This has not been an easy season for Valparaiso University's basketball team.  Two key seniors, Shawn Huff and Jarryd Loyd, graduated last year.  Their promising center, Bryan Bouchie, who was so impressive in a post-season win over Washington last year, transferred to Evansville.  Brandon McPherson, a quick guard, was injured at the beginning of the season.  They were left with two seniors, power forward Urule Igbavboa and guard Jake Diebler, no juniors and two sophomores, Howard Little and Michael Rogers.  Everyone else on the team is a freshman.  This on a team that had just moved into the strong Horizon League from the Mid-Continent Conference that Valparaiso had dominated for over a decade.

There is finally a light at the end of the tunnel that isn't an oncoming train.  The team, after having been left with no big man with the loss of Bouchie, will have Beas Hamga, a 7-foot center who transferred in from UNLV.  Also coming in is Cory Johnson, a 6'7 forward who transferred from Iowa State but had to sit out this season because of transfer rules. Forwards Benjamin Fumey and Cameron Witt will also have  a year's experience behind them and should play a bigger part next year.

The team has had a couple of encouraging games of late, good wins over Wisconsin-Green Bay, Akron and Loyola.  They put up good fights against high-ranked Butler and a strong Illinois-Chicago team.  The team is plainly better now than it was earlier in the season.   "Wait till next year" is a cliché, but when applied to Valpo, it is a true expression of hope.  This should be a good team next year.