MVC Offseason Update – UE & Valpo

Rosters Set – Stability Reigns

(St. Louis, MO) – After a year of transition, stability reigns at Evansville and Valparaiso. Last offseason Valpo seemed to be losing players at an alarming rate and during the past season Evansville changed head coaches twice.

In spite of the coronavirus shutdowns both programs now seem to be models of consistency. Stability reigns. Both programs have filled their recruiting classes and star players from each team seem to be staying put.

Stars Staying Home

Courier Press reporter  Chad Lindskog tells us star forward DeAndre Williams should be wearing the purple and orange this fall. During the transfer pandemic that has hit college basketball long before covid-19 hit America, fears of a player of Williams’ caliber changing programs seem to hang in the air. Lindskog says UE turnover has been light and Williams is due to return.

 

 

Lindskog, (@chadlindskog) says veterans Noah Frederking and Evan Kuhlman are providing senior leadership and stability.

Norhtwest Indiana Times reporter Paul Oren says Valpo star Javon Freeman-Liberty is also staying put. JFL has entered his name into the NBA draft list, but Oren expects him to return. Last year’s offseason was littered with transition. This year stability reigns as there have been no Valpo transfers.

 

 

Brand New Purple Aces

UE has added recruits of every type. High school, junior college and D1 transfers are all in the mix. Perhaps the most intriguing is Nebraska transfer Samari Curtis. The 6’4 guard was a three-star recruit and Ohio’s ‘Mr. Basketball’. He transferred to Evansvile during the school year and will be a midseason addition for Todd Lickliter.

ESPN ranked Curtis as the nation’s eleventh best mid-season transfer and Lindskog says his journey to UE took several twists and turns.

 

 

Three other players are joining the Aces this season. Lindskog says Trey Hall, Emmette Page and Jax Levitch each bring something of value to the team. Page and Hall have been prolific scoreres and Levitch is a grad-transfer from UNC Asheville.

 

 

Incoming Crusaders

Oren (@NWIOren) says there is great potential among the incoming Crusaders. Sheldon Edwards, Connor Barrett and Jacob Ognacevic are incoming freshman. Barrett is expected to provide long range shooting. Edwards is an electric athlete and Ognacevic is one of the greatest scorers in Wisconsin prep history.

 

 

Stability Reigns

While Evansville didn’t win a game under Lickliter, he did provide stability and a way forward. The fact that Williams and the bulk of the roster returns points to his ability to gain the respect of his players and staff.

Valpo’s Matt Lottich has weathered the storm and the program is headed in the right direction. Winning three games at Arch Madness and the return of Freeman-Liberty sparked great optimism in Northern Indiana.

Our entire interview with Lindskog and Oren can be found here. We discuss how they and the programs they cover are dealing with the pandemic and we dig deeper into each team’s respective roster. This is the first of a five part series on all ten of the Missouri Valley teams.

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