- A friend and I braved the cold and went to the Bradley/SIUE game, which was a truly atrocious game to watch. SIUE played a good game and had a fifteen-to-twenty minute stretch where they looked very dangerous. Neither team looked like they really had it together — possibly a result of the weather, tournament jitters, travel, or a combination of the three — but Bradley was able to find the back of the net, winning 1-0 on a late strike from senior Christian Meza. Meza scored from about twenty yards out, as the goalkeeper’s view was obstructed and couldn’t see the ball until it was too late.
- If last night was any indication of Bradley’s level of play, and if Creighton plays the way it ought to, the Jays should run Bradley right off the field. I was unimpressed with Bradley, all bias aside. Their backs seemed slow, their midfielders seemed weak and perpetually out of position, and their forwards looked confused more often than not. I can count on my fingers the number of times Bradley tried wing play, as opposed to banging the ball through the middle. As I said, there are quite a few factors that could have caused a sub-par performance from the Braves, but they did not look like a quality team last night.
- The success of this year’s Creighton team was precipitated by the maturation of players like Dion Acoff, Brett Kallman, and Andrew Ribeiro. We knew what we were getting with guys like Duran, Finlay, and Holt, but these three really filled their boots this year and helped take the team to a new level. Acoff has grown into a finishing role, though he could still use some polish. Ribeiro has become an integral part of the Bluejay attack while remaining a stud on defense. Brett Kallman battled with Jake Brown for playing time early in the season, but since then has proven to be reliable for Creighton along the back line while adding to the offense. Many of these players’ contributions won’t appear on the stat sheet, but you can bet that losing any of these three would hurt just as much as losing one of the superstars.
- If Creighton continues to win, they’re all but guaranteed a top-four seed in the NCAA tournament. Facing Bradley on Friday helps from an RPI perspective: the Braves are ranked 27, while SIU Edwardsville is 140. (Missouri State is struggling, hovering around 80.) Meanwhile, Maryland lost in the opening round of the ACC Tourney to Boston College (whom, by the way, I predict will make a very deep run in the College Cup), which ought to keep their RPI steady while UNC, UConn, and South Florida continue to play in their conference tournaments. That leaves one final top-four spot for the Bluejays, provided we don’t lose. If that were to happen, it’s likely Maryland would reclaim a spot, or New Mexico might jump after their tough conference championship.