Men's Basketball

MVC Weekly Men's Basketball Notebook (2-12-2024)

Player of the Week: Darnell Brodie, Drake
Newcomer of the Week: Malik Dia, Belmont
Freshman of the Week: Cooper Schwieger, Valparaiso
 
MVC Weekly -- 2-12 
  • Sycamores Ranked -- The MVC has had at least one ranked men’s basketball team in the Associated Press poll in 15 of the past 21 seasons (including this year). Indiana State entered both the AP poll (23) and USA Today Coaches poll (24) this week after being ranked by CBS Sports last week. ISU is No. 19 in the CBS Top 25+1 poll this week.
  • MVC in the NET -- Indiana State leads eight MVC teams among the Top 149 as ISU sits at No. 20. Drake is 51; and Bradley, 60. The MVC finished 15th as a league in the Conference NET last year and enters this week No. 9 as a league. The league’s Top 3 NET-rated teams have combined for 12 Q1+Q2 wins this year.
  • Three in the Top 60 -- Only eight leagues (the P6, Mountain West and the MVC) have three or more Top 60 teams in the NET rankings.
  • Getting to 20 Wins -- Indiana State and Drake have both reached 20 wins; Feb. 10 matches the 7th-earliest date that two MVC schools had reached 20 wins. A total of 11 teams in MVC history have secured their 20th win by Feb. 3, including Indiana State this season. The previous 10 all reached post-season play and combined for a total of 13 post-season victories.
  • Xavier is No. 2 -- SIU’s Xavier Johnson ranks 2nd nationally with 23.7 points per game and 4th with 180 made FTs. Hersey Hawkins of Bradley was the last MVC player to lead the nation in scoring (1987-88).
  • Streaking -- Drake’s current 18-game homecourt winning streak is tied for second-best nationally. Drake (13-0) and Indiana State (11-0) have not lost at home this year. Indiana State’s 9-game overall streak is tied for third-best among active streaks.
  • Road Warriors -- The MVC has combined for a 36-48 record on the road in league play (.429). The road success in MVC play is the second-best on record (through at least 1977) trailing only the COVID-impacted scheduling parameters implemented by The Valley in 2020-21 (.444 that year).
  • Winning Ways -- Drake and Belmont are two of the winningest programs in the NCAA since the start of the 2020-21 campaign. Drake is tied for fourth-best nationally in that span with 98 total wins, and Belmont ranks No. 21 (86 victories).
  • Charitable Cause -- Xavier Johnson of Southern Illinois leads the MVC and ranks fourth nationally with 180 made free throws on the season. Johnson is on pace to finish among the all-time leaders in MVC history for single-season FT makes.
  • Block Party -- UIC leads the MVC and ranks ninth in the nation in blocks per game (5.56). Only one MVC team since 1987 has recorded 5.0 blocks per game for an entire season.
  • Sweet Shooting -- Indiana State leads the nation in effective field goal percentage (60.7), is 2nd in FG percentage (50.8) and 9th in 3FG percentage (39.3). The Sycamores’ 50.8 is the second-best in the MVC during the shot-clock era.
  • Helping Hands -- Drake leads the MVC in assist:turnover ratio and ranks 17th-best nationally. Indiana State, meanwhile, leads the MVC in total assists (17.4 per game). The Sycamores rank 17th-best nationally in that stat category.