Valparaiso Preview, 2025-26

Valparaiso Beacons

December 2nd, 2025 at Fiserv Forum

Head Coach: Roger Powell, Jr (22-44 at Valparaiso)

Three-Year NET Average: 264.7

Three-Year kenpom Average: 265.7

Projected 2025-26 T-Rank: 279

Photo from The Victory Bell

State of the Program

Valparaiso has clearly fallen from their heyday, when the Drew family guided them to nine NCAA Tournament bids in a twenty-year span, highlighted by a Sweet 16 appearance in 1998. This will be Roger Powell's third year in charge and he's exceeded preseason expectations each of the first two, though the Beacons are still seeking their first winning conference record since 2017 when they left the Horizon. It will be a tough task as the only returning minutes come in the form of Justus McNair, a reserve that managed just 11.2 mpg last year.

Rotation

Powell has options at the point, but Brody Whitaker is the most proven, even if he's more natural off the ball. Whitaker is a volume scorer who's especially active on the glass at both ends for a guard. Justus McNair is the lone returning player and was Powell's first recruit at Valparaiso. While his playing time was erratic last year, he did have some notable highs, including a half-court buzzer-beating three that capped off a 22-point comeback win at Western Michigan. Isaiah Barnes joins from Tulsa where he was a two-year starter after failing to break through at Michigan. He's an effective rim scorer who should bolster Valpo as a driver and cutter. Owen Dease is the most productive D1 player on the roster. He was a dangerous three-point threat and solid defender for Corpus Christi. Don't be surprised to see him take an alpha scorer role on this team. Shon Tupuola was a double-double machine at the NAIA level, where he put up video game numbers. The bench is also populated by players moving up a level. JUCO Mark Brown, Canadian import Sader Servilus, D2 up-transfer Tucker Tornatta, and freshman Kobe Walker are all unproven at the D1 level but were contributors for lower level programs.

Style of Play

Powell is slowly molding this team to what he wants it to be. The like to attack the rim and work through the big men, running a lot of post up, inside-out, and pick & pop actions. They settle for too much midrange and pull-ups, though. It's very clear they prioritized shooting this year after two seasons with sub-300 eFG% rankings in Powell's first two years. As you can see below, the only areas they were really above average were midrange two-point field goals, which is a problem because they are inherently inefficient shots. They tried to make up for that largely by not turning the ball over. Expect a disciplined offense that attacks the paint, finds their bigs, and kicks the ball out to shooters.

On defense, Valpo plays a high-energy style designed to make teams work deep into the shot clock. The guards lead the point of attack, forcing steals and funneling shooters inside. They are good at chasing teams off the three-point line, but are vulnerable at the rim where teams shot 62.3% against them (#331 nationally). They were strong on the defensive glass last year, typically limiting opponents to one shot thanks to Cooper Schwieger and Kaspar Sepp, but both transferred out. The biggest question may be if they have the raw talent to keep up with other Division 1 rosters.

2025-26 Outlook

Powell has trended up in his first two seasons, but the transfer portal wreaked havoc on his roster this past summer. There were nine different players that started at least one game for Valpo last season. One of them graduated, eight of them transferred, including two that went to high-majors. As a result, T-Rank projects the Beacons last of the twelve programs in the Missouri Valley. Powell's analytic improvement has been solid each of his first two years, but with a roster mostly made up of players from lower divisions, it's hard to believe this team has the talent to be much more than a last-place team. On paper, this is one of the weakest teams Marquette will face and should be a comfortable win.

Marquette Connection

While Marquette hasn't played Valparaiso in nearly two decades, the then-Crusaders used to be a regular opponent on the Golden Eagles' schedule. The last time the two teams met was November 27, 2006 when #8 Marquette went on the road to take on Homer Drew's Crusaders. Marquette raced out to a 21-6 lead, but Valpo rallied back to cut the deficit to 31-24 at the half. It was a back-and-forth second half, with the lead changing four times in the final minutes. Jarryd Loyd hit a three with 0:23 to play to tie the game at 62, then Dominic James drilled this three with 3.4 seconds to play to secure the 65-62 win for Marquette.