NIT 10: Motor City Madness
Part III: Stunning loss in Detroit leads to frustration, disbelief and uncertainty for Valparaiso
The undoing of Valparaiso’s 2016 NCAA tournament dreams began two years earlier on a Saturday night in Green Bay.
Valpo had already been eliminated from the Horizon League tournament when top-seeded Green Bay took on Milwaukee in a thrilling semifinal that saw the Panthers knock off the rival Phoenix 73-66 in overtime. By virtue of beating Cleveland State earlier in the evening, Wright State was suddenly thrust in the spotlight as the highest remaining seed. That meant the 2014 Horizon League title game would be moving to Dayton in the middle of the night.
Not since the 2004 tournament had the semifinals and finals been at a different location, and that was only because Milwaukee had a conflict with the local indoor soccer team. The Horizon League had been playing with fire in regards to its tournament format. The semifinals and finals were always scheduled to be at the highest-remaining seed. The No. 1 seed advanced to the title game every season for 10 years, including when Valparaiso hosted in 2012 and 2013.
When Green Bay lost in 2014, chaos ensued. It might have taken two years, but Valparaiso was the school that eventually got burned.
NIT 10: An Oral History of Valparaiso’s March to Madison Square Garden
Introduction: The Last Meeting
Part I: The Return of the Mayor
Part II: The Sprint and the Marathon