NOTEBOOK (PDF)
Closing Out Non-Con
The Valley will close out the brief non-conference slate over the next eight days with five more games currently scheduled.
The Valley sits 31-21 (.596) during non-conference play so far this season.
Heading Toward League Play
The league’s 90-game conference slate begins on Friday, Jan. 1. In the new format, most MVC teams will face one another in a two-game series on back-to-back days at the same site. Each institution will play four road series and four home series and will also face their designated ‘travel partner’ in a single-game, home-and-home series.
Incredible Two-Year Run
Missouri State completed an exceptional two-year run From Dec. 20, 2018-Dec. 19, 2020 with a 54-9 record, a win total that ranks fifth nationally behind only Baylor, Oregon, UConn and Stanford over those dates. Each of those teams has spent time at No. 1 in the AP poll during that span.
Top 25 Success
The Valley is 2-2 vs. AP Top 25 Teams this season, with Missouri State’s win over #12 Maryland and UNI’s over #22 South Dakota State.
The last time The Valley had a pair of AP Top 25 wins during the non-conference portion of the season was back in 2002 when Drake beat No. 18 Iowa State and UNI beat No. 24 Iowa State.
Power Five Wins
The MVC has secured five wins over Power Five programs during the shortened non-conference schedule. The Valley has gone 5-8 vs. Power Five teams after going 9-12 in 2019-20. The Valley sits 4-4 vs. the Big Ten, 1-1 vs. the SEC, 0-2 vs. the Big 12 and 0-1 vs. the ACC. Missouri State and Valpo each have two wins, while Drake owns the other.
The remaining non-conference schedule has two more games vs. Power Five opponents as Southern Illinois will face Illinois and Drake will travel to Iowa State Tuesday.
Impressive vs. B1G
Big Ten women’s basketball teams have lost only four home non-conference games this year. Three of those four losses have come via Valley women’s basketball programs. Valpo claimed wins at Illinois and Purdue, while Drake won at Minnesota. The Big Ten has lost only eight non-conference games overall with four of those coming to Valley teams. The other four losses are to Kentucky (vs. Indiana), Tennessee (at Indiana), Creighton (vs. Nebraska) and Syracuse (vs. Penn State).
Home Cooking
Currently MVC teams are 19-6 (.760) at home this season. Last year, The Valley posted an impressive 39-9 (.813) record at home during non-conference play.
Five MVC teams are unbeaten at home: Evansville (3-0), Illinois State (2-0), Indiana State (2-0), Valparaiso (2-0) and Loyola (1-0) have unblemished records on their home courts this season.
1,000-Point Club
The Valley has five active players in the 1,000-point club. Bradley’s Lasha Petree became the 21st player in program history to reach 1,000 career points in Thursday’s loss to South Dakota, scoring 23 points. She is just the fourth Brave in program history to reach the mark in fewer than 70 games, topping the mark in her 65th career contest.
Current MVC Players in 1,000-Point Club
1,275 - Gabi Haack, Bradley
1,254 - Makenzie Silvey, Southern Illinois
1,103 - Karli Rucker, UNI
1,083 - Brice Calip, Missouri State
1,022 - Lasha Petree, Bradley
Approaching 1,000-Point Club
984 - Abby Brockmeyer, Southern Illinois
Polling
Missouri State fell to No. 24 in this week’s AP Top 25 Poll after suffering a home loss to South Dakota State. MSU sits No. 20 in the USA Today Coaches Top 25 poll (Dec. 15). This marks the first time in program history the Lady Bears finished the non-conference schedule ranked in the AP Top 25 for two consecutive seasons.
Mid-Major Top-25 Poll
The December 15th edition of the CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top 25 continues to have Missouri State at the top with 29 of the 31 1st place votes, while Drake moves up to No. 9 and UNI enters the poll at No. 17. Bradley is receiving votes in the poll this week.
UE: Aces’ Hot Start
Moving to 3-1 on the season, the Aces accomplished something they had not achieved in over a decade. Evansville’s 3-1 start is its best since the Aces opened the season 4-1 during the 2008-09 campaign in which UE went on to capture the 2009 MVC Tournament Championship. The Aces are also on a three-game winning streak, their best since the 2016-17 season when Evansville recorded six-straight victories.
ILS: COVID Strikes Again
Illinois State had to cancel its non-conference finale versus Green Bay on Saturday following positive COVID-19 tests within the Omaha program and subsequent contact tracing. The Mavericks had played the Redbirds in Redbird Arena the night prior. A decision on safely resuming team activities will be made in the days to come following additional discussions and medical testing. Five of ISU’s eight scheduled games this season have been canceled due to COVID-19 concerns.
SIU: Taking Care of the Ball
The Salukis turned the ball over a season-low six times in the win over Kansas City. It was the fewest turnovers for SIU since its 66-41 win over Evansville on March 3, 2018 in which SIU turned the ball over just four times. Southern has committed the fewest turnovers per game (12.5) in the Valley. SIU’s win over Kansas City marked the 19th time during Coach Stein’s tenure that the Salukis have finished with single-digit turnovers.
INS: Dominating the Boards
The Sycamores continue to put pressure on opposing teams on the boards, most recently out-rebounding Xavier 45-34. ISU is 56th nationally and fourth in the Valley in rebounding margin at +7.8 while averaging 42.4 rebounds-per-game. A big part of that comes from the presence of senior forward Jamyra McChristine, who is averaging 8.8 rebounds per game (third in the MVC) and a league-leading 4.6 offensive rebounds-per-game, the 15th-best number in the nation.
DU: Road Trippin’
Drake, which scheduled the game at No. 22 Texas just days before the matchup, has played five of its six games this season away from the Knapp Center. Drake will close its non-conference slate with another tough opponent on the road Tuesday when it makes the trip to Iowa State. The Bulldogs’ challenging non-conference schedule has logged the team roughly 2,550 miles on the road so far.
VALPO: Add Another
With two wins over Big Ten teams already under its belt, Valpo added a Big East victory to its slate this week with a home win over Xavier. Valpo had been 0-8 versus Xavier before Wednesday’s win, with seven of those games decided by double figures. Xavier is just the second current Big East program Valpo has ever beaten, joining Butler.
UNI: Round Two
The Panthers meet South Dakota State again, this time on the road in Brookings. The Jackrabbits are 6-2 so far this season with three wins over ranked opponents, including Missouri State. They are averaging 66.4 points per game, but the Panthers held them to just 48 points in UNI’s win.
BU: On the Mark
Senior Gabi Haack knocked down 7-of-10 three-pointers last week against South Dakota, finishing with a season-best 24 points against the Coyotes. Haack, who ranks 11th nationally in made three-pointers (22) through games of Dec. 20, now has three career outings with at least seven made three pointers and is 24th in MVC history with 228 career triples. Haack has scored in double figures 70 times, which is tied for the eighth most double-digit scoring efforts in program history, and her 228-career three’s is currently 15th nationally among active players.
MVC Career Three-Pointers
Rank Name (Years) 3FGM
23. Kristi Cirone, ILS (2005-09) 229
24. Gabi Haack, Bradley (2017-present) 228
25. Katie Broadway, ILS (2008-12) 225
LUC: Day Digs the Home Opener
Loyola junior forward Allison Day paced the attack in Friday night’s 80-61 win over Purdue Northwest. Day poured in a game-high 19 points, finishing with perfect marks from the field (6-6 FGs) and the free throw line (6-6 FTs). The 6-foot-1 forward has made a habit out of dominating in Loyola’s home openers during her first three seasons in Rogers Park, averaging an impressive 17.0 points and 6.7 rebounds across the trio of contests.
This week's Missouri Valley Conference Player and Newcomer of the Week are Evansville's Abby Feit and Drake's Grace Berg.
MISSOURI VALLEY CONFERENCE PLAYER OF THE WEEK:
Abby Feit, So., G/F, Evansville
Helping lead Evansville to its best start in more than a decade, sophomore Abby Feit posted a pair of impressive performances last week. Against Oakland City on Wednesday, Feit became the first player in NCAA DI to produce a game with 28 points (a career high), 14 rebounds, six steals and four blocks, tallying her second double-double of the season in the 84-52 win. On Saturday in a 66-60 win over Miami (Ohio), Feit again reached the 20-point mark, scoring a game-high 24 points, while adding eight rebounds and four steals. On the season, Feit leads The Valley in rebounds per game (9.5) and steals per game (3.3), sits tied for first in blocks (2.3), second in points per game (20.5) and three-point percentage (60.0%), and third in field-goal percentage (59.6%).
Other Notable Performances: Gabi Haack (BRAD); Maddie Monahan (DU); Terrion Moore (ILS); Jamyra McChristine (INS); Allison Day (LUC); Brice Calip (MSU); Bre Gunnels (UNI); Abby Brockmeyer (SIU); Shay Frederick (VALPO)
MISSOURI VALLEY CONFERENCE NEWCOMER OF THE WEEK:
Grace Berg, RSo., F, Drake
Drake redshirt sophomore Grace Berg continues her strong play in her first season as a Bulldog. Berg scored a game-high 23 points against South Dakota State and just missed her first career double-double with nine rebounds to go with three steals and four assists. She made a career-high seven free throws in the loss to the Jackrabbits. Despite battling foul trouble, Berg had eight points, against No. 22 Texas. Berg averages 17.2 points per game, which ranks fourth in The Valley.
Other Notable Performances: Rylie Stephens (UE); Terrion Moore (ILS); Sitori Tanin (LUC); Sara McCullough (UNI); Adrianna Katcher (SIU); Leah Earnest (VALPO)