Game 2 - #7 Valparaiso 63,  #10 Indiana State 62
Thursday, March 5, 2026

MVC Tournament Notes — No. 7 seeds are now 25-48 all-time in the MVC Tournament, while No. 10 seeds are 10-30 all-time in the MVC Tournament.

VALPARAISO NOTES — The Beacons improved to 18-14 – the most victories at the school since the 2016-17 season (24 wins) – while advancing to Friday’s quarterfinal round against No. 2 seed Bradley. Valparaiso moved its MVC Tournament record to 8-8, including a 2-0 mark against Indiana State. The Beacons have won three straight games against Indiana State but still trail in the overall series, 60-41.

Beacon Player Plaudits — Freshman guard Rakim Chaney, who was held scoreless the only time all season in the previous game against Indiana State, led Valparaiso with a game-high 18 points, including six in the opening 8:23 of the game. He scored in double-digits for the 13th time this season, including seven of the last eight games. He tied his season high with four three-point baskets.

Freshman forward JT Pettigrew had 14 points, including 12 in the second half, along with a team-high seven rebounds. Redshirt senior forward Owen Dease scored five points to hit 400 on the season. Dease averaged 14.5 ppg in the previous two games against Indiana State this season, both wins for the Beacons.

INDIANA STATE NOTES — The Sycamores closed out the season with an 11-20 record…Indiana State fell to 31-43 in the MVC Tournament including an 0-2 mark against Valparaiso…ISU, coming off a season-high 14 three-point baskets in its last game, a 79-63 home win against UIC…The Sycamores made a combined 10 three-point baskets in two previous games against Valparaiso this season. Only three times this season have the Sycamores scored fewer than tonight’s 62 points.

Sycamore Player Plaudits — After scoring a season-high 25 points in his last game, junior guard Camp Wagner finished with a team-high 13 points, scoring in double digits for the 21st time this year…He also had a game-high eight rebounds…Graduate forward Ian Scott hit double digits for the 27th time this season, with 12 points…he also added a game-high four blocks…Junior guard Enel St. Bernard scored 10 points on a perfect 5-for-5 from the floor, including three dunks, giving him double digits for just the sixth time this season…He added a season-high four steals.

First Half Recap — With the score tied 18-18, Indiana State went on a 19-6 run to close out the first half, shooting 57.1 percent during that stretch making eight of 14 shots. The Beacons had trailed 16-8 before going on a 10-2 run. Indiana State finished the first half hitting 55.2 percent (16-29) compared to 37.9 percent shooting (11-29) by Valparaiso.

Second Half Recap — Owen Dease made a free throw with 1:17 left to highlight an 8-0 run by Valparaiso over the last four minutes to rally from a 62-55 deficit. Indiana State missed its last seven shots with its last basket coming at 4:34. Freshman guard Sader Servilus came off the bench scoring five of his seven points during the 8-0 run including a three-point basket to tie the game at 62-62 with 2:34 left. Indiana State owned a 58-48 lead following a three-point basket by Camp Wagner with 8:06. Valparaiso made 12-of-18 free throws in the second half compared to just 2-of-3 shooting from the free throw line by Indiana State.