My MVC Christmas Wishes

(St. Louis, MO) – While you think about what you want under your Christmas tree, here are a few of my Christmas wishes for the Missouri Valley Conference.

I wish…

1. That Bradley Head Coach Geno Ford won’t lose any more players to injury and we’ll finally see what the Braves could really accomplish. With Sutherland, Jones, Cunningham and others having battled ailments, it would be nice to see Carver Arena rock with a full squad.

2. Some of those nail biting non-conference losses could have bounced a different way. A couple of key wins and this would be one of those magical seasons true Valley fans have been looking for. You want examples?

How about a one point, overtime loss at Utah by Wichita State; an overtime loss for Missouri State against Washington State; Illinois State’s two four point losses (one to undefeated Seton Hall and the other to VCU). Evansville’s only loss was a two-pointer to the top rated RPI team in the nation (Green Bay). Turn a couple of those and even Dickie V is talking about the MVC.

3. D.J. Balentine, Marcus Marshall, Anthony Beane and Ron Baker go on scoring streaks that rival anything we’ve seen in the Valley in years. They could combine to score so many points that national pundits would have to look at the MVC. I could see all four of them averaging over 20 points per game and every night someone new becoming the scoring leader. I’ve personally seen some explosive performances by a couple of these guys this season.

4. Illinois State’s tall and athletic front line give Wichita State fits and a triple overtime game between those two teams. I believe those two can give us some amazing theater this season. I’m glad January 4^th will be one of those ESPN netflex games and many people get to watch them tangle.

Think about. WSU’s Baker dropping bombs. ISU’s Reggie Lynch rejecting driving lay ups. Shocker stopper Tekele Cotton harassing Redbird guards into nerve wracking mistakes. Teddy Hawkins tormenting Gregg Marshall as ‘the one that got away’. Fred VanVleet calmly guiding the Wichita offense. It will be a gift worth waiting past Christmas to open.

5. More than one team will go dancing in March. We’re pretty sure Wichita State will receive an invitation, but who else could make the grade? Northern Iowa is undefeated and in the national rankings. Evansville has just one loss and is a deep and talented team.

6. All of you Valley fans are safe and enjoy the greatest holiday of the year. This is a season where we remember the greatest gift of all and all the possibilities that are born in the most unique places.

Do Good