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I can remember a time last year when the Crusaders opened the season 2-0 and had an impressive win over Central Florida. The internet was ablaze of bold predictions of a 20-win season, a possible upset of UNC and a sure sweep of Butler.

When the Crusaders lost to Indianapolis in an exhibition game this season, I was sure that I'd see a FireHomerDrew.com website show up based on the reaction of the message board community. Fast forward two weeks and VU gave the Tar Heels a tough game and suddenly we're comparing an end-of-bench Valparaiso player to one of the best players in the Horizon League.

Thursday night might have splashed a dose of reality across the Valparaiso fan base when the Crusaders lethargically trudged through an opening 20 minutes against IU-South Bend, exerting energy only when yelling at each other on the floor. When Brandon McPherson was a freshman, Valparaiso blew out the Titans by 70 points. On Thursday night, the Crusaders trailed 33-30 at the half, and it could've (and should've) been much worse. Howard Little and Tommy Kurth both knocked down shots in the final 91 seconds to trim the deficit from eight to three. 

In the locker room, Valparaiso coach Homer Drew broke from his norm and switched the lineup entering the second half. Erik Buggs, who was going to be held out of the game due to a nagging leg injury, started the second half despite not playing at all in the opening 20 minutes. While Buggs and Matt Kenney came out for the start, Valparaiso stars McPherson and Brandon Wood had a cold seat next to the coaching staff.

"It was a terrible feeling," McPherson said. "I knew I wasn't playing like I should be playing. Sitting on the bench, knowing I was letting my team down, I wanted to get back out there."

When McPherson made his way back on the floor, he made his presence felt in the way of a personal 14-0 run that was the beginning of a 21-0 Valparaiso run that saw the Crusaders go from down nine to up 12. McPherson hit four 3-pointers during the run.

"He hit the first one, the second one and then he was three-for-three," Drew said. "At that point, you figure you let him get the fourth."

By the time McPherson was done with his shooting display, the Crusaders were firmly in control and order was restored to the universe (and the VU message board).

If there was one development from the game for the future, it came on the subject of Buggs. Earlier in the day, Little tweeted that Buggs was going to miss the game and Little encouraged his teammate to rest his leg. Prior to the start of the game, Buggs was warming up, but the word was that the Memphis native was going to sit.

After the game, Drew praised the sophomore point guard's defensive efforts and mentioned that he inserted Buggs into the game because he wanted a "effort group" that played hard on the defensive end. He then made a curious statement regarding Buggs.

"He has an issue with his leg and we're still evaluating what our options are," Drew said.

When pressed what his issue with the leg was, or what kind of options Drew was talking about, the coach basically repeated himself.

"It's just an issue with his leg and we're still trying to get doctors' opinions now," Drew said.

Ok, so what does that even mean? Time to surmise a bit and put my conspiracy theorist hat on. Tommy Kurth has seemingly moved ahead of Buggs on the depth chart. Granted, both players do different things and they are different types of players, but they're both point guards. What if Buggs, and possibly the coaching staff, are thinking about going their separate ways? Buggs essentially played on a broken leg last season and if the injury is still nagging, perhaps a doctor will give an opinion that he should shut it down for the year. Ok, so then Buggs decides to transfer at the semester, he sits out a year and he could possibly play at another Division I school starting in the second semester next season with two and a half years of eligibility. 

This could sound completely far-fetched, and trust me when I say I have absolutely no information that points in this direction, it's just a theory. Drew was very non-committal about Buggs' injury on Thursday night, possibly because, just as Drew said, they don't know any information. What I do know is that twice already in the young season, Buggs has helped provide a defensive spark that has turned a game around. The Crusaders were trailing by 14 against Ball State and Buggs had a major impact in helping Valparaiso get back in the game. Same with Thursday night's game against IU-South Bend. If Buggs were to leave, I think the Crusaders would miss him more than anyone might realize.

Finally, let me give some kudos to Valparaiso sophomore center Cameron Witt. No, I'm not congratulating him for his two fouls and two turnovers in two minutes on Thursday, but I am giving him kudos for getting back on the floor immediately after the game and working on his shooting. This wasn't like last year, when walkons Andrew Ferry and Nick Shelton would shoot after the game, this was a player clearly frustrated with his performance, knowing he'll have to play 25 minutes a night from time-to-time. I watched Witt drain five straight 3-pointers and he was working well after the housekeeping staff began cleaning the ARC.