• Season 9 SuperTicker presented by BLAPP
#TMM9
Having recently completed its 9th season, The Mid-Majority is a community chronicle of the smaller Division I college basketball conferences. Last year, the theme was Team. Six groups of five (plus a fantasy mid-major player) were engaged in friendly Amazing Race-style competition, criss-crossing Hoops Nation to provide awesome college basketball content. Season X (2013-14) will be our final one.

Recent Game Recaps

Epilogue, The Ninth: Only Love Can Break Your Heart

Memories

So We Meet Again

Rte. 139 - End of the Line

Hanging On

A Championship in Pictures

This Time of Year

Dotson Leads Ducks to the Sweet Sixteen

Grizzlies Overwhelmed by Orangemen

Empire

Challenge 11: Final Four Memories

By George, UConn is Dead

Butler and Us

Donning the Black and Gold

Challenge 10: Tourney Memories

The Madness of the Horizon League

The Rare Ivy League Conference Tournament

MAC Madness

Anything Can Happen in the MAAC

Challenge 9: Shock The Neighborhood

A Youthful Surprise

From Worst to First

Peers and Seers

Author Archives James Squire
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S9 March 16, 2013 In the Horizon League, March is truly maddening. And the madness only increases with each win. If you are the 1 seed and graduating 6 seniors, 5 of whom start and the other who plays a key role, the spectre of a loss looms large, bringing with it that dreaded R word (rebuilding). It may take a whil...
S9 March 10, 2013 I was this close.This close to returning to St. Louis today and getting some much needed breathing room in my vacation balance account.This close to witnessing first-hand the first ever 1 seed semifinal loss since the Horizon League switched to its current "Protect the top seeds" format.This close ...
S9 March 10, 2013 Wright State is the most deliberate, disciplined team in the Horizon League. Detroit is the most athletic, fast-paced team in the Horizon League. Doug Anderson's dunks have been all over Sports Center for 2 seasons now. These two styles go together like oil and water. Something had to give. Would D...
S9 March 10, 2013 This was a very entertaining game, much more entertaining than last year's 4-5 game. In fact both quarterfinal games this year were much more exciting than last year.For the 2nd year in a row, the 5 seed has more fan support than the 4 seed. UIC brought a healthy contingent of students along with t...
S9 March 10, 2013 Last year at the Horizon League quarterfinals, also held in Valparaiso at the Athletics Recreation Center (ARC), 3 seed Detroit ambushed6 seed Youngstown State from the opening tip, and the Penguins never seriously threatened. 5 seed Butler buried4 seed Milwaukee decisively in the 2nd half. In both...
S9 March 2, 2013 "You can't get there from here"-- Richard L. Harlan, TV voice of the Valparaiso Crusaders, 1946-2012Out in the middle of nowhere in the western part of the state of Illinois is the city of Macomb, home of the Western Illinois Leathernecks, the last remaining charter member of the Mid-Continent Conf...
S9 February 26, 2013 "There's no real bracket busting in it... It's an extra game on your schedule"-- Billy Donlan, Wright State coach won't miss BracketBusters eventI agree, though there was nothing wrong with the concept. The 4-letter network dreamed it up as a way of giving mid-majors a chance to impress the NCAA To...
S9 February 25, 2013 After the beat-down I witnessed at Chaifetz Arena 3 weeks ago, I was hoping to see a much better game tonight in the rematch. I regret that I failed to give myself plenty of time to get there. I had meant to give myself an extra hour, in case there were traffic problems, but once I hit the road, I ...
S9 February 25, 2013 Butler and VCU both home games for the A-10 school that plays in the metropolitan area where I live? I'm there, looking to see how these Final Four combatants from 2 years ago will fair. The Butler game turned out to be one-sided, but I was still pumped to see how #HAVOC would fare at Chaifetz Aren...
S9 February 17, 2013 Last March, after the Horizon League championship game, this happened:Yesterday, during ESPN's Rivalry Week, the team celebrated brashly by denizens of the 313 area code returned to the scene of the crime and were greeted with this:Detroit-Valpo has developed into something that lends itself to eas...
S9 February 7, 2013 Last year I wrote about Valpo's current rivalry with Milwaukee, and I alluded to a potential budding rivalry with Detroit from last year's Horizon League championship game. Both last year and this year, I've written about Valpo's reviving rivalry with Oakland.But there was another rivalry Valpo had...
S9 February 5, 2013 So might have said Bob Ramsey after this one. Or not; I didn't listen to much of the post-game show.I hadn't planned to go to this game, but a friend of mine had an extra ticket at half-price through something called "Living Social", so I jumped at the chance. He brought his two young boys along an...
S9 February 5, 2013 So said, St. Louis' own Bob Ramsey, who ritually announces a Billiken 3 with "BANG!" As I pulled out of the parking garage next to Chaifetz Arena, Ramsey wanted to make sure SLU fans knew that this was no cupcake win. Either that, or he was just so blown away by what he had seen that his Hype-O-Me...
S9 January 21, 2013 8 days ago, Reggie Arceneaux was the hero in Wright State's win at Loyola. Valpo just two days ago erased a 22-point early 2nd half lead at the home of the preseason pick for 2nd place, Detroit. WSU was picked to finish 9th (last) in the preseason poll, but while Detroit inflicted its heart-felt re...
S9 January 10, 2013 I like to take my Dad to home games that I make the trip for, but he's in his 80s and doesn't move very well. Fortunately, Valpo has a small section behind the Valpo basket for wheelchair and similarly disabled clientele, so I was able to take my Dad to this game and he had a heck of a time. Fortun...
S9 January 4, 2013 Loyola and Valpo were prognosticated differently in the preseason. Valpo was picked by some to win the conference, Loyola maybe middle of the pack at best, if not lower. Both Loyola and UIC had surprisingly good non-conference performance. If preseason predictions are definitive, we naturally disco...
S9 January 3, 2013 A member of the Hickory Picket Fences team also attended this game. At first I thought he was here to see their fantasy player Isaiah Canaan rack up points for them. When he stopped by my seat at halftime, he informed me I was mistaken. But still, there will be dueling game recaps, so, as far as #T...
S9 December 29, 2012 I left St. Louis at 7am early Monday morning. Ten and a half hours later, via Indianapolis, Toledo, and Detroit, I wound up on the Campus of Oakland University in Rochester, Michigan a half hour before tip time. Fortunately there was enough light on campus to illuminate the signs pointing to the O'...
S9 December 26, 2012 A 7-hour Saturday round trip to Springfield, arriving home at 1 am, resting up on Sunday, driving 10.5 hours to Rochester, Michigan for another game on Monday, 4 hour drive to Valpo to sleep over at my Dad's house, early morning drive back to St. Louis on Tuesday - this may be the closest I ever co...
S9 December 5, 2012 Game #9-124: Valparaiso Crusaders at Saint Louis BillikensDecember 2, 2012 4:30 pmChaifetz ArenaBBState Stats/Recap Today's game takes place under the shadow of death. Last night, as I waited to place my dinner order with 20-30 Valpo alumni from the St. Louis area in a private room at Joe Buck's Res...
S9 November 21, 2012 Game #9-066: Northern Illinois Huskies at Valparaiso CrusadersNovember 13, 2012 8:00 amAthletics-Recreation CenterBBState Stats/Recap Our game writes its own narrative, if we can stand to get out of the way long enough to let it.Long before I usually wake up on a weekday, much less eat breakfast, Va...
S9 November 11, 2012 Game #9-008: South Carolina-Upstate Spartans at Saint Louis BillikensNovember 9, 2012 8:00 pmChaifetz ArenaBBState Stats/Recap It’s hard to get past the fact that until this year I had never even heard of USC Upstate. A brief scan of their website suggests that they were Division II until a few year...
S8 March 28, 2012 Game #8-790: Ohio Bobcats vs. North Carolina Tar HeelsMarch 23, 2012 8:47 pmSt. Louis, MOBBState Stats/RecapIt hardly seems fair. The Bobcats of The Ohio University are the only one of us left in the Sweet Sixteen. OK, I coined that name because I'm feeling emotional these days -- getting knee deep ...
S8 March 11, 2012 Game #8-746: Detroit Titans at Valparaiso CrusadersMarch 6, 2012 9:00 pmValparaiso, INBBState Stats/RecapOn the one hand, a championship will be won tonight -- something worth celebrating. Nets will be cut down. Trophies will be handed out. There are even story-lines to be exploited by the World-Wid...
S8 March 5, 2012 Game #8-697: Butler Bulldogs vs. Valparaiso CrusadersMarch 3, 2012 8:30 pmValparaiso, INBBState Stats/RecapThis, of course, is the one game this weekend where court neutrality has been thrown out the window. The #1 seed is tasked with defending their home court on national TV. This is another one of...
S8 March 5, 2012 Game #8-694: Detroit Titans vs. Cleveland State VikingsMarch 3, 2012 6:00 pmValparaiso, INBBState Stats/RecapThe Horizon League first semifinal contest marks the end of neutral court basketball this weekend. The most-talented team (#3 Detroit) takes on the most physical team (#2 Cleveland State). Th...
S8 March 4, 2012 Game #8-677: Butler Bulldogs vs. Milwaukee PanthersMarch 2, 2012 8:30 pmValparaiso, INBBState Stats/RecapFor tonight’s second game, the Milwaukee Panthers take on the Butler Bulldogs. The Panthers are the higher seed (4 vs. 5), but you would never know it looking at the fan sections. Not only are th...
S8 March 2, 2012 Game #8-670: Youngstown State Penguins vs. Detroit TitansMarch 2, 2012 6:00 pmValparaiso, INBBState Stats/RecapWith apologies to my team, who secured the 1 seed by a 2 game margin and earned the right to host the 2nd and 3rd rounds of the Horizon League tournament in my home town of Valparaiso at th...
S8 February 29, 2012 Game #8-643: Butler Bulldogs at Valparaiso CrusadersFebruary 24, 2012 7:00 pmAthletics-Recreation CenterBBState Stats/RecapIt still feels strange. Butler comes to the Athletics Recreation Center (ARC) to close out the season. That much is not strange, it happened in 2010. But what still feels strang...
S8 January 23, 2012 Game #8-442: Duquesne Dukes at Saint Louis BillikensJanuary 21, 2012 8:00 pmChaifetz ArenaBBState Stats/RecapGigantic arena with all the bells and whistles. Big time coach that once led a team to the final four. Your own ESPN commercial featuring your own mascot. The mystique of that mascot. A big m...
S8 January 20, 2012 Game #8-417: Cleveland State Vikings at Valparaiso CrusadersJanuary 15, 2012 2:35 pmAthletics-Recreation CenterBBState Stats/RecapIf Green Bay is a team that figures out quickly how much the refs will let them get away with, Cleveland State is the team that knows how to do this AND register loud com...
S8 January 2, 2012 Game #8-330: Green Bay Phoenix at Valparaiso CrusadersDecember 31, 2011 5:05 pmAthletics-Recreation CenterBBState Stats/RecapLike their Milwaukee neighbor, the Green Bay Phoenix were original members of the Association of Mid-Continent Universities (AMCU) with Valpo, but bolted for the Horizon Leagu...
S8 December 30, 2011 Game #8-313: Milwaukee Panthers at Valparaiso CrusadersDecember 29, 2011 8:05 pmAthletics-Recreation CenterBBState Stats/RecapValpo and Milwaukee (sometimes known as the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, but not for this report) were charter members of the Association of Mid-Continent Universities ...
S8 December 25, 2011 Game #8-295: Valparaiso Crusaders at IUPUI JaguarsDecember 23, 2011 1:00 pmThe JungleBBState Stats/RecapConseco Fieldhouse recently hosted the Hoosier Classic on a Saturday, pitting Butler against Purdue and Notre Dame against Indiana in front of a packed house. Yesterday, that same venue was rename...
S8 December 19, 2011 Game #8-255: Oakland Golden Grizzlies at Valparaiso CrusadersDecember 17, 2011 8:05 pmAthletics-Recreation CenterBBState Stats/RecapThey say it can't be a rivalry if one team wins all the games. I think that's hogwash. The Golden Grizzlies of Oakland University (Rochester, Michigan, not Oakland, Ca...
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