Today In The Valley (Feb. 24)
Illinois State (22-6; 11-5, 2nd) vs. Northern Iowa (18-10; 12-4, t-1st)
7:00 p.m.
Redbird Arena; Normal, Illinois
There is a lot riding on Senior Night in Normal for both teams on the court (as well as a few playing in a couple other MVC cities this week). The Panthers hit the road with a quickly fading one-game lead over the Redbirds, and UNI is tied with Creighton for first place in the Valley with 2 games to go. The race for the regular season crown starts tonight for these three teams.
Northern Iowa is coming off its first 3-game losing streak of the season, falling to Siena on the road during BracketBuster Weekend by a score of 81-75. Their last-season stroll to mediocrity started with a home loss to CU earlier this month, and the Panthers have lost 4 of their last 5 games. They’ve simply allowed the Jays and Redbirds to make things interesting for the final week of the season.
Illinois State has been a different story. After a strong non-conference performance, as weak as it was schedule-wise, they tripped up a bit in the beginning of league play, losing to the likes of Indiana State and Wichita State in January. Tim Jankovich’s team has been able to turn it around when it needed to, winning five of their last six conference games in spite of some turmoil taking its toll on the Redbird roster.
Both teams control their own destiny for the rest of the season, where the team that wins out will be at least co-champion of the Valley. What an exciting time to be a MVC fan!
Picks
Creighton Otter: Illinois State
Panon: Illinois State
Dance Cam Guy: Illinois State
~ Dance Cam Guy
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Wichita State (14-14; 7-9, t-5th) vs. Indiana State (9-19; 6-10, t-8th)
7:00 p.m.
Koch Arena; Wichita, Kansas
Raise your hands if, after the first couple of weeks in conference play, you honestly thought these two teams would each have a shot of bypassing the play-in games next Thursday. Bueller? Bueller?
With teams 5-9 separated by nothing but merely the short length of time it takes Booker Woodfox to get his shot off, the possibilities for these two teams’ finales for the regular season range anywhere between 5th place (and a 4-5 game next Friday afternoon), 6th place (the late-night cap in the Scottrade Center next Friday evening), or in either of the two first-round games.
Indiana State owns two of the best road wins in MVC play: at Northern Iowa to start conference play and in Normal over the Redbirds just a few weeks ago. Wichita has done most of their MVC damage at home, with just one of their 7 conference wins coming on the road. Good thing they’re in the round tonight at Koch Arena.
If Jay Tunnell and the other Sycamore Snipers can keep hitting from long range they’ll have a fighter’s chance tonight. But if the athleticism of the Shox gets in their way on the boards and cutting through the lane, it could be a tough end to the Trees’ win streak.
Picks
Creighton Otter: Wichita State
Panon: Wichita State
Dance Cam Guy: Wichita State
~ Creighton Otter
7:00 p.m.
Redbird Arena; Normal, Illinois
There is a lot riding on Senior Night in Normal for both teams on the court (as well as a few playing in a couple other MVC cities this week). The Panthers hit the road with a quickly fading one-game lead over the Redbirds, and UNI is tied with Creighton for first place in the Valley with 2 games to go. The race for the regular season crown starts tonight for these three teams.
Northern Iowa is coming off its first 3-game losing streak of the season, falling to Siena on the road during BracketBuster Weekend by a score of 81-75. Their last-season stroll to mediocrity started with a home loss to CU earlier this month, and the Panthers have lost 4 of their last 5 games. They’ve simply allowed the Jays and Redbirds to make things interesting for the final week of the season.
Illinois State has been a different story. After a strong non-conference performance, as weak as it was schedule-wise, they tripped up a bit in the beginning of league play, losing to the likes of Indiana State and Wichita State in January. Tim Jankovich’s team has been able to turn it around when it needed to, winning five of their last six conference games in spite of some turmoil taking its toll on the Redbird roster.
Both teams control their own destiny for the rest of the season, where the team that wins out will be at least co-champion of the Valley. What an exciting time to be a MVC fan!
Picks
Creighton Otter: Illinois State
Panon: Illinois State
Dance Cam Guy: Illinois State
~ Dance Cam Guy
---
Wichita State (14-14; 7-9, t-5th) vs. Indiana State (9-19; 6-10, t-8th)
7:00 p.m.
Koch Arena; Wichita, Kansas
Raise your hands if, after the first couple of weeks in conference play, you honestly thought these two teams would each have a shot of bypassing the play-in games next Thursday. Bueller? Bueller?
With teams 5-9 separated by nothing but merely the short length of time it takes Booker Woodfox to get his shot off, the possibilities for these two teams’ finales for the regular season range anywhere between 5th place (and a 4-5 game next Friday afternoon), 6th place (the late-night cap in the Scottrade Center next Friday evening), or in either of the two first-round games.
Indiana State owns two of the best road wins in MVC play: at Northern Iowa to start conference play and in Normal over the Redbirds just a few weeks ago. Wichita has done most of their MVC damage at home, with just one of their 7 conference wins coming on the road. Good thing they’re in the round tonight at Koch Arena.
If Jay Tunnell and the other Sycamore Snipers can keep hitting from long range they’ll have a fighter’s chance tonight. But if the athleticism of the Shox gets in their way on the boards and cutting through the lane, it could be a tough end to the Trees’ win streak.
Picks
Creighton Otter: Wichita State
Panon: Wichita State
Dance Cam Guy: Wichita State
~ Creighton Otter
posted by Creighton Otter at 12:09 AM
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