2012 Summer Tour

Listen to Audio Hilites of Aces OT Win vs. Missouri State

Another thrilling team win for the Aces as UE caps off the regular season with a winning record of 15-14.  More importantly, Evansville finishes in third place in the MVC.  The #3 seed is the highest seed at Arch Madness since our championship in 1999.  Denver Holmes does it again.  A triple in the corner with :01.0 left to tie the game and send it to overtime.  A storybook shot for the senior on his final game at home. 

The Aces began the season at the Ford Center with an overtime thrilling win vs. Butler, and end the season with an overtime thriller vs. Missouri State.  UE will face the same Bears on Friday night at 8:30pm in the quarterfinals in St. Louis.  Evansville will try to defeat MSU for the third time this season.

Below is the audio hilites with Scott Shreffler and myself.  Also below are two fantastic pictures taken by Richard Morris and Lucy Himstedt of Denver's tying three pointer. 

Enjoy and see you in STL!

Aces Defeat MSU 75-70 OT
Courtesy: WUEV/AcesTV  Lance Wilkerson/Scott Shreffler

 

Watch Denver Holmes' Heroics vs. UNI

The student staff members of AcesTV put together this video of the high drama final seconds. Enjoy watching Denver Holmes play the role of hero in the 63-62 win!  I have become close with Denver in his four years at UE.  There is no one I could be happier for to knock down such high-pressure shots in his final year in an Aces uniform than Denver Holmes.

Listen to Ending of Aces Thrilling 63-62 Win Against UNI

Another magical memory for Aces Fans.  Here are the final three possessions of the game.  The audio begins with the Aces having the ball down 2 with :27 left.

Thank you Denver!

Denver Holmes Near-Buzzer Beating Winner vs. UNI 2.15.12
Audio Courtesy: WUEV

Listen to Audio Hilites of Aces Upset Over #15 Creighton

Photo Courtesy: Richard MorrisIt was such a thrilling 65-57 victory last night for the Aces.  Evansville uses a 13-1 run down the stretch to upset 15th ranked Creighton.  Here's my radio hilites from the broadcast at the Ford Center.

Enjoy!

Aces vs. #15 Creighton

Courtesy WUEV/Tom Benson

Aces Ranked High Nationally in Several Categories

As I sit to write an entry about Aces basketball, I realize that the season has been as unique as a 60 degree day in February. From the wild victory against Butler in the opener, to the heart-breaking banked in three point buzzer beater loss at Illinois State, to the 39 point outburst by Colt Ryan, or the seven dunks on Wednesday night in a 30 point win at Bradley, we have seen it all.

With seven regular season games to go, our Aces are all evened up. UE is 11-11 overall and 6-6 in the rugged MVC. The Valley is the 7th ranked conference this year. That is one notch higher than the PAC-12 (a BCS Conference).

Friday morning on campus, someone asked me how good is Colt Ryan. I thought about it for a moment and realized that I did not have 30 minutes to give her a thorough answer. So I summed it up in a simple way. I said, “Colt is so good that on Wednesday he had 24 points and it wasn’t even a big deal.” Oh, by the way, Colt also had a 3.9 grade point average this Fall semester.

Colt and the coaching staff would be quick to point out that the team is always first, and rightfully so. Against Bradley, the guys were so unselfish that they recorded an amazing 31 assists on 41 made field goals. Denver Holmes had 11 helpers on his own.

It’s a privilege for me to be around these guys so much. I have been with them at games, at practice, at meals, at hotels, and through gut-wrenching losses and exhilarating wins. I can assure you that they are a team in every way. They are always there for their teammates whether it is on or off the court.
 
I challenge you, the fans, to support these young men by cheering them on down the stretch during these final four games at the Ford Center.  Let’s make it a February to remember.  After we play at Southern Illinois this afternoon, we are back at home against #12 Creighton. Be loud and proud for a special bunch of kids!

How special? Look how well we rank nationally among all 344 Division I programs:

Turnover Margin	9th	4.6
Free Throw Percentage	10th	76.3%
Assists	27th	15.8/game
Three Point Percentage	33rd	.385
Assist to Turnover Ratio	35th	1.21
Team Scoring	42nd	75.1 ppg
Individual
Scoring - Colt Ryan	9th	21.2 ppg
Free Throws - Denver Holmes	35th	88%

Listen to Current and Past Aces Basketball Player Interviews

I thought Aces fans would enjoy listening to some of the halftime interviews I have conducted this season.  I greatly enjoy catching up with the former players.  It is always interesting to see what they are doing now, and how much they love their alma mater.  Also, I posted some of the current interviews from the Marty Simmons Radio Show.  You can catch the Marty Simmons Show live from Turoni's every Monday from 6-7pm on 91.5 FM WUEV.  All of this audio is courtesy of WUEV and Tom Benson. 

The first one is hilarious.  For the first time ever I had a player interview another player.  Troy Taylor had no idea I was going to have him do this.  For being completely unprepared Troy and Ned Cox did a great job!

Enjoy!

Troy Taylor Interviews Ned Cox 1.23.12

Interview with Curt Begle 12.17.11


Interview with Jeremy Stanton 1.7.12


Interview with Larry Humes 1.10.12

Interview with Denver Holmes 1.16.12

Listen to Colt Ryan's Career-High 39 Points vs. Bradley

Aces junior Colt Ryan was nearly unstoppable as he poured in a career-high 39 points at home in the Ford Center against Bradley.  UE won the game 90-67.  Below is the audio call as well as my interview with Colt after the game:

WUEV Radio Call.  Lance Wilkerson/Aaron Hancock

 _____________________________________________________

Here is video highlight package from UE student Braden Pretzsch:

Watch & Listen to My Call of Ned Cox's Incredible Dunk

Evansville Aces guard Ned Cox threw down an awesome alley oop against Drake on Wednesday night.  It was so good it made ESPN's Top Ten on Sportscenter at #8.

Here is the video and my audio call.

WUEV Radio Call of Slam.  Lance Wilkerson/Scott Shreffler

Listen to Coach Simmons Talk about Arad McCutchan

1971 Champs Celebrate as Buzzer Sounds/Photo: UEMonday Aces head coach Marty Simmons and I got into a great conversation about National Basketball Hall of Famer Arad McCutchan.  Coach McCutchan guided the Aces from 1946-1977.  He had a record of 514-314 and won 5 College Division National Championships.  His greatest year was in 1964-65 season in which the Aces were a perfect 29-0.

On January 22nd and 23rd we are honoring Coach Mac's 5th National Championship team from 1971.  It's the 40th anniversary of that title team.  If you would like to attend the luncheon or want to know more information click this official UE link:  CLICK HERE.

You can listen to the entire segment about the 1971 team and Coach Simmons' thoughts on Arad McCutchan here:

Marty Simmons Show on WUEV from 1.10.11