Through games of Sunday, Nov. 24, the Missouri Valley Conference ranks No. 11 in KenPom as a league.   Bradley (Myrtle Beach Invitational); Drake (Shriners Children’s Charleston Classic) earned MTE titles on Sunday.

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Tuesday, Nov. 26	Network	Time (CT)
Southern Illinois vs. Eastern Kentucky	FloCollege	11:00 AM
Murray State vs. UT Arlington		4:00 PM
MoState vs. South Dakota State	FloCollege	4:00 PM
Belmont vs. Loyola Marymount	CBS Sports	7:30 PM
Wednesday, Nov. 27	Network	Time (CT)
Belmont vs. Tulane/Wyoming	CBS Sports	TBD
Southern Illinois vs. Florida Tech	FloCollege	2:00 PM
Northern Illinois at Valparaiso	ESPN+	3:00 PM
Thursday, Nov. 28	Network	Time (CT)
North Texas vs. UNI	ESPNU	7:00 PM

 
PLAYER OF THE WEEK:  Bennett Stirtz, Drake
NEWCOMER OF THE WEEK:  Mitch Mascari, Drake
FRESHMAN OF THE WEEK:  Justus McNair, Valparaiso
 

• Champions:  Bradley -- Bradley earned the Myrtle Beach Invitational title over the weekend with wins against Texas State, Wright State and Middle Tennessee.  Bradley has had more than its fair share of success in regular-season MTEs under Brian Wardle. Since 2018, Bradley has won four regular-season tournaments outright: the 2018 Cancun Challenge, the 2021 Don Haskins Sun Bowl Invitational, and the 2023 SoCal Challenge, plus this year’s MBI.  All-time, Bradley has a record of 88-81 in regular-season tournaments.   MVP:  Christian Davis
• Champions:  Drake -- Drake claimed the title at the Shriners Children’s Charleston Classic on Sunday night after defeating Vanderbilt, 81-70. This marked the fourth tournament championship for Drake since 2018. The Bulldogs captured the 2018 Continental Tires Las Vegas Classic, the 2020 Little Apple Classic in Manhattan, Kan., and the 2022 Paradise Jam championship in the Virgin Islands. For the second time in four days, Drake defeated a power-four conference team as the Bulldogs claimed a victory over ACC member Miami, 80-69, to open the Tournament on Thursday.  MVP:  Bennett Stirtz
• Power Play -- With wins over Miami (ACC) and Vanderbilt (SEC), Drake becomes the fifth MVC team in the past six seasons to have multiple wins against “Power” teams.  Indiana State had three-such wins last season (Minnesota, Cincinnati, and Utah in the NIT).
• Early Metrics -- Through games of Sunday, Nov. 24, the Missouri Valley Conference ranks No. 11 in KenPom as a league (the MVC was 10th last season among Division I conferences.) Three MVC teams ranked among the Top 100 in offensive efficiency (Bradley at 51, Murray State at 65, and Drake at 92).
• Comeback Kids -- Belmont stormed back from 17 points down to defeat Oral Roberts in the Bruins’ lone game last week, 90-80.  It’s the largest comeback by a league member this season.  Tyler Lundblade was 7-for-9 from the field, scoring 22 points in the second half to lead the Belmont comeback against ORU.
• Home Cooking -- Drake’s current 24-game homecourt winning streak is second-best in the nation. Drake has a 46-game non-conference homecourt winning streak - third-best in MVC history. 
• Valpo Leads at the Line -- Valparaiso entered the week ranked first in the MVC and second in the nation in free throw percentage as the Beacons have connected on 85.1 percent of their charity tosses this year.  Illinois State, prior to Monday’s MTE contest, ranked 28th nationally and second in the MVC as the Redbirds are 78.4 from the line.
• From the Arc -- Bradley leads the MVC and ranks sixth in the nation in three-point field goal percentage as the Braves are connecting on 43.9 percent of their shots from three-point range.  Murray State (15th, 41.1); Belmont (29th, 39.4); Illinois State (31st, 39.3); and UNI (37th, 38.9) all represent the MVC in the Top 40 nationally.  Indiana State, meanwhile, ranks 11th in the NCAA in three-pointers attempted per game (32.6).  ISU’s 12.0 makes per game ranks seventh in the NCAA.  ISU shattered the MVC record for three-pointers made in a season last year (with 427 makes).  The previous league single-season standard was 349 (established by Bradley in 2006-07).
• Scoring .. Up -- UIC has scored at least 90 points four times this season, the first time in the program’s 78-year history the Flames have had four 90-point games in their first seven outings.  The Flames lead the MVC and rank 34th nationally with 86.4 points per game.  That figure would rank tied for 5th all-time in MVC history.  The league record for scoring average for a season was established by Bradley during the 1987-88 season (92.5 ppg).  This year, Murray State (84.6 ppg), Indiana State (84.0), Belmont (83.2), Missouri State (83.0) and Illinois State (81.0) all average 80+ ppg.  Indiana State led the league last year (84.9 ppg) and was the only league team to average better than 80+ points per game.
• Can’t Miss Proposition -- Two league players enter the week having not missed a free throw this season.  Drake’s Mitch Mascari is 16-of-16, while Valpo’s Tyler Schmidt is 13-of-13.
• Select Company -- Drake’s Bennett Stirtz is the only player in Division I this season to average 18.0 ppg; 6.0 ppg; and 35+ minutes per game.   Last year, SIU’s Xavier Johnson was the only Division I player to record that trifecta of stats.  Since 1947-48, only 69 players have recorded such a stat line for an entire season.

  
The Valley Runs Deep
• The Conference has a rich tradition of success in postseason play. In league history, 18 teams have reached the men’s NCAA Final Four, and the MVC owns four NCAA men’s basketball titles and seven NIT crowns.  Indiana State reached the title game of the NIT in 2024.
• Notably, MVC teams are 12-4 in their first game in the NCAA Tournament dating back to 2012. The league has now combined for 20 wins in the NCAA Tournament in the past 11 NCAA championships and has earned multiple bids 16 times since 1994.
• MVC teams have 42 total wins in the NCAA Tournament since 1994 with 12 Sweet 16 trips and two Final Four appearances. Notably, 31 of 42 victories have been against Power conferences, and the league has a winning record in that span against Big 12 and SEC schools.
• In 2023-24, the Missouri Valley Conference sent a total of four teams to postseason play as Drake competed against Washington State in the NCAA Tournament, Bradley and Indiana State participated in the NIT, and Evansville played in the College Basketball Invitational (CBI). The Valley posted a total of five NIT victories, as Indiana State reached the title game, collecting wins over SMU, Minnesota, Cincinnati and Utah.  Bradley defeated Loyola in the first round of the NIT.  Evansville split a pair of games in the CBI.