2019–20 Valparaiso Crusaders men's basketball team
American college basketball season
The 2019–20 Valparaiso Crusaders men's basketball team represented Valparaiso University during the 2019–20 NCAA Division I men's basketball season . The Crusaders, led by fourth-year head coach Matt Lottich , played their home games at the Athletics–Recreation Center as third-year members of the Missouri Valley Conference .[ 1] They finished the season 19–16, 9–9 in MVC play to finish in a tie for sixth place. As the No. 7 seed in the MVC tournament , they defeated Evansville , Loyola–Chicago , and Missouri State to advance to the championship game where they lost to Bradley .
Previous season
The Crusaders finished the 2018–19 season 15–18, 7–11 in MVC play to finish in a tie for eighth place. As the No. 9 seed in the MVC tournament , they defeated Indiana State in the first round before losing to Loyola–Chicago in the quarterfinals.[ 2] [ 3]
Offseason
Departures
In addition to the departing players, assistant coach Todd Townsend left the program after the 2018–19 season, citing family reasons. Matt Bowen, who had spent that season as the Crusaders' director of basketball operations, was promoted to a full assistant position.[ 4]
Roster
2019–20 Valparaiso Crusaders men's basketball team
Players
Coaches
Pos.
#
Name
Height
Weight
Year
Previous school
Hometown
G
0
Javon Freeman-Liberty
6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
175 lb (79 kg)
So
Whitney Young HS
Chicago, IL
G
1
Sigurd Lorange
5 ft 11 in (1.8 m)
175 lb (79 kg)
Fr
Metis Videregaende Skole
Trondheim, Norway
G
2
Zion Morgan
6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
195 lb (88 kg)
RS Jr
Kenwood UNLV /Wabash Valley
Chicago, IL
F
3
Brock Pappas (W)
6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
205 lb (93 kg)
So
Washington Township HS
Valparaiso, IN
G
4
Daniel Sackey
5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)
175 lb (79 kg)
So
Thornlea
Winnipeg, MB
G/F
5
Donovan Clay
6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)
205 lb (93 kg)
Fr
Alton HS
Alton, IL
G
10
Eron Gordon
6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
205 lb (93 kg)
RS Jr
Cathedral HS Seton Hall
Indianapolis, IN
C
11
Emil Freese-Vilien
6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)
230 lb (104 kg)
Fr
Falkonergardens Gymnasium
Copenhagen, Denmark
G
15
Luke Morrill (W)
6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
195 lb (88 kg)
Fr
Montini Catholic HS
Lombard, IL
F
22
Mileek McMillan
6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)
230 lb (104 kg)
Jr
Merrillville HS
Merrillville, IN
F
23
Ben Krikke
6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)
220 lb (100 kg)
Fr
Jasper Place HS
Edmonton, AB
G
25
Nick Robinson
6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
215 lb (98 kg)
RS Jr
Kenwood Saint Joseph's
Chicago, IL
G/F
33
John Kiser
6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
205 lb (93 kg)
Jr
Noblesville HS
Noblesville, IN
G/F
35
Ryan Fazekas
6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)
220 lb (100 kg)
RS Jr
Marquette Catholic HS Providence
Chesterton, IN
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible
(W) Walk-on
Roster Last update: September 23, 2019
Schedule and results
Date time, TV
Rank#
Opponent#
Result
Record
Site (attendance) city, state
Canadian exhibition tour
August 10, 2019 *
at McGill
W 84–78
Montreal , Quebec , Canada
August 11, 2019 *
at Concordia
W 94–90
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
August 13, 2019 *
at Carleton
W 83–80 OT
Ottawa , Ontario , Canada
August 14, 2019 *
at Quebec
W 81–68
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Exhibition
October 19, 2019 *
Cedarville
W 85–65
ARC (1,637)Valparaiso, IN
Non-conference regular season
November 5, 2019 *7:00 pm, ESPN3
Toledo
W 79–77
1–0
ARC (2,412)Valparaiso, IN
November 9, 2019 *6:00 pm, ESPN+
at Saint Louis
L 71–80
1–1
Chaifetz Arena (6,159)St. Louis, MO
November 12, 2019 *7:00 pm, ESPN+
at SIU Edwardsville
W 89–76
2–1
Vadalabene Center (778)Edwardsville, IL
November 17, 2019 *1:30 pm, ESPN3
North Dakota
W 74–60
3–1
ARC (2,504)Valparaiso, IN
November 22, 2019 *12:00 pm, FloSports
vs. Grand Canyon Paradise Jam quarterfinal
W 78–74
4–1
Fitness Center St. Thomas, VI
November 23 or 24, 2019 *4:30 pm, FloSports
vs. Nevada Paradise Jam semifinal
L 59–84
4–2
Fitness Center St. Thomas, VI
November 25, 2019 *4:45 pm, FloSports
vs. Cincinnati Paradise Jam 3rd place game
L 77–81 OT
4–3
Fitness Center St. Thomas, VI
November 27, 2019 *7:00 pm, ESPN3
Trinity Christian
W 98–71
5–3
ARC (1,824)Valparaiso, IN
December 3, 2019 *6:00 pm, ESPN+
at Eastern Michigan
L 79–85
5–4
Convocation Center (1,237)Ypsilanti, MI
December 8, 2019 *1:00 pm, ESPN+
Central Michigan
W 77–55
6–4
ARC (2,880)Valparaiso, IN
December 16, 2019 *6:00 pm
at Charlotte
L 57–67
6–5
Dale F. Halton Arena (2,740)Charlotte, NC
December 18, 2019 *6:00 pm, ESPN+
at High Point
W 87–72
7–5
Millis Athletic Convocation Center (928)High Point, NC
December 21, 2019 *7:00 pm, 15,630
vs. Arkansas
L 68–72
7–6
Simmons Bank Arena (15,630)North Little Rock, AR
MVC regular season
December 30, 2019 7:00 pm, ESPN+
Loyola–Chicago
L 63–66
7–7 (0–1)
ARC (4,364)Valparaiso, IN
January 4, 2020 6:00 pm, ESPN+
at Evansville
W 81–79 OT
8–7 (1–1)
Ford Center (5,615)Evansville, IN
January 7, 2020 7:00 pm, ESPN+
at Southern Illinois
L 50–63
8–8 (1–2)
SIU Arena (3,856)Carbondale, IL
January 11, 2020 3:00 pm, ESPN3
Drake
W 66–61
9–8 (2–2)
ARC (3,190)Valparaiso, IN
January 15, 2020 7:00 pm, ESPN+
at Northern Iowa
L 78–88
9–9 (2–3)
McLeod Center (4,057)Cedar Falls, IA
January 18, 2020 7:00 pm, ESPN+
Indiana State
W 86–77
10–9 (3–3)
ARC (2,805)Valparaiso, IN
January 23, 2020 7:30 pm, CBSSN
at Missouri State
L 60–67
10–10 (3–4)
JQH Arena (4,536)Springfield, MO
January 26, 2020 4:00 pm, ESPN3
Evansville
W 67–65
11–10 (4–4)
ARC (3,044)Valparaiso, IN
January 29, 2020 6:00 pm, ESPN+
at Bradley
L 69–80
11–11 (4–5)
Carver Arena (5,038)Peoria, IL
February 1, 2020 7:00 pm, ESPN3
Illinois State
W 80–70
12–11 (5–5)
ARC (3,220)Valparaiso, IN
February 5, 2020 7:00 pm, ESPN+
Northern Iowa
L 51–63
12–12 (5–6)
ARC (2,030)Valparaiso, IN
February 9, 2020 3:00 pm, ESPNU
at Loyola–Chicago
L 68–70
12–13 (5–7)
Joseph J. Gentile Arena (4,622)Chicago, IL
February 12, 2020 7:00, ESPN+
Southern Illinois
W 55–38
13–13 (6–7)
ARC (2,374)Valparaiso, IN
February 15, 2020 6:00 pm, ESPN3
at Illinois State
W 65–62
14–13 (7–7)
Redbird Arena (4,529)Normal, IL
February 19, 2020 7:00 pm, ESPN+
at Drake
L 75–77 OT
14–14 (7–8)
Knapp Center (3,783)Des Moines, IA
February 22, 2020 7:00 pm, ESPN+
Bradley
W 90–78
15–14 (8–8)
ARC (3,237)Valparaiso, IN
February 25, 2020 7:00 pm, ESPN+
Missouri State
W 89–74
16–14 (9–8)
ARC (2,476)Valparaiso, IN
February 29, 2020 6:00 pm, ESPN3
at Indiana State
L 58–71
16–15 (9–9)
Hulman Center (4,114)Terre Haute, IN
MVC tournament
March 5, 2020 8:35 pm, ESPN+
(7)
vs. (10) Evansville First round
W 58–55
17–15
Enterprise Center (5,212)St. Louis, MO
March 5, 2020 6:05 pm, ESPN+
(7)
vs. (2) Loyola–Chicago Quarterfinals
W 74–73 OT
18–15
Enterprise Center (6,521)St. Louis, MO
March 6, 2020 5:05 pm, CBSSN
(7)
vs. (6) Missouri State Semifinals
W 89–82
19–15
Enterprise Center (8,145)St. Louis, MO
March 8, 2020 1:05 pm, CBS
(7)
vs. (4) Bradley Championship
L 66–80
19–16
Enterprise Center (8,016)St. Louis, MO
*Non-conference game.
# Rankings from
AP Poll . (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in
Central Time .
Source[ 5]
References