ST. LOUIS -- Xavier Bledson of Indiana State and Xavier Johnson of Southern Illinois headline the list of selections for the 2024 Missouri Valley Conference specialty teams for men’s basketball. Bledson has been tabbed the conference’s Team Captain for the All-Bench Team, while Johnson is the league’s Team Captain for the Most-Improved Team.
The teams, which were selected by a panel of the league's newspaper beat writers and a panel of media voters, are comprised of a minimum of five student-athletes (top five vote-getters, plus ties) on each squad.
Bledson started just four of Indiana State's 20 league games and was one of only two Sycamores to play in all 31 games for the league regular-season champion. He averaged 18.5 minutes over the course of the season with averages of 6.9 points and 3.0 rebounds for ISU. He hit double figures in points in 10 games for Indiana State this season with a single-game best of 17 in the November victory against Southern Illinois. Bledson was fourth on the team in three-pointers made this year with 35 as ISU established a school record for made three-pointers in 2024.
Xavier Johnson has had a breakout season for Southern Illinois, ranking fourth in the nation in scoring at 22.0 points per game. Along with his scoring, the guard also leads the Missouri Valley Conference in assists (6.1) and ranks sixth in steals per game (1.4). The Germantown, Maryland, native has scored 30 or more six times to lead the MVC, and his 17 20-point games ranks second-best in the MVC. He is 22nd nationally and leads the MVC with a 89.1 free throw percent. Johnson averaged 7.0 points per game last year for the Salukis.
| ALL BENCH TEAM |
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| *Xavier Bledson, Indiana State |
R-Sr. |
Gd. |
Gainesville (Ga.) Gainesville High / Lincoln Memorial |
| Chuck Bailey III, Evansville |
Fr. |
Gd. |
Detroit (Mich.) Hamtramck High |
| Tanner Cuff, Evansville |
Jr. |
Fwd. |
American Fork (Utah) Salt Lake City CC |
| Cesare Edwards, Missouri State |
Jr. |
Fwd. |
Hartsville (S.C.) Hartsville High / Xavier |
| Colby Garland, Drake |
Fr. |
Gd. |
Magnolia (Ark.) Maumelle High |
| Johnny Kinziger, Illinois State |
Fr. |
Gd. |
De Pere (Wis.) De Pere High |
| Brian Moore Jr., Murray State |
Jr. |
Gd. |
Harlem (N.Y.) Kingston High / Northeast Oklahoma A&M |
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| MOST-IMPROVED TEAM |
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| *Xavier Johnson, Southern Illinois |
Gr. |
Gd. |
Germantown (Md.) Episcopal High / George Mason |
| Ja'Kobi Gillespie, Belmont |
So. |
Gd. |
Greenville (Tenn.) Greenville High |
| Darius Hannah, Bradley |
Sr. |
Fwd. |
Milwaukee (Wis.) Milwaukee Academy of Science High |
| Connor Hickman, Bradley |
Jr. |
Gd. |
Bloomington (Ind.) Bloomington South High |
| Jayson Kent, Indiana State |
Jr. |
G/F |
Oak Forest (Ill.) Oak Forest High / Bradley |
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| *--indicates team captain |
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