Men's Basketball

MVC MBB Weekly Notebook (2-26-2024)

Valley Wraps Up Regular-Season Play on Sunday, March 3

PLAYER OF THE WEEK:  Duke Deen, Bradley
NEWCOMER OF THE WEEK:  Ryan Conwell, Indiana State
FRESHMAN OF THE WEEK:  Johnny Kinziger, Illinois State
 
MVC Weekly -- 2-26  
 
Tuesday, Feb. 27
*Valparaiso at UNI ESPN+ 7:00 PM
Wednesday, Feb. 28
*Missouri State at Illinois State ESPN+ 7:00 PM
*Southern Illinois at Bradley ESPN+ 7:00 PM
*Indiana State at Evansville ESPN+ 7:00 PM
*Belmont at Murray State ESPN+ 7:00 PM
*Drake at UIC ESPN+ 7:00 PM
Sunday, March 3
*Illinois State at Valparaiso ESPN+ 1:00 PM
*UIC at Missouri State ESPN+ 1:00 PM
*UNI at Southern Illinois ESPN+ 1:00 PM
*Bradley at Drake ESPN2/ESPN+ 2:30 PM
*Murray State at Indiana State MVC TV/ESPN+ 3:00 PM
*Evansville at Belmont ESPN+ 4:00 PM
  • 3 Teams With 30 Wins -- Last year, for the first time in MVC history, the Conference had five teams with 20+ wins prior to the league tournament. The previous record was three.  Notably, in the MVC’s 117-year history, including this year, three or more teams have reached 20+ wins in the same season 32 times, including 18 of the past 20 seasons.
  • MVC Title Town -- Indiana State is seeking its third all-time regular-season MVC crown in men’s basketball (and first since 2000).  Drake has eight previous regular-season titles, its last coming in 2019.
  • MVC in the NET -- Indiana State leads six MVC teams among the Top 135 as ISU sits at No. 33. Drake is 46; and Bradley, 65. The MVC finished 15th as a league in the Conference NET last year and is No. 9 as a league this season.  The league’s Top 3 NET-rated teams have combined for 13 Q1+Q2 wins this year.
  • Since 1992, the league has had 75 teams finish 75 or better in the NET (or RPI) -- all 75 played in the NCAA or NIT:
  • Inside the NET -- Through games of Feb. 25, a total of 88 Division I teams have amassed five or more Q1+Q2 victories (with a minimum of 1 Q1 win).  Of those 88 teams, only 33 have a better than .500 winning percentage against Q1+Q2.  And of those 33 teams at better than .500, only 11 are from non P6 leagues. MVC teams are 4-0 against that pool of nine other non-league teams.
  • NET Returns -- Since 1990-91, only six teams with a NET (or RPI) of 30 or better were not selected for the NCAA Tournament field (99.5 percent of eligible teams 30 or better make the field.) For teams 40 or better than number is 95.7 percent (1,216 of 1,271 eligible teams from 1-40 since 1991 have made the NCAA tourney).  NIT champ North Texas (38) and Rutgers (40) did not earn an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament in 2023.
  • Efficiency = NCAAs -- Indiana State is 28 in offensive efficiency in KenPom, and Drake is 32. Since 2012, 10 of 12 MVC teams in the Top 35 of KenPom’s OE have earned a spot in the NCAA Tourney (UNI, 2020 - COVID; MOST, 2022 - played in the NIT).
  • 18-18 is Unique -- Only 19 NCAA Division I players (two players have done it twice) have recorded 18 points and 18 rebounds in a game this year, including Drake’s Darnell Brodie (vs. Valpo) and UNI’s Tytan Anderson (against Drake this past weekend).  Anderson’s 18 rebounds against Drake tied a career-high, and matched two of his own school records, including most rebounds in a home game, and most rebounds by a Panther against an MVC opponent.
  • Dialing Long Distance -- On Feb. 21, Bradley’s Duke Deen set a school and JQH Arena record with nine three-pointers.  He was 13-for-17 from the field and 9-for-12 from the three-point line.
  • 3FG, First-Year Guys -- A pair of first-year Sycamores are climbing the league’s all-time charts for three-pointers made by a first-year MVC player.  Isaiah Swope enters this week with 90 made 3FG (fifth-best all-time in MVC history), while Ryan Conwell has 74 makes from long distance.
  • Select Company -- Belmont’s Ja’Kobi Gillespie is the only player in the NCAA to average 17.0 points, 4.0 assists and 2.3 steals per game.
  • ClayNation -- Only three players in MVC history have reached 1,600 career points, 800 rebounds, and 300 assists:  Hersey Hawkins of Bradley, Cameron Krutwig of Loyola, and Donovan Clay of Missouri State.  Clay and Hawkins are the only to add 100+ made three-pointers:
  • Streaking -- Drake’s current 20-game homecourt winning streak is tied for the nation’s best.
  • Johnson’s Rare Feat -- SIU’s Xavier Johnson ranks fourth nationally with 22.4 points per game and fifth with 200 made FTs. Johnson is looking to become the third player in MVC history to lead the MVC in both scoring and assists (Anthony Manuel, Bradley, 1989, and Curt Smith, Drake, 1993).  Only one MVC player in the past 30 seasons has averaged in double-figure scoring with 6.0 or more assists:  Reed Jackson, Evansville (1994-95), 13.8 ppg, 6.0 apg.
  • Cooper Shines -- Since 1992-93 only four MVC freshmen have averaged 12.0 points per game and 5.0 rebounds per game. A total of 25 freshmen in MVC history have reached 400 points in their first seasons. Cooper Schwieger of Valparaiso has 369 entering this week. Cade Tyson of Belmont was the last MVC freshman to hit 400 points (409 last 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 101 total wins, and Belmont ranks No. 17 (89 victories).
  • Arch Madness -- In March 2024, The Valley will conduct its 34th St. Louis-based postseason men’s basketball championship. With 34-straight years at the same neutral site, Arch Madness is the second-longest neutral site tenured collegiate tourney in the nation (following only the Big East in New York City). This year's tournament dates are March 7-10 (Thursday-Sunday) at Enterprise Center.
  • Valley Runs Deep -- Notably, MVC men’s teams are 12-3 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 10 NCAA championships and has earned multiple bids 16 times since 1994. Since 2013, The Valley has had two Final Four appearances, and an MVC team has reached a Sweet 16 a total of 12 times since 1985.
  • Nation’s 2nd Oldest -- Founded in 1907, the Missouri Valley Conference is the nation’s second-oldest Division I athletic conference (behind only the Big Ten).  The MVC is celebrating its 117th season in 2023-24.