MISSOURI VALLEY CONFERENCE 2026-27 MEN’S BASKETBALL
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Weekly Notebook (PDF)
MVC Player of the Week: Rakim Chaney, Valparaiso, So.
Chaney led Valpo to the program's first road win over a top-25 opponent on Friday at RV/No. 24 Purdue. He posted a 35-point, eight-rebound, six-assist game, Valpo's first on record. Chaney had no turnovers, becoming the first player nationally to post that points/rebounds/assist stat line with no turnovers since 2016 and just the second since 2007. He had Valpo's first 35-point game since 2016. Chaney hit a game-tying buzzer-beater at the end of overtime to force a second overtime in Valpo's improbable 83-80 victory.
MVC Newcomer of the Week: Karmani Gregory, Indiana State, R-Sr.
Gregory made his Indiana State debut week one to remember as the redshirt senior guard scored 20-plus points in both games, added 5.5 assists per game, and was a key factor in the Sycamores’ comeback attempt against Charlotte and the win over Ball State. Gregory scored a career-high 29 points in the opening game against Charlotte, shooting 11-of-22 from the floor and added eight assists in the 78-70 loss to the 49ers. Gregory scored 18 of his 29 points in the second half as the Sycamores, including a stretch where he scored 16 of Indiana State’s 20 points over the final nine minutes of play. He followed up with a 20-point game in the win against Ball State, scoring 11 points in the first half to keep the game in reach, before adding nine points and an assist in the second half as the Sycamores outscored the Cardinals 37-29. Gregory is just the second Sycamore in recent to make their debut with the program with back-to-back 20-point games, joining Samage Teel (2024-25). His 29 points in the opener against Charlotte is believed to be the most by a Sycamore making their debut appearance since Larry Bird scored 31 points in his first game in the Sycamore Blue & White, according to records on hand.
MVC Freshman of the Week: Jeremiah Jackson, Southern Illinois
Jackson averaged 14.0 points while going 6-for-11 from beyond the arc in two starts as a Saluki during Southern's 1-1 week. After scoring 10 points and dishing five assists in an 82-40 win over Maryville, the freshman followed up Friday night at Kansas City with an 18-point performance on four made threes.
| Non-Conference (Best MBB Records) |
| thru Nov. 8 |
|
|
|
| Conference |
W |
L |
Pct. |
| ACC |
36 |
3 |
0.923 |
| SEC |
27 |
3 |
0.900 |
| Big 12 |
28 |
4 |
0.875 |
| Big East |
20 |
3 |
0.870 |
| Pac 12 |
15 |
3 |
0.833 |
| Big Ten |
29 |
6 |
0.829 |
| A-10 |
24 |
5 |
0.828 |
| Mountain West |
18 |
4 |
0.818 |
| MVC |
17 |
5 |
0.773 |
| WCC |
17 |
7 |
0.708 |
| CUSA |
14 |
7 |
0.667 |
| AAC |
17 |
9 |
0.654 |
| Big West |
15 |
9 |
0.625 |
AROUND THE VALLEY
- Five MVC teams ranked in Mid-Major Top-25 poll: With No. 6 Murray State and No. 19 Valparaiso joining the poll, the Missouri Valley Conference has five schools ranked, including No. 5 UIC, No. 7 Illinois State, and No. 22 Belmont.
- Following his epic performance in Friday's 83-80 double overtime victory at RV/No. 24 Purdue, Valparaiso University men's basketball sophomore Rakim Chaney (Rockford, Ill. / Rockford Auburn [212 Sports Academy]) was named the Lou Henson Award National Player of the Week on Monday.
- Valpo achieved the first true road win against a ranked opponent (No. 24 Purdue) in program history and the fifth total ranked win in program lore. (previously 0-44). The win over Purdue marked Valpo's first win against a ranked team since beating Drake on Feb. 7, 2021 at the ARC. It marked the first top-25 win for an MVC member since Drake beat Mizzou in the NCAA Tournament in March 2025.
- Murray State's Brayden Shorter's career-best eight three-pointers on Nov. 7 were the most threes by a Racer in a game since Justice Hill's eight triples in 2022. Shorter becomes the eighth player in program history to make at least eight three-pointers in a game. Shorter nearly tied the program record with nine threes, but had his originally called three-pointer with 8:21 remaining overturned after review to a two-point basket and he eventually finished with the eight made from long distance.
- Through two games of the 2026-27 season, Illinois State senior Johnny Kinziger has scored 47 points, which is tied for the ninth-most points through the first two games of the season in program history.
- ISU fell in its season opener in overtime at Saint Mary's, and the last time the Redbirds opened the season with an overtime game was during the 1989-90 season when ISU fell to Green Bay. That season the Redbirds, coached by Bob Bender, finished 18-13 and advanced to the NCAA Tournament by way of winning the 1990 MVC Championship
- Evansville joins five other MVC teams to start the season with a 2-0 record. The Aces beat crosstown rival Southern Indiana in the River City Classic on Saturday, 78-76, in overtime. Max Langenfeld hit two pivotal 3-pointers to lift UE past USI.
- Southern Illinois' Jalen Haynes put on two explosive scoring performances, averaging 26.0 points per game during Southern Illinois' 1-1 week. In an 82-40 victory over Maryville, Haynes had an efficient 20 points, going 8-for-12 from the field and 4-for-6 from long range. He also shined as a facilitator, dishing out seven assists. Haynes then poured in 32 points Friday at Kansas City, the first 30-point game by a Saluki since March 6, 2025. He made his presence felt at the free-throw line, shooting 11-for-12.
- Jack Smiley scored 24 points in Belmont's victory over Southern Indiana Nov. 2. It was the most points by a Belmont player in a season opener since Cade Tyson scored 29 points vs. Georgia State Nov. 6, 2023. Notably, 13 different Bruins have scored in the first two games of the season.
- UIC sophomore guard Rashund Washington Jr. rang up a game-high 19 points and a career high-tying 12 rebounds and UIC rode a dominant defensive effort in the second half to a 79-56 win over Robert Morris on Friday. Washington recorded his fourth career double-double and first since Feb. 21, 2026 (13 points/12 rebounds vs. Valparaiso at Credit Union 1 Arena).
- UNI coach Kyle Green, fresh off his first win as a Division I head coach last Tuesday against Cornell (IA), goes for his 50th career win on Saturday. The longtime former Panther assistant previously won 48 total games in head coaching stints at Western Colorado, Lewis and Wisconsin-Eau Claire.
- Indiana State sits among the national leaders from the free throw line through the first two games of the season with the Sycamores connecting at a 77.1% clip from the stripe against Charlotte and Ball State. The Sycamores went 10-for-12 from the line in the opening game against the 49ers with Karmani Gregory pacing the way going 5-for-6 in the contest. Indiana State followed up with a 17-for-23 performance against Ball State with Gregory again pacing the way going 8-for-10.
- Drake improved to 2-0, marking the sixth time in the last seven seasons the Bulldogs have opened the campaign with a 2-0 mark. Drake also improved its home record in the Knapp Center to 107-22 dating back to the 2018-19 season. Jon Carroll Led reached 20 points in both contests going for 20 against Central and following with 21 against Southern, which were team highs for Drake…Tallied a double-double against Southern with 21 points and 11 rebounds, which marked the eighth double-double for his career…Also added six total steals for the week recording four against Central and two against Southern…His four steals against Central tied his career high.
- Bradley is coming off a 63-52 loss to Pacific at Carver Arena on Saturday. The game proved to be a defense-heavy contest, with the both teams ending under 43 percent for the game and both finishing under 65 points. Offensively, Trevon Payton led all Bradley scorers with 16 points. The redshirt senior from Lilburn, Ga., made a trio of three-pointers and went seven-for-eight from the free-throw line.
ARCH MADNESS EXPANDS (MVC men's and women's basketball championship to take place under single banner in St. Louis at Enterprise Center (March 3-7, 2027) --
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MISSOURI VALLEY NO. 9 -- The MVC was ranked 9th as a league in men's basketball in 2025-26 – the best for the Conference since 2018. Seven teams were ranked in the Top 120 of the NET on Selection Sunday – first time seven (or more) were in the Top 120 for the MVC since 2019-20.
MURRAY STATE TOPS PRESEASON PICKS FOR MEN'S BAKSETBALL -- Read More
INSIDE THE NUMBERS — Only two programs (UIC and Valparaiso) return at least 50 percent of their scoring, rebounding, and assists totals from 2025-26. Conversely, UNI and Indiana State are the only two MVC programs to return fewer than 10 percent of those three statistics from last season. Seven MVC programs return at least 25 percent of its scoring production from a year ago (Belmont, Drake, Evansville, UIC, Illinois State, Murray State, and Valparaiso.)
MVC ANNOUNCES PLAYER "WATCH LISTS" (aka, preseason all-MVC teams) -- Read More
MVC / TELEVISION PARTNER ANNOUNCEMENTS
THE VALLEY RUNS DEEP -- The Missouri Valley Conference (The Valley) is the nation's second-oldest NCAA Division I athletic conference, having completed its 119th season in 2025-26. The MVC was founded on January 12, 1907, when administrators from five institutions met at the Midland Hotel in Kansas City, Mo.
FIVE IN POST-SEASON PLAY IN 2025-26 -- Men's basketball continues as the engine driving Valley athletic programs. Five MVC teams competed in the 2026 postseason, including a record four bids to the National Invitation Tournament. Illinois State advanced to the national semifinals, falling to Auburn, in the NIT.
PANTHERS TAKE ARCH MADNESS MEN'S TITLE -- UNI won the State Farm MVC Tournament championship — its seventh title — to earn the league's automatic bid, making its ninth all-time NCAA Tournament appearance and first since 2016.
HISTORIC ACHIEVEMENTS
Team Championships
- Four NCAA national basketball championships
- 18 NCAA Final Four appearances
- 1989 national baseball championship
- 20 Men's College World Series qualifiers
- 33 total post-season national team championships
Individual Honors
- 275+ players drafted to the NBA, including 2023 first-round pick Ben Sheppard (Belmont)
- Nearly 800 MLB Draft picks since 1965, with 32 first-round selections
- 70+ NCAA individual champions in Conference history
- 50+ National Players or Coaches of the Year