2021–22 Valparaiso Beacons men's basketball team

2021–22 Valparaiso Beacons men's basketball
2021–22 Valparaiso Beacons men's basketball
Conference	Missouri Valley Conference
Record	14–18 (6–12 MVC)
Head coach	Matt Lottich (6th season);
Assistant coaches	Luke Gore; Rob Holloway; Matt Bowen;
Home arena	Athletics–Recreation Center
	Seasons ← 2020–21 2022–23 →

The 2021–22 Valparaiso Beacons men's basketball team represented Valparaiso University during the 2021–22 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Beacons, led by sixth-year head coach Matt Lottich, played their home games at the Athletics–Recreation Center as members of the Missouri Valley Conference.

2021–22 Missouri Valley Conference men's basketball standings
v t e	Conf				Overall
Team	W		L	PCT	W		L	PCT
Northern Iowa	14	–	4	.778	20	–	12	.625
Missouri State	13	–	5	.722	23	–	11	.676
Drake	13	–	5	.722	25	–	11	.694
Loyola Chicago †	13	–	5	.722	25	–	8	.758
Bradley	11	–	7	.611	17	–	14	.548
Southern Illinois	9	–	9	.500	16	–	14	.533
Valparaiso	6	–	12	.333	14	–	18	.438
Illinois State	5	–	13	.278	13	–	20	.394
Indiana State	4	–	14	.222	11	–	20	.355
Evansville	2	–	16	.111	6	–	24	.200

† 2022 MVC tournament winner

Formerly nicknamed the Crusaders, the university dropped that name and associated mascot and logos in 2021 because of the "negative connotation and violence associated with the Crusader imagery," and because of its use by certain hate groups.^[1]^[2] The school announced on August 10, 2021, that its athletic teams would officially be known as Beacons effective immediately.^[3]

Previous season

In a season limited due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, Valparaiso finished the 2020–21 season 10–18, 7–11 in MVC play to finish a three-way tie for fifth place. As the No. 6 seed in the MVC tournament, they lost to Missouri State in the quarterfinals.^[4]

Offseason

Departures

Name	Number	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Reason for departure
Goodnews Kpegeol	0	G	6'5"	200	RS Sophomore	St. Paul, MN	Transferred to Gulf Coast State College
Sigurd Lorange	1	G	5'11"	185	Sophomore	Trondheim, Norway	Transferred to Converse University
Zion Morgan	2	G	6'5"	190	RS Senior	Chicago, IL	Graduated
Steven Helm	3	G	6'2"	180	RS Sophomore	Valparaiso, IN	Transferred to Indiana Tech
Daniel Sackey	4	G	5'9"	175	Junior	Winnipeg, MB	Transferred to New Orleans
Donovan Clay	5	G/F	6'7"	205	Sophomore	Alton, IL	Transferred to Missouri State
Mileek McMillan	22	F	6'8"	230	Senior	Merrillville, IN	Transferred to Western Michigan
Nick Robinson	25	G	6'5"	215	RS Senior	Chicago, IL	Transferred to Western Carolina
Jacob Ognacevic	34	F	6'8"	210	Freshman	Sheboygan, WI	Transferred to Lipscomb

Incoming transfers

Name	Number	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Previous School
Trevor Anderson	21	G	6'3"	205	RS Senior	Stevens Point, WI	Wisconsin
Joe Hedstrom	32	C	7'0"	240	RS Junior	Hopkins, MN	Wisconsin
Kobe King	35	G	6'4"	205	Senior	La Crosse, WI	Wisconsin
Thomas Kithier	0	F	6'8"	235	Senior	Clarkston, MI	Michigan State
Kevion Taylor	12	G/F	6'5"	210	RS Senior	Milwaukee, WI	Winona State

2021 recruiting class

College recruiting information
Name	Hometown	High school / college	Height	Weight
Cam Palesse #1 PG	Waukesha, WI	Waukesha West	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	190 lb (86 kg)
Cam Palesse #1 PG	Star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A
Darius DeAveiro #4 PG	Kanata, ON	Orangeville Prep	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	170 lb (77 kg)
Darius DeAveiro #4 PG	Star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A
Keyondre Young #5 SG	Del City, OK	Del City	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)	180 lb (82 kg)
Keyondre Young #5 SG	Star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A
Trey Woodyard #33 SF	London, OH	International Sports Academy	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	190 lb (86 kg)
Trey Woodyard #33 SF	Star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A
Overall recruiting rankings:
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources:

Roster

2021–22 Valparaiso Beacons men's basketball team

Players

Coaches

Pos.	#	Name	Height	Weight	Year	Previous school	Hometown
F	0	Thomas Kithier	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)	235 lb (107 kg)	Sr	Clarkston HS Michigan State	Macomb, MI
G	1	Cam Palesse	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	190 lb (86 kg)	Fr	Waukesha West HS	Waukesha, WI
G	2	Preston Ruedinger (W)	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	Fr	Lourdes Academy	Oshkosh, WI
G/F	3	Connor Barrett	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	200 lb (91 kg)	So	Loyola Academy	Chicago, IL
G	4	Darius DeAveiro	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	165 lb (75 kg)	Fr	Orangeville Prep	Kanata, ON
F	5	Keyondre Young	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	Fr	Del City HS	Del City, OK
G	10	Eron Gordon	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	205 lb (93 kg)	RS Sr	Cathedral HS Seton Hall	Indianapolis, IN
C	11	Emil Freese-Vilien	6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)	255 lb (116 kg)	Jr	Falkonergardens Gymnasium	Copenhagen, Denmark
G/F	12	Kevion Taylor	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	210 lb (95 kg)	RS Sr	Whitnall HS Winona State	Milwaukee, WI
G	13	Sheldon Edwards	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	So	Palm Beach Lakes HS TLAP Sports Academy	West Palm Beach, FL
G	15	Luke Morrill (W)	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	195 lb (88 kg)	Jr	Montini Catholic HS	Lombard, IL
G/F	20	Tyler Fricke (W)	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	170 lb (77 kg)	So	Buffalo Grove HS	Arlington Heights, IL
G	21	Trevor Anderson	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	205 lb (93 kg)	RS Sr	SPASH Wisconsin	Stevens Point, WI
F	22	Brock Pappas (W)	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	235 lb (107 kg)	Sr	Washington Township HS	Valparaiso, IN
F	23	Ben Krikke	6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)	235 lb (107 kg)	Jr	Jasper Place HS	Edmonton, AB
C	32	Joe Hedstrom	7 ft 0 in (2.13 m)	240 lb (109 kg)	RS Jr	Hopkins HS Wisconsin	Hopkins, MN
F	33	Trey Woodyard	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	190 lb (86 kg)	Fr	International Sports Academy	London, OH
G	35	Kobe King	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	205 lb (93 kg)	Sr	La Crosse Central HS Wisconsin	La Crosse, WI

Head coach

Matt Lottich (Stanford)

Assistant coach(es)

Luke Gore (Bethel (TN))
Rob Holloway (Eastern Illinois)
Matt Bowen (Indiana)

Legend

(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible
(W) Walk-on

Injured
Current redshirt

Roster
Last update: September 4, 2021

Schedule and results

Date time, TV	Rank^#	Opponent^#	Result	Record	Site (attendance) city, state
Exhibition
October 30, 2021* 6:00 pm		Ashland	L 78–87		Athletics–Recreation Center (1,671) Valparaiso, IN
November 4, 2021* 6:00 pm		Flagler	L 67–70		Athletics–Recreation Center (1,567) Valparaiso, IN
Regular season
November 9, 2021* 6:00 pm, ESPN+		Toledo	L 61–69	0–1	Athletics–Recreation Center (2,824) Valparaiso, IN
November 13, 2021* 12:00 pm, ESPN3		UIC	L 70–74 ^OT	0–2	Athletics–Recreation Center (2,622) Valparaiso, IN
November 17, 2021* 7:30 pm, P12N		at Stanford	L 60–74	0–3	Maples Pavilion (2,722) Stanford, CA
November 22, 2021* 8:00 p.m.		vs. Jacksonville State Nassau Championship quarterfinal	W 78–70	1–3	Baha Mar Convention Center Nassau, Bahamas
November 23, 2021* 7:00 p.m., FloHoops		vs. Coastal Carolina Nassau Championship semifinal	L 61–64	1–4	Baha Mar Convention Center Nassau, Bahamas
November 24, 2021* 4:30 p.m., FloHoops		vs. Tulane Nassau Championship third place game	W 68–64	2–4	Baha Mar Convention Center Nassau, Bahamas
November 27, 2021* 12:00 pm, ESPN3		Trinity Christian	W 106–69	3–4	Athletics–Recreation Center (1,239) Valparaiso, IN
December 2, 2021 8:00 pm, ESPNU		at Drake	L 66–73	3–5 (0–1)	Knapp Center (2,560) Des Moines, IA
December 5, 2021* 1:00 pm, ESPN3		at Western Michigan	W 71–60	4–5	University Arena (1,883) Kalamazoo, MI
December 7, 2021* 6:00 pm, ESPN+		East–West	W 101–58	5–5	Athletics–Recreation Center (1,170) Valparaiso, IN
December 11, 2021* 12:00 pm, ESPN+		Charlotte	L 67–68	5–6	Athletics–Recreation Center (2,264) Valparaiso, IN
December 20, 2021* 6:00 pm, ESPN3		Eastern Michigan	W 67–55	6–6	Athletics–Recreation Center (1,293) Valparaiso, IN
December 22, 2021* 12:00 pm, ESPN3		William & Mary	W 88–66	7–6	Athletics–Recreation Center (2,125) Valparaiso, IN
~~December 28, 2021~~* ~~12:00 pm~~, ESPN3		~~Prairie View A&M~~	Canceled due to COVID-19^[5]		Athletics–Recreation Center Valparaiso, IN
January 2, 2022 1:00 pm, ESPN+		Illinois State	W 81–76 ^OT	8–6 (1–1)	Athletics–Recreation Center (1,267) Valparaiso, IN
January 5, 2022 8:00 pm, NBCSCHI		at Northern Iowa	L 65–92	8–7 (1–2)	McLeod Center (1,387) Cedar Falls, IA
January 8, 2022 6:00 pm, ESPN+		Southern Illinois	L 60–63	8–8 (1–3)	Athletics–Recreation Center (1,321) Valparaiso, IN
January 11, 2022 8:00 pm, CBSSN		at Loyola–Chicago	L 74–81 ^2OT	8–9 (1–4)	Joseph J. Gentile Arena (2,193) Chicago, IL
January 15, 2022 4:00 pm, ESPNU		Missouri State	L 57–74	8–10 (1–5)	Athletics–Recreation Center (1,621) Valparaiso, IN
January 19, 2022 6:00 pm, ESPN+		Northern Iowa	W 83–80 ^OT	9–10 (2–5)	Athletics–Recreation Center (1,414) Valparaiso, IN
January 22, 2022 12:00 pm, ESPN+		at Indiana State	W 75–73	10–10 (3–5)	Hulman Center (2,846) Terre Haute, IN
January 26, 2022 6:00 pm, ESPN+		Bradley	L 56–71	10–11 (3–6)	Athletics–Recreation Center (1,220) Valparaiso, IN
January 30, 2022 4:00 pm, ESPN+		at Southern Illinois	L 55–77	10–12 (3–7)	Banterra Center (4,254) Carbondale, IL
February 5, 2022 6:00 pm, ESPN+		Indiana State	W 79–72 ^2OT	11–12 (4–7)	Athletics–Recreation Center (1,908) Valparaiso, IN
February 9, 2022 7:00 pm, Marquee/ESPN+		at Illinois State	L 75–78 ^OT	11–13 (4–8)	Redbird Arena (2,443) Normal, IL
February 12, 2022 3:00 pm, NBCSCHI		at Missouri State	L 66–84	11–14 (4–9)	JQH Arena (4,314) Springfield, MO
February 16, 2022 7:00 pm, NBCSCHI+		Loyola–Chicago	L 69–71	11–15 (4–10)	Athletics–Recreation Center (2,208) Valparaiso, IN
February 19, 2022 1:00 pm, ESPN+		at Evansville	W 72–56	12–15 (5–10)	Ford Center (2,947) Evansville, IN
February 21, 2022 7:00 pm, ESPN+		Evansville	W 74–69	13–15 (6–10)	Athletics–Recreation Center (1,107) Valparaiso, IN
February 23, 2022 6:00 pm, ESPN+		Drake	L 65–71	13–16 (6–11)	Athletics–Recreation Center (2,530) Valparaiso, IN
February 26, 2022 7:00 pm, ESPN+		at Bradley	L 55–79	13–17 (6–12)	Peoria Civic Center (5,660) Peoria, IL
MVC tournament
March 3, 2022 8:30 pm, MVC TV	(7)	vs. (10) Evansville Opening round	W 81–59	14–17	Enterprise Center (2,904) St. Louis, MO
March 4, 2022 6:00 pm, MVC TV	(7)	vs. (2) Missouri State Quarterfinals	L 58–67	14–18	Enterprise Center St. Louis, MO
*Non-conference game. ^#Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Central Time.

Source^[6]^[7]

References

^ "VALPARAISO UNIVERSITY TO RETIRE CRUSADERS MASCOT". Valpo.edu (Press release). February 11, 2021. Retrieved June 14, 2021.
^ Oren, Paul. "Mascot debate at Valparaiso has proponents and opponents, just as it did in the 1940s". The Times of Northwest Indiana. Retrieved July 8, 2021.
^ Jaipuriar, Rashika. "After retiring Crusaders, Valpo announces new mascot". The Indianapolis Star. Retrieved August 11, 2021.
^ "Valparaiso vs. Missouri State - Box Score - March 5, 2021 - ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved July 8, 2021.
^ "Valpo Men's Basketball Game vs. Prairie View A&M Canceled". December 27, 2021. Retrieved December 28, 2021.
^ "Valpo Basketball Announces Nonconference Games". valpoathletics.com. Valparaiso University Athletics. Retrieved August 11, 2021.
^ "Men's Basketball Schedule". valpoathletics.com. Valparaiso University Athletics. Retrieved January 1, 2021.

[1] "VALPARAISO UNIVERSITY TO RETIRE CRUSADERS MASCOT". Valpo.edu (Press release). February 11, 2021. Retrieved June 14, 2021.

[2] Oren, Paul. "Mascot debate at Valparaiso has proponents and opponents, just as it did in the 1940s". The Times of Northwest Indiana. Retrieved July 8, 2021.

[3] Jaipuriar, Rashika. "After retiring Crusaders, Valpo announces new mascot". The Indianapolis Star. Retrieved August 11, 2021.

[4] "Valparaiso vs. Missouri State - Box Score - March 5, 2021 - ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved July 8, 2021.

[5] "Valpo Men's Basketball Game vs. Prairie View A&M Canceled". December 27, 2021. Retrieved December 28, 2021.

[6] "Valpo Basketball Announces Nonconference Games". valpoathletics.com. Valparaiso University Athletics. Retrieved August 11, 2021.

[7] "Men's Basketball Schedule". valpoathletics.com. Valparaiso University Athletics. Retrieved January 1, 2021.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]