The MVC non-conference schedule is now fully completed, and a number of question marks about the relative strength of the Valley have been sorted out. There have been a few pleasant surprises in the league and a couple of disappointments—especially for Loyola fans.
The MVC wraps up non-con play as the 11th strongest conference in men’s basketball, ranked just below the new American Athletic Conference (composed mostly of the football-playing former members of the Big East) and the Mountain West. The MVC comes in just ahead of the Mid-American– having an exceptionally strong year with 11-0 Toledo—and the Horizon League ranked at 13th.
If not for a few of Loyola’s epic 2nd half double-digit collapses, the MVC might have squeezed into the top 10 in Conference RPI strength. The Ramblers had double-digit leads well into the second half against Tennessee Tech, Tulane, Portland State, and Northern Illinois. There were also overtime losses to UC Davis and Mississippi State. If Loyola could have held on in half of those six excruciating losses, the Ramblers could have finished non-con play with an RPI around 200, instead of a dismal 318—second lowest in the MVC. But the long anticipated conference season begins on January 1, and offers the Ramblers an opportunity to show they belong in their first year in the Missouri Valley.
Coming off a Final Four run, and with Creighton bolting from the Valley, Wichita State was predicted to cruise to the top of the league. Yet not many—even among the WSU faithful—predicted that the Shockers would be one of eight undefeated teams in college basketball entering conference play. Their school record start has ranked the Shockers in the top 10 in the country in RPI and AP ranking.
Missouri State (10-2, RPI 72) and Drake (9-3, RPI 73) have also been very pleasant surprises. Indiana State (9-3, RPI 96) was expected to be solid, and they showed their potential by knocking off Notre Dame in South Bend. Northern Iowa (6-6, RPI 89) has been muddled so far this season, playing really well in a victory over VCU and taking Iowa State to overtime, but playing badly in losses to Wisconsin-Milwaukee and Virginia.
The middle of the conference pack is still shrouded in question marks. Evansville (7-6, RPI 199) and Bradley (5-8, RPI 248) started the season well, winning their first five and first four games respectively. But since then, Evansville has lost six of their last eight games and Bradley has lost eight of their last nine. Illinois State (7-5, RPI 124) may be the most unpredictable team in the league, having notched impressive wins against Dayton, DePaul, Northwestern and San Francisco, and turning in blowout losses to Oakland (at home), Vermont (neutral site), and Drexel (at home).
The two doormats of the league, Loyola (5-7, RPI 318) and Southern Illinois (4-9, RPI 325), have shown a few moments of fight—if not brilliance– but tend to fade late in their games. The Ramblers have been outscored by a cumulative 49 points after halftime, and the Salukis have lost four of their contests by four points or fewer. Neither team has played a particularly challenging schedule thus far; the Salukis rank 304th in Strength of Schedule and the Ramblers are 327th.
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