Butler, Valpo Look to Stay Near Top in Trips to Windy City

Horizon League Men’s Basketball Schedule (Jan. 19)
Valparaiso at Loyola, 8 p.m. ET – Horizon League Network
Butler at UIC, 8:30 p.m. ET – ESPN3

Sitting one and two games from first place on the Horizon League ladder, Valparaiso and Butler will look to stay near or at the top when they make road trips to the Windy City to meet Loyola and UIC.

At Gentile Arena, Loyola (5-12, 0-7 Horizon) will look to slow down a Valparaiso (12-7, 5-2 Horizon) attack that ranks as the top scoring offense in the Horizon League. As the year nears the halfway point, the Crusaders are averaging 71.1 points per game, best in the conference.

The impetus behind Valparaiso’s offensive success is the dual threats possessed by Kevin Van Wijk and Ryan Broekhoff. Van Wijk, who would be at or near the top of any Comeback Player of the Year list, is leading the Horizon League with 15.9 ppg after playing sporadically in 2010-11 due to recurring back troubles.

The Dutchman is the main reason why Valparaiso enters the night ranked second in the nation in two-point field goal percentage, hitting 57.4 percent of its attempts. Van Wijk leads the League with a 62.2 percent clip, ranking 10^th nationally.

Van Wijk’s ability to dominate the low block has opened up the court for Broekhoff, who is, in the words of one Horizon League analyst, “a miniature version of Dirk Nowitzki.” Broekhoff’s versatile game has allowed him to rank in the top 10 in eight different statistical categories in the League, where he leads the conference in rebounds (9.1 rpg) and is third in scoring (15.3 ppg).

While his ability to knock down the outside jumper can frustrate defenders, Broekhoff is able to use his speed to get to the rim as well, making him one of the League’s most difficult matchups.

Tasked with slowing Van Wijk and Broekhoff will be Ben Averkamp and Walt Gibler, who have been Loyola’s load-bearers throughout the year. Combining to average 29.5 of the Ramblers’ 55.6 ppg, both players are on pace to set new career highs in both scoring and rebounding.

Averkamp leads Loyola with 14.9 ppg and 6.9 rpg, while Gibler is putting up 14.6 ppg and 6.8 rpg. The intended pre-med majors have matched each other throughout the year, with Averkamp eclipsing 20 points in five straight games before Gibler went on the longest double-digit scoring streak by a Rambler since 2007-08.

Gibler has reached at least 10 points in each of the last 11 games, putting the senior within striking distance of a Loyola milestone. Only 17 Ramblers have reached both 1,000 points and 500 rebounds in his career, and entering Thursday night, Gibler stands 37 points and 25 rebounds shy of reaching both marks.

On Chicago’s South Side, UIC (6-11, 2-5 Horizon) will look to continue its home success when Butler (10-9, 4-3 Horizon) visits the UIC Pavilion.

Both teams are coming off wins last weekend, with UIC matching its League win total from 2010-11 after a 58-51 victory over Loyola; Butler played one of its most complete games of the season in downing Youngstown State, 71-55. But now, the Bulldogs hit the road, where UIC is 6-2 at the Pavilion this year and 3-1 in League play, its lone loss coming in overtime.

The Flames have been led by the backcourt tandem of Daniel Barnes and Gary Talton, both of whom are virtual newcomers in the conference. Barnes played in just five games last year before taking a redshirt, and the Oak Park, Ill.-native has flourished this season, posting 18 points in UIC’s win over Loyola. All 18 of Barnes’ points came from behind the three-point arc, as the junior went 6-for-9.

On the year, Barnes has proven to be one of the League’s top gunners from three-point range, hitting 2.3 per game.

Meanwhile, Talton has been a monster at the Pavilion, averaging 19.3 ppg and 4.3 apg in four conference games at home. Prior to a 16-point effort versus Loyola, Talton went off for 21 points in each of UIC’s home contests versus Detroit and Wright State.

Defensively, Howard Moore has had his team locked in at the Pavilion, with the Flames holding three of its four opponents under 40-percent shooting in home conference games.

Butler will look to the interior against UIC, where Andrew Smith has come alive of late, leading the Bulldogs in scoring against both Cleveland State and Youngstown State. Against the Penguins, Smith reached 20 points for the second time this year; in conference play, the junior is averaging 12.0 ppg, besting his season average of 10.7 ppg.

The Bulldogs’ depth will likely be on display, with Brad Stevens dipping into his bench to find the hot hand and right combination. Of late, both Khyle Marshall and Kameron Woods have been two of Stevens’ go-to players, with Marshall averaging 10.3 ppg over his last four games, coming off the bench in the last two.

Woods, who started early in the year before coming off the bench, recorded his third career double-double in his 18^th career game, posting 10 points and 10 rebounds to fuel Butler’s first-half surge last Sunday.