Court Side at Arch Madness

(St. Louis, MO) – There is no better seat at ‘Arch Madness’ than the one I’ve been in since 1998. I’ve been the primary radio play-by-play announcer for the Missouri Valley Conference’s post-season tournament and have had the pleasure of seeing the greatest era of Valley basketball you can imagine.

In 1998 I witnessed the final run of an Illinois State two-year sweep of Missouri State in the finals. No Redbird team has claimed the title since those Dan Muller and Rico Hill led teams. Those teams had size, great guard play and Hill was a unique brand of player for the MVC. He was a poor man’s Paul Pierce.

During the early portions of this century our radio listeners were able to discover the rise of the Creighton Blujays and their St. Louis dominance. Those Dana Altman coached teams won four times in five years and five times in seven tries, as Kyle Korver  or “Special K” as my broadcast partner, the Dick Dale nick-named him, burst on to the scene.

Altman’s teams were precise and won each of those title games by at least eight points. Rodney Buford was the early star handing the baton to Ryan Sears who mentored Korver.  It was a unique run.

Southern Illinois and Missouri State kept finishing second at ‘Arch Madness’. The Bears losing those two to Illinois State and once to the Bluejays. The Salukis lost back-to-back championship games to Creighton.

Missouri State then lost two more times in the middle of the decade. Once to Northern Iowa and another time to Creighton. That 2004 Panther team featured outstanding guard Ben Jacobson (not the current coach) and rugged rebounder David Gruber.

Those middle years saw a rise in the national consciousness concerning the Valley. Southern Illinois broke through for a championship in 2006. They defeated a Bradley team that would go on to the ‘Sweet Sixteen’  in the NCAA tournament. ‘Floor Burn U’ played relentless D and were as athletic as any team I’ve ever seen at Scottrade Center. Guards Bryan Mullins, Jamaal Tatum and Tony Young terrorized back courts from sea to shining sea.

After another Creighton win in 2007, Drake grabbed the brass ring as Adam Emmenecker willed his team to victory in 2008.

Northern Iowa closed out the decade with back-to-back wins and a trip to their own ‘Sweet Sixteen’. The first of the Koch brothers (Adam) emerged as did players who would become nationally known. Their names were hard to say, but Kwadzo Ahelegbe and Ali Farokhmanesh were even harder to guard. Oh yeah, they had Jordan Eglseder too. Talk about an announcer earning his pay!

Indiana State is the last team, not named Creighton to win the ‘Arch Madness’ title in 2011. The Bluejays, now in the Big East are the two-time champs. There is much to write concerning the future of this great league, but over the next two weeks, I will be looking back at my favorite memories of this amazing, rivalry filled tournament.

Technology permitting we hope to bring you sound clips too.  It could be a fun two weeks! The streak may come to an end this year as 101 ESPN is deciding who will announce their games this year, I still have my fingers crossed.

Do Good