By RICHIE HALL
John Kiser got do to something a few weeks ago that few of his fellow college basketball players also got to do: Play in a championship game.
Kiser finished his senior season at Valparaiso University by playing in the championship contest of the Missouri Valley Conference tournament. It was the former Noblesville star’s final game of a remarkable career that saw him go from a walk-on as a freshman to a senior that earned awards, honors and the satisfaction of a solid career.
“It’s been a fun and challenging journey,” said Kiser. “Coming in I didn’t really know what to expect but I decided that I was gonna make the most of everything.”
While Kiser played sporadically during the first part of his freshman season, Kiser was a regular on the floor in the second half. In Valpo’s next-to-last game of the season against Milwaukee, Kiser earned the first start of his career. He was part of a team that finished the season 24-9 and received a berth into the NIT.
Kiser earned a scholarship his sophomore year and became a solid contributor to the team over his next three seasons. After two 15-win seasons during his sophomore and junior years, this season’s Crusaders team finished 19-16. Younger players stepped up for Valpo this year, including sophomore Javon Freeman-Liberty, far and away the Crusaders’ leading scorer with a 19.0 points per game average.
“This season was extremely special to me because of the guys I got to play with,” said Kiser. “Seeing my teammates grow throughout the year and the team grow together was something I didn’t get the last two years. I really wanted the team to get back on track with where we were my freshman year and this year was a huge step. I look forward to seeing what these guys do in the upcoming years.”
Valpo fans may have gotten a sneak preview in how the Crusaders performed during the MVC tournament. Valparaiso entered as a No. 7 seed, winning its first-round game over the University of Evansville 58-55 on March 5. Kiser had six points and five rebounds in that game.
In the March 6 quarter-finals, the Crusaders upset the No. 2 seed, Loyola of Chicago, the first time Valpo had ever won against the Ramblers. The Crusaders got past Loyola 74-73 in overtime, with Kiser providing the assist on the game-winner, a layup by Eron Gordon. Kiser scored 12 points in that game, matching his career-high from earlier in the season (he also scored 12 points in Valparaiso’s Jan. 18 game with Indiana State).
The Crusaders continued their run in the March 7 semi-finals, beating Missouri State 89-82. Kiser scored 17 points to set a new career-high mark. Valpo’s run finally ended in the championship game on March 8, when it lost to Bradley 80-66 after playing four games in four days. Kiser scored eight points.
“The Missouri Valley Conference is a bottom to top hard conference to play in,” said Kiser. “Anyone could win on any given night and that showed in the tournament. Winning games back to back to back and playing the fourth one on that fourth day is a very difficult thing to do physically and mentally. Not being able to sleep at night and hearing the crowd and band playing while you tried to sleep was exhausting. The championship game was heartbreaking but we had achieved so much to the point and just ran out of gas at the end. It was cool for this year that we were the only like Cinderella story to happen in March. It was very fortunate for us to even play our conference tournament and I will always be thankful for the experiences and memories that I made.”
Kiser has been honored for his contributions to the Crusaders’ team this season, starting with being named to the MVC All-Bench team, Scholar-Athlete and the All-Tournament team. He was also named as an MVC Scholar-Athlete Honorable Mention during his sophomore year. Kiser is majoring in Mechanical Engineering and said he has “had a few job interviews that I am continuing to pursue but nothing set in stone yet.”
“Valpo has been amazing to me,” said Kiser. “It’s really just a place that has everything and you can make the most of it if you want to. The professors are all amazing and really care that you are doing well. And the people here at Valpo really make the place what it is.”
John Kiser finished his senior season on the Valparaiso University men’s basketball team by helping the Crusaders to the championship game of the Missouri Valley Conerence tournament. The former Noblesville star went from being a walk-on as a freshman to earning All-Bench and All-Tournament honors as a senior. (Photos provided)
John Kiser is pictured on Senior Day with sister Anna Kiser and parents Brian and Chris Kiser.