped them the most.

So, FWIW, I know it is somewhat arbitrary, but it's the way I have quantitated the experience and talent.......
Here are the results...alphabetically with Bradley's numbers at the end--
(remember - I have chosen just the projected top 7 guys on each team - PM me if you think I have left anyone major out)


Creighton:
Players: Lawson, Ashford, Young, Wragge, Runnels, Jones, Echenique
Total years: 16
Years playing in MVC: 9
Returning pts, rebs, asst: 43.0, 18.4, 6.5
Intangibles: New coach, new system, loss of top scorer, several new players, and Echinique plays the same position as the guy who's already their best player, and he won't be avilable until Dec.


Drake:
Players: Wedel, Van Deest, Simons, Hawley, Smith, Clarke, Wiseler
Total years: 11
Years playing in MVC: 5
Returning pts, rebs, asst: 36.0, 12.5, 6.1
Intangibles: Very young still, Wiseler may have to redshirt due to injury, Rayvonte Rice is a wild card, can he live up to the hype...?


Evansville:
Players: Ryan, Holmes, Lacey, Van Tongeren, Cox, Taylor, Hopf
Total years: 14
Years playing in MVC: 14
Returning pts, rebs, asst: 51.5, 21.8, 13.8
Intangibles: Marty's system has consistently produced bottom dwellers, weak in the paint, several player defections as the newbies hog all the shots.


Illinois State:
Players: Carmichael, A. Hill, Lewis, Rubin, Thornton, Clark, Smith
Total years: 15
Years playing in MVC: 9
Returning pts, rebs, asst: 31.0, 17.5, 5.1
Intangibles: Jank will be playing with largely his own players this time around, ISU lost more than anyone to graduation, where's the scoring going to come from, and is their cupcake schedule going to torpedo them again this year?
One thing that can be predicted, they probably won't win 24 games again even though just about anyone can with the schedule they have.


Indiana State:
Players: Lathan, Kelly, Richard, Carter, Printy, Duluony, Martin
Total years: 17
Years playing in MVC: 12
Returning pts, rebs, asst: 50.3, 23.2, 6.5
Intangibles: No proven post presence, Kelly returns from injury, someone needs to be the PG and get the ball to the scorers.


Missouri State:
Players: Weems, Leonard, Mallett, Creekmore, Ricks, Patterson, Pickens
Total years: 21
Years playing in MVC: 9
Returning pts, rebs, asst: 53.2, 26.6, 10.6
Intangibles: Return almost everyone, played a terribly weak schedule last year, good scorers in Weems & Leonard, but it drops off after that, despite their talent finished 8-10 in Valley.


Northern Iowa:
Players: Kwadzo, Moran, O'Rear, Dunham, Koch, Sonnen, James
Total years: 16
Years playing in MVC: 14
Returning pts, rebs, asst: 31.7, 15.9, 7.7
Intangibles: Lost a bunch of scoring, rebounding, and key players, good coaching, production from Moran & Dunham may not be a enough.


Southern Illinois:
Players: Fay, Bocot, Teague, Brown-Surles, Taylor, Seck, Cleveland
Total years: 14
Years playing in MVC: 7
Returning pts, rebs, asst: 31.3, 13.5, 5.0
Intangibles: Wheels falling off, the more players Lowery accumulates of his own, the more the team self destructs, once all of Weber & Painter's players were gone, they are a sub-.500 ball club, even Illinois Mr. Basketball's and Top 30 ranked players nationally flounder in this system, and finally there are just way too many new parts and juco kids this year.


Wichita State:
Players: Murry, Durley, Stutz, Hatch, Blair, Kyles, Williams
Total years: 16
Years playing in MVC: 16
Returning pts, rebs, asst: 55.3, 27.1, 9.4
Intangibles: I think the loss of Hannah will be harder on them than many think. he ran the team like a maestro, but there's really nobody to replace him. Lots of talent, but their scoring, like Bradley's, will come mostly from the guards. They need to stay healthy.


Bradley:
Players: Maniscalco, Dunson, Warren, Brown, Egolf, Simms-Edwards, Thompson
Total years: 21 (tied for most in Valley)
Years playing in MVC: 18 (Most in Valley)
Returning pts, rebs, asst: 63.3(#1 in MVC), 23.0(2nd in MVC), 8.8(4th in MVC)
Intangibles: If BU can have an injury-free year then this season could be special. I expect BU will be picked 3rd, 4th, or 5th with people basing it on other years, but guards rule the Valley and Bradley has 3 (and maybe 4) of the best guards in the league and DSE will step up and cause the talk of Rayvonte to fade....
Will Egolf has become a team leader but the real leader wears #5.

Bradley's new on-campus arena is everything and MORE!!

It was not easy to get this done...
Many people simply don't know that talk of rebuilding the on-campus athletic facilities began 20 years ago. The funds weren't there and every effort to explore funding ran into quicksand until the Jim Les era.

Over the past 8 years pledges, campaigns for support, and funding have skyrocketed.
That's not to say they still don't need support -- they definitely DO, and many people are still giving and supporting!

But -- many of the facts are simply not known, and I sure don't even know all of them...but I can say confidently that this was a construction and engineering near-miracle given the difficulty of the project that stalled plans for more than 10 years as it was......

The building of a multi-story parking deck, and a 4500+ seat arena with remarkably top notch training facilities and more, all within inches of MAIN ST., and on the land previously occupied by historic homes whose owners objected vigorously and colluded with the local newspaper to print unfounded, unfair, inaccurate, incorrect, and near-libelous accusations about Bradley and their plans....

is a truly astounding and remarkable accomplishment - especially given the time element...

Recall, the Fieldhouse was torn down and BU redshirt freshman James Robertson made the final basket at the old Fieldhouse in the Spring of 2008.
http://bradleyfans.com/vb/showpost.php?p=75145&postcount=4

Then the first shovel of dirt was turned for the NEW facility just about two years ago...
(August 2008 )
http://www.peoriamagazines.com/ibi/2008/aug/joanne-glasser?page=0,2

This enormous project simply wouldn't have gotten done in the face of the objection that was stirred up by a few who enlisted the help of the local press - without excellent cooperation between the city and the University...and it was mostly in gear already under the outstanding development efforts and leadership of people like Coach Les, Ken Kavanagh, Tom Hammerton, David Broski, Gary Anna, William Engelbrecht, all the Trustees, and Dr. Joanne Glasser.

It was NOT easy -- the logistics & location prevented an arena of any bigger size..unless you're talking taking out all the homes all the way over to Western Ave. and across the other side of Main St., plus spending $150 million more...The project was just the perfect fit and it took some doing to get it done.


Here's acomparison.....
UNI's new on-campus McLeod Center is similar to BU's arena, but seats a little bit more...6750...with some SR also that brings the total to about 7000.
(recall that they do get taxpayer funding and use land that is paid for and owned by the Iowa taxpayers - and they'll tell you otherwise even though it has been proven beyond question that they do get non-private help)

Note that for their home game vs. NIU they drew 4083
For their home game vs. Iowa they drew 6480 - still not a sellout despite playing IOWA!!!
For their home game vs. Wyoming they drew 3102
several other games drew under 5000, and their home average was 5642, in a tremendous, championship year!
Here's a picture of their McLeod Center....but now it is the only place they play their home games, so if they do bring in an opponent and could possibly sell 10,000 tickets, they're out of luck.
http://www.uni.edu/mcleod/images/McLeodCenter_3.JPG

Likewise, ISU has only ONE option - Redbird Arena, and thus at times have to play REGULAR SEASON GAMES in a hollow, 3/4 empty arena against foes like Norfolk State, Indianapolis Univ., Grambling, Lewis, Nicholls State, Winston-Salem State, and Missouri-St. Louis....
where they draw as few as just 3000....and LOTS of empty seats...
Clearly if they had the option of a smaller, cozier arena for use in those games, it would get raucous even with the smaller crowds and would definitely be to their advantage.
Like I say, WE HAVE THAT ADVANTAGE

Another example - DePaul also likes this same idea...
They have the ability to play home games at the AllState Arena (formerly the Rosemont Horizon) and can seat sellouts of over 17,000 but they never draw much more than 10,000, although rarely they've had games approaching 15,000.
For their lesser games against opponents like Albany, they can play in their on-campus arena.

They now have the smaller McGrath Arena on campus -- completely refurbished within the past decade......seating a bit over 3000..
and they WILL PLAY generally all their preseason exhibition games AND one early season non-conference game there!!!
Just exactly like the plans Bradley has. Note this game early in their season when they played Albany - they utilized their smaller, on-campus McGrath Arena...and it was a tremendous success!!
http://www.depaulbluedemons.com/sports/m-baskbl/spec-rel/111808aaa.html

Everybody loved it, there WERE NO COMPLAINTS!!! And the profits were all, 100% DePaul's instead of paying a nearly prohibitive fee to the AllState Arena to play a game when the attendance would have been only around 3000, causing them to LOSE money big time on that game and have to make it up on the other games!
There were no gripes from the season ticket holders - many of whom really didn't want to go to the Albany game - and it would be the same here at BU. There's always at least one early season opponent like Idaho State or EIU that the very same people gripe about having to pay for that game with their season ticket package, and now they won't HAVE TO. They can easily OPT to include the on-campus game but they wouldn't have to.
And I don't for a second believe the complaints of those who say "but if only 4500 can get in, then there'll be people who won't be able to see a game they want to see."
Baloney -- everyone who wants to see it will see it...it'll be planned right so whichever opponent will be the perfect draw for a 4500 seat venue...and there won't be folks shut out who want in!
Has Bradley ever sold out the old Fieldhouse for one of those exhibition games?
And when Bradley did host IWU at the Fieldhouse, that one drew relatively poorly as well and wasn't a sellout. And that's exactly how this arrangement will be planned and executed....
the only games at the on-campus arena will be the ones that many people, even the standard season ticket holders, might just want to skip anyway, and they won't then be obligated to pay for that game and let those seats go empty...
BUT -- they'll still be able to enjoy all the action at all the games that are part of the season ticket package, and they can also add the extra game up on campus if they want -- I guarantee it'll be easy and enjoyable!

So, now Bradley, CAN, of course, choose to play any time they want in an 11,500 seat arena, but we also have a 2nd option....
In other words...we're not boxed in to just ONE choice like 95%+ of all D-I schools...
We have two options, and can utilize those two options to the best of our ability to help make Bradley basketball successful. Isn't that exactly what we brought in all the expertise for?? The very people who were applauding like heck when we hired new coaches, new AD, etc....are now the ones griping about the plans those fine new hires are making.
Give it a rest some time, and let the professionals you cheered so loudly run the show.

Like I said -- this whole endeavor, sponsored and paid for by the donations and contributions of many great Bradley fans and supporters (of which I am one) gives Bradley an extra option that no other team in the Valley has.............so we have a tremendous opportunity - a tremendous benefit - a tremendous PLUS for our school and our recruiting. I find it hard to believe that people, a large number who haven't put up a single cent to help build the facility, are complaining about it and don't want games played there.

Today's blog entry is here..

http://bradleyfans.com/vb/showthread.php?t=16082

Just a few comments on BU's new athletic facilities...

I was given the great pleasure and opportunity to have lunch with some of the BU staff & players......and then, view all of the NEW Bradley University athletic facilities via a private and personally guided tour. And much of the superlatives have already been spoken, so I will keep my comments short...

--The entire project is something every Bradley fan and alum can be proud of. It is 5-STAR, and a 10 out of 10! Everything is awesome and it just goes on and on....
Nobody who sees it will come away anything less than totally impressed. The PJ Star people and Dave Reynolds certainly were and I was also.

--The main basketball arena is beautiful -- seating at least 4500 easily and maybe 500 more with standing room and a few more seats at the floor level. For concerts, floor seating will easily increase the capacity a bit more.
In the future there will not only be Bradley preseason exhibitions and games there, but concerts and other games like big high school matchups, exposure events, Sectionals and Supersectionals, etc...

--EIU is on the schedule

--the front entryway has an area with many items of BU memorabilia...parts of the old Fieldhouse floor, the stairs leading up to the raised floor, some of the metal arch structure from the ceiling, and even the old lighted letters from the front of the "F-I-E-L-D-H-O-U-S-E". There's also a BU Hall of Fame area with stories and tributes to Bradley's best -- and many are now long passed away, Robbie, Joe Allen, etc...they would have been incredibly proud of what BU has done with this facility.

--Some of the players are gaining weight and strength and fans will be impressed. Some of the newcomers are incredibly tough and talented.

--Watch this coming MONDAY for a SUPER surprise announcement, maybe a press conference and an announcement that will make all Bradley fans proud!

--Then watch for more events that will allow fans to meet and view the players at the new arena leading up to the beginning of the season.

--Coach Les has delivered on yet another promise...this is in large part HIS DOING -- he's the one who has done most of the promotion of BU, with the help of the hard working staff of the Athletics Department, they've given us the fund raising efforts, and the hard work to make this happen. Don't believe that this just happened overnite, or that a bunch of newbies brought this about.

--This weekend Bradley is hosting an ELITE CAMP. More than 200 top high school prospects will be at the new arena for a camp guided by coach Les but with instruction from some pretty well known guest coaches such as TOP AAU coaches (Carl Maniscalco, Mike Mullins, etc.), TOP local high school coaches and ex-coaches, and even some top coaches and basketball experts nationally!
Even a couple ex-NBA guys will be in town to help at the camp, and one will be part of a BIG HEADLINE.

--Several of the top recruits that are coming are widely known recruits that Bradley is "linked to" and a few are HUGE names, and many have been or are being discussed on BradleyFans.

--Lastly, I heard from an impeccable source.....literally from one who heard it from the horse's mouth...that many of the TOP kids that Bradley had just missed on -- kids like Iman Shumpert, Evan Turner, etc...
have said that BU's new facilities would have been the difference, and had we had the facilities in place at BU when they were considering, that they would have chosen BU, so that's how much these new digs will mean to the Braves and to all those who follow Bradley basketball.
One knowledgable person who's seen most of the Big Ten's on-campus training and athletic facilities said flatly that ours is on par or better than most of them in the Big Ten...seriously!

--Remember -- check the news on Monday...........

..so how'd your day go.....I can tell you I had a great day. One that I will remember the rest of my life - being one of the first to see many of the nooks and crannies of the new Men's Basketball Facility! If you get the chance -- get up there and see it.

So the PJ Star guys don't like rants and personal attacks?? ...and more...

Here's the column of Phil Luciano this morning...
"Online rants offer insight on readers"

I read Phil, and actually I generally agree with his thoughts and opinions....and I wonder how come he's apparently not that much of a Bradley fan. He seems to be a real Peorian, with local values and local interests.
And at times he seems to hint he has some interest in local sports, and Bradley basketball is definitely the ruler of the roost in that area. Maybe he doesn't write more about BU because he's being bullied not to by the sports department???
.....either way, I think he'd make a great sports columnist, he sure seems like he wouldn't take any guff from Bradley-bashers!!!

But - back to today's column.....
Seems that people, in their own "Freedom of Speech" mode, post responses to Phil, but don't bother to say anything intelligent, nor even bother to stay on the actual topic. They simply go after the author with hate, ignorance, foul language, flaming, and attacks....even irrelevant attacks that have no meaning in any context whatsoever, save to show the reader/responder to be a totally bigoted, mindless, childish, imbecile.
I have to agree with Phil Luciano 100% on how he feels about these absolute idiots and empty brains.

Let me quote a few lines from Phil's column, and then at the end I will add just a little relevance and some irony to all this......

"Online rants offer insight on readers
For once, I didn't know what to say.
Why? Maybe because I don't always understand readers...

...readers add information to news stories ...And...I've written before about reader commentary, which pjstar.com has allowed for several years. I thought by now it would have improved.
Certainly, I understand the value of free speech...And theoretically, reader comment seems like a good idea......But most commentators tend to either go on tangents (political or otherwise), or they just want to hammer somebody, anybody.
Often, that's me...

But can you at least get creative? ..Instead, in retorting to writings by me or other commentators, how about actually debating an issue or conclusion? ... Most (17-year-old) write far better than a lot of the lame online ranters."


So PT argues that most, if not the vast majority of responses he gets to a very clearly stated topic respond with ignorance and become purely hostile attacks on him without adding one tiny thing to the whole equation.
The jerks (I can say that but I think Phil would like to but can't in the paper) even dig into some distant and irrelevant past issue in their ad hominem attacks....duh......sounds familiar, in fact I see it all the time.....
Duh....I am even surprised he didn't fully expect it to be this way...
the internet is filled with moronic people who generally think they have an opinion but don't have anything of substance and never bother to show an opinion...they just rant, whine, and bash...
In venues that are all over the internet, this is seen all the time. It's why message boards MUST be moderated and those flaming and worthless posts must be deleted.
Sadly some message boards don't exactly do that, much to their own demise, since if you allow the attacks, then all the really intelligent and reasonable people will leave that venue. And...hint....Phil, one of the worst offenders is a message board right in your own back yard.
Now as I say that, I know it's gonna provoke those very mental midgets into more rants, but then hardly anyone will hear or care -- I know I won't since their rants, as Phil has clearly pointed out, expose them as "lame online ranters"...
But honestly Phil, I think you are being way, way too generous with your assessment of those idiots. But, I do appreciate what Phil Luciano is trying to say, and he is right. It's really a no-win situation, because if you give an idiot a forum to spew his idiocy, then he will.



A source close to the situation tells me that Bloomington's Hayden Hoerdemann was close to committing to ISU -- in fact he was very close twice...
and ISU really wanted Hayden, kinda like the situation where BU wanted Matt Roth....
BUT -- unlike how Bradley lost Matt Roth to a top BCS school, ISU loses one of their top targets to Western Michigan. Hayden Hoerdemann verbaled yesterday to WMU as he really wanted to get out of town to play his college ball.
Personally, I think they got a steal...I think he will be a fine player for them, and it's a tough loss for ISU.
http://bradleyfans.com/vb/showthread.php?p=188122#post188122



Congrats to Bradley's Dyricus Simms-Edwards for being selected to go on a summer exhibition tour to Europe with some other really fine local kids from Illinois, EIU, and other Valley schools.
http://bradleyfans.com/vb/showthread.php?t=16070
http://www.bradleybraves.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=3400&ATCLID=204973571



Osiris Eldridge's Turkish coach tweets about two hours ago that Osiris has finally arrived in Turkey!!!
http://twitter.com/CoachHakanDemir/status/20382725003

Jordan Eglseder appears to have gotten very few nibbles in regards to opportunities to play overseass. Big, slow post players abound over in Europe...



Amazing how all the top stars in the state of Indiana, kids like Greg Oden, Mike Conley, even Gordon Hayward -- are spurning the state's "flagship" school, the Indiana Hoosiers, and going elsewhere -- often out of state and to the rosters of the Hoosiers' bitter rivals.
It just happened again...
Branden Dawson, a 5-Star kid out of Gary, Indiana just verbaled to Tom Izzo and Michigan State, even though Tom Crean had Dawsen as his very TOP target and absolute have-to-have in-state player!!
It's more than losing a single player, it's a horrible blow to the pride of all Hoosiers to keep losing their best talent to Ohio State, Michigan State, even Butler.
So is Indiana gonna land anyone?? Their only three verbals for this season, Victor Oladipo, Will Sheehey, Guy Marc Michel, are all from 1000 miles away from the hotbeds of Indiana talent, and all are ranked at the mid-major talent level, although Guy Marc really wasn't ranked anywhere....he was a single digit scorer who is new to the game of basketball - hailing from an obscure Idaho junior college.
And Indiana doesn't really have much more than additional mid-major-caliber talent coming in the following year, either...
IU fans are hoping Tom Crean can get someone from Indiana soon.....
http://www.lansingstatejournal.com/article/20100805/GW0201/8050325/1023/GW
http://www.freep.com/article/20100804/SPORTS07/100804082/Report-Spartans-add-5-star-basketball-recruit-Branden-Dawson


Here's just a little insight to what a school like Indiana will pay a far lesser opponent for a guarantee game...
They are paying Wright State $72,000 to play at Indiana this fall...
"for the one-way game."
http://www.daytondailynews.com/dayton-sports/wright-state-university-raiders/iu-visit-a-highlight-of-wsu-basketball-schedule-845002.html


An interesting feud...
The Chicago Sun Times simply mentioned some rumors about Kentucky and their recruitment of Anthony Davis, and the lawyers for Kentucky threaten to sue!!
http://coast2coastrecruiting.net/2010/08/kentucky-responds/

The Sun Times backs down and withdraws the story and substitutes another..
http://yourseason.suntimes.com/boys_basketball/2568556,0805-anthony-davis.article

Here's some commentary about the original article...
http://bradleyfans.com/vb/showthread.php?t=16062



5-Star Will Barton (Memphis) and 5-Star Enes Kanter (Kentucky) have not been cleared yet by NCAA -- but we'll see if that keeps them from playing this season. We all know it definitely would if the players were going to Bradley like John Wilkins or Michael Ochereobia.