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MVC Player of the Week
Isiaih Mosley, Missouri State, 6-5, 201, So., Gd.
Columbia (Mo.) Rock Bridge High
   Mosley played all but six minutes of Missouri State’s sweep at Illinois State this weekend and averaged a team-high 21.5 points per game with 7.0 rebounds and 6.5 assists per contest. He started a pivotal 10-1 Bears run in the second half of Game 1 in Normal that took a tie game and turned it into a nine-point MSU advantage at a key juncture in the game and went on to score 19 points on 7-of-11 shooting. In Game 2, Mosley was everywhere. He posted 24 points, 8 rebounds and 7 assists, including MSU’s last 9 points of the contest to help the Bears win their third straight at Redbird Arena for the first time ever. Once again in Game 2, his 3-pointer with just over 10 minutes to go erased a one-point Redbird lead and with two Mosley buckets turned it into a seven-point Bears advantage two-and-a-half minutes later. The Bears standout also moved into 10th place nationally in scoring after Sunday’s action.

MVC Newcomer of the Week
Sheldon Edwards, Valparaiso, 6-4, 180, Fr. Gd.
West Palm Beach (Fla.) Palm Beach Lakes [TLAP Sports Academy]
  Edwards helped his team hand No. 25 Drake its first loss of the season on Sunday, a convincing 74-57 triumph that came a day after a narrow 80-77 defeat to the Bulldogs. Edwards averaged 15.5 points per game over the two contests this week to tie for the team lead while knocking down five 3s, swiping five steals, dishing out four assists and pulling down seven rebounds. He hit four triples in Saturday's contest to lead the team in scoring, matching a career high with 20 points. Edwards followed with his second straight double-figure scoring output by posting 11 on Sunday, when he made his third career start and first since Dec. 1. He was also a factor on the defensive end with three steals to help Valpo hold Drake to a season-low 57 points. In addition, Edwards threw down a thunderous dunk in Sunday's victory that checked in at No. 7 on SportsCenter's Top 10 plays. The Valpo freshman was named the College Sports Madness MVC Player of the Week on Monday morning. 

OTHERS NOMINATED

• Tyreke Key, Indiana State, Sr. -- Key had yet another stellar week for the Sycamores, averaging 24.5 points while shooting 50-percent (18-of-36) from the floor, adding 7.0 rebounds per game, and moving into ninth all-time on the Indiana State scoring list, passing Eddie Bird. The Celina, Tenn. native tied a season-high 31 points in ISU’s win over Northern Iowa Saturday night that pushed the team’s win streak to seven, tying the second-best Missouri Valley Conference win streak in program history. Key has jumped to No. 2 in the Valley in points per game, now sitting at 15.9 ppg, and also ranks second in free throws (85.4 percent) and leads the league in minutes played (33.9 per game).
• Cameron Krutwig, Loyola, Sr. -- Krutwig followed up a MVC Player of the Week performance with another big weekend, averaging 18.5 points, 8.5 rebounds, 5.0 assists, 1.5 blocks and 1.5 assists per game, while shooting 66.7 percent (14-for-21) from the field as the Ramblers ran their winning streak to 10 games with a sweep of Evansville. In Loyola’s 68-55 decision on February 6, the 6-foot-9 center recorded his first double-double since December 18, totaling 20 points and 11 rebounds, while handing out four assists and blocking three shots. The two-time First Team All-MVC pick then put up 17 points, six boards, six assists and two steals in a 69-58 victory the following day. Krutwig also became only the second player in program history (Alfredrick Hughes) to rank in the school’s all-time top 10 in both scoring and rebounding. Krutwig has 1,679 points, 852 rebounds and 337 assists to his credit for his illustrious career. For the year, Krutwig is contributing 15.5 ppg, 6.1 rpg, 2.9 apg and 1.1 spg.
• Noah Carter, UNI, So. -- Carter averaged 17.5 points and 10 rebounds per game while splitting the series with Indiana State last week. Carter made 46.2% from the field and 53.8% from beyond the arc against the Sycamores. Carter went 4-8 from the field for 10 points and hauled in 9 rebounds during Saturday’s game with the Sycamores. The sophomore forward took over Sunday’s game with 25 points, 13 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 blocks and 2 steals. 
• Noah Frederking, Evansville, Sr. -- Frederking led the Purple Aces with an average of 14.5 points per game in the weekend series at Loyola.  The senior was outstanding from outside, knocking down 7 of his 12 attempts.  In the opener, Frederking posted 15 points on 6-of-10 shooting while hitting 3 of his 7 triples over the course of 36 minutes.  He added two rebounds.  Sunday’s contest saw Frederking connect on 4 of his 5 outside tries on his way to 14 points.  He added two more boards in 37 minutes of work.
• DJ Horne, Illinois State, So. -- Averaged 20.5 points per game in two games against Missouri State, making 42 percent of his shots from the field, and 58 percent (7-of-12) from beyond the arc. He also pulled down six rebounds, dished out five assists and grabbed two steals on the week. In the opening game of the weekend Horne scored a season-high-tying 23 points, making 8-of-18 field goal attempts, and going 3-of-5 from long range. He also pulled down four rebounds and gave out three assists and added a steal. A day later he scored 18 points on 7-of-18 shooting, while making 4-of-7 shots from beyond the arc.
• Braden Norris, Loyola, RSo. -- Norris had an impressive weekend in Loyola’s two-game sweep of Evansville, tallying 14.0 points, 3.0 rebounds and 1.0 assists per outing and connecting on 52.9 percent (9-for-17) of his field goal tries. With the two wins last weekend, the Ramblers extended their winning streak to 10 games and they are off to their best start since 1965-66 (18-2). The transfer from Oakland had nine points, four boards and a pair of assists in a 68-55 victory against the Purple Aces to start the weekend, then went off for a team-high 19 points, his second-highest output as a Rambler, in a 69-58 win in the nightcap. Norris is accounting for 7.1 ppg, 2.8 rpg and 2.9 apg, and shooting 39.5 percent (32-for-81) from three-point range, this season. 
• Julian Larry, Indiana State, Fr. -- Larry continued his strong play for Indiana State, averaging 9.5 points, 2.0 rebounds, 2.0 assists, and 2.0 steals, while playing high-level on-ball defense. The Frisco, Texas native put together a career-best performance against Northern Iowa on Sunday, scoring a career-high 14 points while swiping three steals, dishing out two assists, shooting 3-of-4 from three, and not committing a single turnover. Since returning to the starting lineup against Bradley (Jan. 31), Larry has committed just two turnovers in 91 total minutes of play. 
• ShanQuan Hemphill, Drake, Sr. -- Led Drake with back-to-back double-doubles in the series at Valparaiso … both were his first double-doubles as a Bulldog … averaged 15.0 points and 11.0 rebounds per game in the series while shooting 62.5 percent … he opened the set with 18 points on 9-of-16 shooting with 12 rebounds … in Sunday’s finale, he had 12 points and 10 rebounds, four of them offensive … eight of his points in the first game came in a five-minute span in the second half to help Drake erase a deficit and take the lead. 
• Demarcus Sharp, Missouri State, Jr. -- In just his third career start, Sharp poured in 15 points and dished out 4 assists in Missouri State’s Game 1 win at Illinois State on Saturday, playing 39 minutes with a block, a steal and 6-of-9 shooting. He added 7 assists, 6 rebounds and 5 minutes in a 40-minute appearance on Sunday to help the Bears to a series sweep at Redbird Arena. Sharp averaged 10.5 points, 3.0 rebounds and 5.5 assists per game while firing at a .533 clip from the field. His 3.7 assist-to-turnover ratio for the week, also led the squad.
• Terry Nolan Jr., Bradley, Jr. -- Nolan Jr. led the Braves with 15.0 points and 4.0 assists per game in a pair of contests versus Southern Illinois over the weekend – shooting 55.6 percent from the field and 44.4 percent from 3-point range. The junior tallied a season-best 23 points in Saturday’s win over the Salukis, making 7-of-10 field goals and 3-of-5 from behind the arc.

Loyola Ranked No. 22 in AP
Loyola is ranked No. 22 in the latest Associated Press Top 25 Poll, and the Ramblers are 23rd in the Ferris Mowers Coaches Poll (Feb. 8).  Loyola was last ranked in either the AP or Coaches Poll in 2018, when it earned the No. 7 spot in the final Coaches Poll after posting a 32-6 record and making the program’s first trip to the NCAA Final Four since 1963. Drake is also receiving votes in both polls this week after being ranked No. 25 in the Feb. 1 AP and coaches polls.

Rambling On
At 12-1 in Missouri Valley Conference play, Loyola is off to its best start in league action, regardless of league affiliation, since opening the 1984-85 season with a 13-1 ledger in Midwestern Collegiate Conference competition.  Loyola’s current 10-game win streak is its longest since capturing 14-straight outings during the 2017-18 season that ended with a trip to the NCAA Final Four.

Drake’s Historic Start
    In the league’s 114-year history, a total of six MVC men’s basketball teams, including Drake this year, have started a season with 18-straight wins. In the three previous 18-0 MVC starts since World War II -- all three reached the NCAA Tournament, and two advanced to the NCAA Final Four. Drake’s previous best start to a season was 8-0 in 1970-71.

Homecourt Advantage?
Home teams are 16-12 in the first game of a the league’s two-game back-to-back scheduling model and are 15-13 in the second game of the series.  This season, MVC teams have a 33-26 record at home in league play.  That home winning percentage of 55.9 is 19th among conferences.  The MVC led the nation last year with a 64-26 record (71.1 percent) at home in league play.  The MVC has been in the Top 6 in each of the past three seasons (home record in league play).  This year, Valley men’s teams are 34-2 (94.4 pct.) at home against non-league teams -- the best in the MVC since at least 1975-76.

Midway Point
Drake reached the mythical midway point of the MVC schedule in sole possession of first place with its 9-0 start.  Since 1993, all 38 teams in the lead (or co-lead) at the midway point have reached post-season play.  That includes 30 NCAA bids and eight NIT berths.  [It does not include the 2020 season, although UNI would have earned an NCAA at-large or been the league’s AQ for the NIT.] 

Pause in the Action
Since Nov. 11 (two weeks prior to the start of the basketball season) and through today (Feb. 8), MVC schools have had 25 total non-conference games canceled/postponed due to COVID.  A total of 24 of the lost games were replaced by another opponent.  The MVC has had 31 game-date shifts in league play since Christmas.

• Non-Conference Games Permitted:  90
• Non-Conference Games Scheduled:  68
• Games Cancelled/Added:  25/24
• Conference Games Scheduled/Played:  90/59
• MVC Games Postponed/Rescheduled:  17/17
• Total Games Moved:  31
• Games Canceled:  0

Nothing But NET
Loyola (14) and Drake (32) represent the MVC in the Top 35 of the NCAA’s NET rankings (through Feb. 7).  The last time the MVC had two teams in the Top 35 of a season-ending metric was in 2014-15 (UNI was 11 in the RPI, and Wichita State was 12).  Both reached the NCAA Tournament that season.

Back-to-Back
Below is a statistical snapshot as part of the league’s back-to-back series (cumulative averages, through Feb. 7).  Teams that have won the second games of a series have averaged surprisingly just 0.93 more points from their bench in that second game (over 28 games). 

• Home Teams -- 16-12 (G1); 15-13 (G2)
• Points (Home) -- +3.54  |  (Visitors) -- minus-1.36
• Pts./Possession (Home) -- +0.066
• Pts./Possession (Visitors) -- +0.006
• FG Pct. Improved G2 (Home) - 17 of 28  (Road) - 8 of 28

Aces’ Turnaround
Only one team in MVC history has followed a winless season with more than six conference wins the following year.  Southern Illinois was 0-16 in league play in 1980-81 and then went 7-9 in conference play in 1981-82.   Last year, UE was 0-18 in league play, and the Aces enter the week with a 6-6 mark.

For the Ages
Evansville is the ‘oldest’ team in the Missouri Valley Conference, as its roster has an average of 21.54 (through 2/7/2021).  Drake, however, leads the league in average age by its “Top 7,” as defined by the most total minutes played.  That Top 7 for Drake has an average age of 22.61.  League-leader Loyola has an average "top 7" age of 22.14, second to Drake.

Ramblers Tops in KenPom
Loyola leads the Missouri Valley Conference with its No. 14 rating in KenPom (Drake is second at 64.)  Notably, the Ramblers were rated 31 in KenPom the year they advanced to the NCAA Final Four (2018). Eighteen previous MVC teams in the past 20 seasons have finished the year in KenPom’s Top 30.  All but one earned an NCAA Tournament berth [the only one not to was Wichita State 2011, and the Shockers won the NIT that year.]  The combined post-season record of those 18 teams:  27-17.

Jake Closing in On 300
Coach Ben Jacobson of UNI is approaching 300 career wins, currently sitting at 297.  Only three others in MVC history have reached the milestone:  Henry Iba (486), Eddie Hickey (337) and Dana Altman (327).

BU .. McAdoo Returns
The Braves had a welcomed return from junior Kevin McAdoo this weekend. After taking a leave of absence due to family reasons, McAdoo played in his first game since Dec. 22. He started both contests against Southern Illinois and contributed 11 points, four assists and three rebounds during the weekend.

DU .. Winning Ways
Drake’s current 9-1 record in league play ties for its second best start to league action and the nine league wins are already tied for the 13th most in program history.  With its 18 total wins, Drake is guaranteed a winning season for the third-consecutive season. It is the second time in the last 40 years and the sixth time in program history.

UE .. Accuracy at its Finest
In the weekend series at Loyola, Evansville’s Noah Frederking was 7-of-12 from long range including a 4-for-5 effort on Sunday.  He is shooting 41.2% on the season (6th in the league) while averaging 2.6 3-point makes per contest – second in the Valley.  Over the last four games, the senior has hit 11 of his 23 long range attempts – 47.8%.  He has multiple 3-point makes in each of the last seven games and 16 out of 18 games over the course of the season.

ILS .. Long Range Maker
This season, Illinois State sophomore DJ Horne has made 50-of-109 of his shots from beyond the three-point arc, a percentage of 45.9, which is ninth in the NCAA. He is one of three sophomores inside of the top-10 in the NCAA standings. His career three-point percentage of 42.9 (97-of-226) stand as the 15th-best active percentage in the country. His career percentage currently has him in fourth place in school history, and the percentage is eight-best. His 50 three-point makes puts him in a tie for 10th in school history among sophomores, and the best sophomore shooting percentage by a sophomore in the ISU record books.

INS .. Streak Snapped
Not only did Sunday’s loss to UNI snap the Sycamores’ seven-game winning streak, it also halted ISU’s defensive run of allowing fewer than 60 points. Indiana State had four consecutive MVC games allowing less than 60 points for the first time since 2010-11, when it had a run of five consecutive games.  

LUC .. On the Road Again
The Ramblers have 21 MVC road wins since the start of the 2017-18 season, the most of any Valley team in that stretch. Loyola has won its last six road games in league play, and just completed a five-game road trip with a spotless 5-0 mark in which its average margin of victory was 20.4 points.

MSU .. It’s a Steal
Bears senior Gaige Prim has recorded a steal in 11 straight games and now leads the squad in steals (18) and blocked shots (19). Meanwhile, the defensive stalwart is averaging 5.8 defensive rebounds per game, which ranks third in the MVC. Prim also went over 1,000 career points in Sunday’s game at Illinois State, including his freshman season at Division II West Texas A&M. 

UNI .. Double Trouble
Noah Carter recorded his second double-double of the season during Sunday’s comeback win over Indiana State, with 25 points and 13 rebounds.

SIU .. Downtown Dawgs
SIU is shooting 39.3 percent from the 3-point line this season, which leads the MVC and ranks 14th nationally. In the last three games, the Salukis have made 37 3-pointers. SIU’s 15 3-pointers against UNI was the most for the program since 1998, and the Salukis followed that up by going 22-for-53 (41.5%) from downtown against a Bradley team that came into the weekend allowing opponents to shoot just 38.7% from the field, which led the MVC and ranked 12th nationally. SIU’s current 3-point field goal percentage is the highest for the program since shooting 39.8% in 1994-95. 

VALPO .. #SCTop10 Again 
Sheldon Edwards’ dunk from Sunday’s victory over No. 25 Drake checked in at No. 7 on SportsCenter’s Top 10 plays late Sunday night. This marks the third time in the last two years Valpo basketball has produced an #SCTop10 play. Since joining the Missouri Valley Conference, Valpo Athletics have been featured on the popular daily countdown on eight occasions spanning five sports - men’s basketball (four times), women’s basketball, softball, soccer and volleyball. 

This One Ranks Up There 
Valpo earned its fourth victory in program history over an Associated Press Top 25 team on Sunday, upsetting previously undefeated No. 25 Drake 74-57. Two of the four victories against nationally-ranked opponents have come under head coach Matt Lottich’s watch as his team knocked off No. 21/25 Rhode Island 65-62 in 2016-17, Lottich’s first season at the helm. Prior to Lottich assuming head coaching duties, Valpo was just 2-65 all-time against ranked teams (1998 NCAA Tournament “The Shot” vs. Ole Miss; 1988 “Lutheran Miracle” vs. Notre Dame).