Tuesday, Dec. 10
Maryville at Bradley (ESPN3) -- 6:00 p.m. CT
UNI at #23 Colorado (Pac-12 Network) -- 8:00 p.m. CT
Wednesday, Dec. 11
Arkansas State at Missouri State (KOZL/ESPN+) -- 7:00 p.m. CT
MVC MBB Weekly Notebook (PDF)
Heating Up
MVC teams enter this week with a collective 59-37 non-conference record, which includes 23 wins in the past 31 games. Prior to Tuesday (Dec. 10), there are only 30 non-conference regular-season games remaining on the MVC slate.
MVC Player of the Week & MVC Newcomer of the Week: DeAndre Williams, Evansville
Williams led the Purple Aces to a pair of victories, as the sophomore averaged 29.0 points and 9.5 rebounds per game while tallying seven assists, four blocks and two steals in 28.5 minutes of work per game. He shot an unbelievable 88.5% (23-of-26) overall, 80% from outside and 88.9% from the line. His .944 field goal efficiency in the win over Miami is the best of any NCAA player this decade (with a minimum of 14 field goal tries).
Perfect at Home
Five MVC teams are perfect at home this year, including UNI (6-0), Drake (6-0), Bradley (5-0), Valparaiso (4-0) and Indiana State (2-0). MVC teams have also collectively won 23-straight home games. The league is 42-5 (.893) at home this year. That’s up from last year’s 47-16 (.746) ledger.
The Good Wins
MVC schools have posted 24 wins against teams picked in the top half of their league’s respective preseason polls. The MVC wins have included victories against the SEC pre-season favorite and No. 1 ranked Kentucky (Evansville), OVC pre-season favorite Belmont (Illinois State), the MAC pre-season favorite Toledo (Valparaiso), the Big South pre-season choice Radford (Bradley), the MEAC pre-season favorite North Carolina Central (Southern Illinois), the Summit pre-season pick North Dakota State (Indiana State), and the Horizon League favorite Wright State (Indiana State).
Power Play
Thanks to recent wins by Bradley (over Kansas State) and UNI (over South Carolina), the MVC has recorded a 3-7 record this season against Power Conferences (the five FBS football leagues, plus the Big East).
Against Ranked Teams
A pair of MVC teams face ranked non-league opponents this week, as UNI takes on No. 23 Colorado and Drake faces No. 12 Dayton. The MVC is 1-3 against Top-25 teams this season, with Evansville’s win at No. 1 Kentucky the lone victory.
Hitting Their Shots
Loyola has ranked among the top 17 in the nation in field goal percentage in each of the last three seasons and this year is no exception. The Ramblers enter this week ranked No. 2 in the NCAA in field goal shooting by connecting on 52.5 percent of its shots. Loyola has led the Conference in field goal shooting in each of the last three seasons. Since the MVC began tracking team field goal percentage (1963-64), no league team has led the league for four-straight seasons.
Getting to the Line
Evansville enters the week as one of the most prolific free throw shooting teams in the NCAA. The Aces rank 7th in free throws made and 15th in free throws attempted. The Aces’ team percentage of 76.1 leads the MVC and ranks 37th in the NCAA. Evansville’s KJ Riley ranks 2nd nationally with 57 made free throws this season. Indiana State’s Tyreke Key leads the MVC with his 92.6 free throw percentage, and that figure ranks No. 14 nationally. Key’s 50 total makes ranks 13th-best in the NCAA (and second in the MVC behind Riley).
Hitting the Outside Shots
Indiana State ranks third in the NCAA in three-point field goal percentage, as the Sycamores have connected on 42.4 percent of their attempts from beyond the arc this season. Trae Berhow of UNI has been the most proficient beyond the arc this year, ranking 6th in the NCAA by connecting on 51.9 percent of his tries.
The Intangibles
Valparaiso leads the MVC in a host of key statistical categories, including total assists (15th in the NCAA), total steals (21st in the NCAA), turnover margin (63rd in the nation).and total turnovers forced (36th in the NCAA). Javon Freeman-Liberty also leads the league in scoring (22.3 points per game, which ranks 11th nationally. If he maintains that average, it would be the best in the MVC since D.J. Balentine of Evansville averaged 22.8 points per game for the Aces in 2013-14.
Hitting the Offensive Boards
Elijah Childs and the Braves rank among the nation’s best this season on the offensive glass. Childs is ninth nationally by collecting 4.11 offensive rebounds per game, while also placing 37th in the NCAA overall with 9.6 boards per game. The junior collected nine offensive rebounds in last Tuesday’s game at No. 15 Memphis – the most by a Brave since Donte Thomas in 2017. Overall, the Braves are 11th nationally by collecting 14.1 offensive rebounds per game, while placing 50th in the NCAA with 40.1 rebounds per game.