I hesitate to call the fifth game of the conference slate a "must-win". I hate that term; what does it really mean? The only must-win games are conference tournament and NCAA tournament games, really, because if you lose you go home. But this morning, January 10, the Jays sit at 2-2 in the conference and are coming off of two demoralizing losses, one at home to a scrappy UNI team and one on the road to a superior Illinois State team. A loss tonight to the undefeated Bradley Braves, and not only will the Jays be 2-3 in the league, but they'll be a whopping THREE games back of Bradley in the standings.
So yeah, I'd say this game is awfully important.
Dana Altman's comments to the Omaha World-Herald do a great job of summing up the predicament:
"Our guys are trying, but there's just no flow to what we're trying to do. Our rhythm offensively is disrupted right now. Defensively, we'll have some great possessions, but then we'll make some fundamental mistakes that hurt us. We're not disciplined enough or well-coached enough to overcome those breakdowns, and that leads to us giving up some easy baskets."
Surprisingly, Vegas has the Jays as a 1.5 favorite in this game, which may be a reflection of how Bradley has arrived at their 4-0 record: wins over three of the worst teams in the conference, plus a home win over Illinois State. A dude I was talking to at the bar, who's REALLY down on the team, called the 1.5 points a "Godsend" and "Manna from heaven." He's so certain that the Jays will lose he's betting untold fortunes on that line, as well as straight up.
He's banned from ever sitting in my seats in 113 again. Those seats are reserved for people who don't bail on a team after two losses. Its fine to believe your team might lose a game; hell, you might see me do that at the bottom of this post, I haven't decided yet. But one of my rules is you never, ever, ever bet against your team. Period. If you do, you suck, and people who suck can't sit in my seats.
One Big Paragraph With Lots O'Dots (TM): The Braves have jumped out to a 4-0 league record without their three top players from a year ago. Daniel Ruffin and Jeremy Crouch used up their eligibility, while junior Andrew Warren broke his foot in the preseason and will redshirt. That's 43 points, 10 assists and untold rebounds to replace ... Theron Wilson leads the Braves with 14 points and 7 rebounds. Another name Jays fans will recognize is Sam Maniscalco, who leads the team with 49 assists ... In league play, Bradley leads the MVC in scoring defense, field goal percentage, field goal percentage defense, free throw percentage and blocked shots. They're also 6-1 at home this season, averaging 9,740 fans ... Steve Merfeld, coach of the Evansville Purple Aces the last few years, is the newest member of Jim Les' staff. Merfeld is still best known for coaching 15 seed Hampton to an upset of 2 seed Iowa State in the NCAA Tournament. The video clip of the short and stocky Merfeld jumping with joy into the arms of an assistant have been a staple of CBS' opening montage since ... Bradley leads the all-time series 39-37, but the Jays have narrowed that gap considerably of late, winning 13 of the last 16 ... In the last 25 meetings, the Jays are 13-1 when holding Bradley under 65 points ... Creighton has lost six straight games in the state of Illinois.
The Last Time They Played: The last regular-season meeting between the schools was the all-time classic, double overtime 111-110 win on senior night last season. But the last meeting came in the quarterfinals of the MVC tournament five days later, with the Jays winning 74-70. Both games featured Cavel Witter leading the way; in the double OT thriller, he scored 42 points and carried the team late in regulation and in overtime; in the quarterfinal matchup, he scored the teams last six points in lifting the Jays to victory.
Gratuitous Linkage: As a designer who loves "tangible" things as well as antiques, I've always had a soft spot for Polaroid Instant cameras. Sure, the photos weren't as good as the 35MM variety, but you couldn't beat getting a print a minute or two after snapping the picture. Plus I grew up with those things. My first camera in the early '80s was a Polaroid Instant, so I was understandably sad when Polaroid stopped making the film for the cameras last year. Now, they've introduced a new shoot-and-print camera, which sounds exciting...if the image quality was better. One cool thing is the prints have sticky backs, so you can snap pictures of your passed out friend at a party and then paste it to his forehead with no additional supplies needed. Or you know, you can take a picture of your two-year old niece at Christmas and have prints for your refrigerator immediately. By the second or third generation of these, when the image quality improves, you better believe I'll own one.
Official Gametime Snack: Because the Braves stubbornly insist on using the Braves nickname when just about every other school with a Native American name have caved to public pressure and changed their names, I hereby decree that tonight's official snack is Pemmican Beef Jerky. You know, the brand with the Indian Chief on the label.
The totally random song I'd play right now if I were still a radio DJ: I accepted a job as a designer at an advertising agency this week, and I start on Monday. My immediate boss is a 29-year veteran of the Navy.
You're welcome, incidentally.
Prediction: I just don't see how the Jays can possibly pull out a road win after two demoralizing losses that exposed their weaknesses to all future coaches preparing their teams for the Jays. My heart says the Jays will win by five or six, but my head disagrees. Stupid brain.
Bradley 62, Jays 55
