Winning Key Weekend Games

Teams are Eyeing St. Louis

(St. Louis, MO) – Winning key weekend games are on the minds of Missouri Valley Conference coaches and fans. The top six MVC teams face one another this weekend with Arch Madness seeding coming into focus. Valley teams are eyeing St. Louis.

All twelve league teams are playing on Saturday with three of those games featuring the league’s top six teams. Since four conference teams receive a first-round bye at the league’s season-ending tournament these are crucial games hidden in the depth of the middle of the schedule.

Teams five and six face one another as do teams one and three. Teams two and four face off too. That means the bottom six teams all have a chance to gain ground on the top teams this weekend. Belmont and Illinois State are one game out of sixth place and two games from fourth so winning key weekend games are still important for teams further down in the standings.

The Battle for Fifth

Southern Illinois (13-7, 5-4) @ Murray State (8-12, 5-4) – 1 pm ESPN+

Both of these teams were 4-1 in conference play but have fallen to their current records. SIU is coming off a home win over Valparaiso and Murray dropped a decision at Bradley. The winner of this game will at worst stand alone in fifth place and at best could find themselves tied for fourth by Sunday.

SIU is led by ‘Player of the Year’ candidate Xavier Johnson. ‘X’ leads the Valley in scoring (23.4 points per game) and assists (6.1) and is closing in on the Salukis’ season record for made free throws. The emergence of reigning ‘Player of the Week’ Nick Ellington has given the Racers an inside presence that had been lacking.

Ellington leads the league in offensive rebounding (2.9 per game), is third in blocked shots and is fourth in field goal percentage. Southern Illinois is the conference’s leader in scoring defense (64.8 ppg).

Hot and Ultra Hot Teams Meet

Bradley (15-5, 7-2) @ Indiana State (17-3, 8-1) – 5 pm – ESPNU

League-leading Indiana State has won four straight games and the surging Bradley Braves have won nine-in-a-row! The Braves are 14-1 when Connor Hickman starts and finishes games. Bradley lost to Indiana State the night Hickman was injured. He didn’t finish the tight contest and the Sycamores prevailed. They are 1-4 when he doesn’t start and finish games.

The first place Sycamores the Valley’s highest scoring team and lead the conference in every shooting percentage category and in assists. Brian Wardle’s defensive-minded Braves are second to SIU in scoring defense.

With both coaches being rumored to be candidates for the now-vacant DePaul job there is extra intrigue surrounding the contest. Indiana State is 8-0 and home and we are hearing reports of a Hulman Center sellout for today’s game.

The matchup between the MVC’s reigning ‘Defensive Player of the Year’, Malevy Leons ultra-talented Sycamore center Robbie Avila will be special to watch.

Iowa Championship

Northern Iowa (11-8, 6-3) @ Drake (16-4, 7-2) – 5 pm ESPN+

The Valley’s Iowa teams go at it Saturday with a lot on the line. A UNI win would move them into a two or three-way tie for second. If Drake (10-0 at home) can protect their home court, they stay safely in second place and have a chance to jump back into a tie for first.

UNI is another of the league’s hottest teams. The Panthers have won five games in-a-row and nine of their last ten outings and obviously Drake has been outstanding all season. Two of the Bulldogs’ four losses have come in overtime, including Wednesday’s loss at Missouri State.

These two teams mirror one another in that there are offensive weapons all over the floor, they play sound fundamental basketball and they are two of the league’s top three teams in turnover margin. They do the little things that win games.

Drake’s Tucker DeVries is second to SIU’s Johnson in scoring (20.0 ppg) and center Darnell Brodie is the conference’s top rebounder (8.4 per game). Guards Nate Heise and Bowen Born each average over 14 points per game for the Panthers. While Born leads the Valley in free-throw percentage, Brodie is the leader in field goal percentage.

Late January games don’t seem that important, but winning key weekend games could make all the difference in the world at Arch Madness and perhaps in a trip to the NCAA Tournament.

Do Good