Plenty has been made about the 25th anniversary of The Shot. There was another famous Valparaiso shot that celebrated a birthday as well.
It was 10 years ago this week that Ryan Broekhoff knocked down one of the most improbable shots in Valparaiso history, leading a senior-laden team to victory over Green Bay in the 2013 Horizon League semifinals. Erik Buggs came back three days later and scored 22 points to help knock off Wright State, sending Valpo back to the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2004.
The 2012-13 run to the NCAA tournament was the first of five Bryce Drew-coached teams that have reached the Big Dance. The fifth is his Grand Canyon squad that will face Roger Powell’s Gonzaga team on Friday night in Denver. Powell was a Valpo assistant from 2011-2016.
In celebration of the 10-year anniversary of that Valpo team, seven members and one coach from the 2013 Horizon League champions joined The Victory Bell for a zoom reunion on Tuesday night. Stories were told. Games were relived. Children appeared all over.
Please enjoy this 70-minute look back into history.
There is a portion of the video (from 37:07-38:39) where I play this video clip. Unfortunately the video is really choppy and the audio doesn’t come through. When you get to that portion of the video, click on the link and follow along as Todd Ickow calls Ryan Broekhoff’s shot.
