Today In The Valley (Feb. 7)
Missouri State (10-13; 3-9, 9th) vs. (Southern Illinois 10-13; 5-7; t-6th)
3:00 p.m.
JQH Arena; Springfield, Missouri
ESPN2
This morning’s Springfield News-Leader article sums up the season for Southern Illinois so far with one word: miserable. It is an accurate assessment of the recent woes of one of the MVC’s premier programs, a proclamation made even more truthful with this week’s diagnosis of lead guard Bryan Mullins with a stress fracture.
And now the SIU Salukis are in a roster situation that MSU’s Cuonzo Martin is more than familiar with. For the better part of the season, Martin’s Bears have dealt with short benches and injured star players. Now about as healthy has they’ve been all season, it is Missouri State that will look to feast on a road opponent licking its wounds.
In their last game, MSU beat Evansville thanks in large part to double-doubles from Chris Cooks (18 points, 10 rebounds) and Kyle Weems (10 and 10). For Weems, it was his second double-double of the week, a fact that for Martin helps sell the future of his program. While Cooks will graduate at the end of the season, youngsters like Weems and Cardell McFarland, as well as transfer Will Creekmore, are gaining valuable experience as Martin looks to resurrect the proud MSU program.
Speaking of proud programs, I’m sure no one in the Valley is truly feeling sorry for SIU. They have, along with Creighton, owned the MVC for the better part of the last 10 years. They are down to 8 players on the bench, and are led by likely Freshman of the Year Kevin Dillard (12.7 ppg, 3.8 apg). And with a roster full of younger players, today’s ESPN2 road game in front of a White Out in the new JQH Arena might be a lot to handle. SIU already lost one White Out game on the road.
Picks
Creighton Otter: Missouri State
Panon: Missouri State
Dance Cam Guy: Southern Illinois
~ Creighton Otter
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Drake (14-10; 5-7, t-6th) vs. Bradley (13-10; 7-5, 4th)
7:00 p.m.
Knapp Center; Des Moines, Iowa
MVC TV
Both of these teams come to tonight’s game reeling a bit. Bradley had UNI exactly where they and the rest of the Valley wanted them Tuesday night but couldn’t seal the deal. BU has lost four of their past six games. Drake had a solid first half against Creighton Wednesday night but gave up 51 second-half points and lost; that’s six losses in the last seven games.
Bradley is sitting about where they were last season; they are in sole possession of 4th place in the MVC with six conference games left to play. Drake has come back to Earth following last year’s magical run through the Valley and into the NCAA tournament. In a few weeks, the Bulldogs will honor not last year’s team but the one DU squad that puts all others to shame: the 1969 Final Four squad.
Bradley has suffered through two tough losses; how well can Jim Les keep them from hanging their heads? And will Josh Young break out of his 3-point shooting slump to right the ship for Drake? There seems to be a lot more questions than answers for both teams as they head into the final weeks of Valley play.
Picks
Creighton Otter: Bradley
Panon: Bradley
Dance Cam Guy: Bradley
~ Creighton otter
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Evansville (14-8; 6-6, 5th) vs. Wichita State (11-12; 5-7, t-6th)
7:00 p.m.
Roberts Stadium; Evansville, Indiana
Two-thirds of the way through conference play, the calendar has flipped to February, and each game down the stretch becomes a little more important.
While Jays fans have been focused on the race at the top of the Valley, the next tier of teams are battling in a race that is just as intriguing. Evansville stands alone in the fifth spot at 6-6. Behind them is a trio of teams at 5-7 battling for the sixth seed and the opportunity to start their MVC tournament on Friday, and not in the dreaded Thursday night play-in games. Joining Wichita State in that group are Drake and Southern Illinois.
Evansville is coming off a tough loss on the road to Missouri State. Senior Nate Garner has two 20-point efforts in his last two games. He scored 20 in a road win at Drake and a career-high 24 against the Bears. Shy Ely stills leads the Valley in scoring, and he is looking to become the first Purple Ace to be tops in that category for a season. He will be the focus of the Shox defense.
WSU will go for the season sweep of this series today. They pulled off a 51-50 win in Wichita on a Toure Murry 3-pointer. After losing their first six conference games, the win against the Jays sparked a run during which the Shox have won five of six MVC showdowns. Gregg Marshall has to be pleased with the results of his team as of late, especially the Black and Gold picking up their first road win of the season in the previous game.
Picks
Creighton Otter: Evansville
Panon: Evansville
Dance Cam Guy: Evansville
~ Panon
3:00 p.m.
JQH Arena; Springfield, Missouri
ESPN2
This morning’s Springfield News-Leader article sums up the season for Southern Illinois so far with one word: miserable. It is an accurate assessment of the recent woes of one of the MVC’s premier programs, a proclamation made even more truthful with this week’s diagnosis of lead guard Bryan Mullins with a stress fracture.
And now the SIU Salukis are in a roster situation that MSU’s Cuonzo Martin is more than familiar with. For the better part of the season, Martin’s Bears have dealt with short benches and injured star players. Now about as healthy has they’ve been all season, it is Missouri State that will look to feast on a road opponent licking its wounds.
In their last game, MSU beat Evansville thanks in large part to double-doubles from Chris Cooks (18 points, 10 rebounds) and Kyle Weems (10 and 10). For Weems, it was his second double-double of the week, a fact that for Martin helps sell the future of his program. While Cooks will graduate at the end of the season, youngsters like Weems and Cardell McFarland, as well as transfer Will Creekmore, are gaining valuable experience as Martin looks to resurrect the proud MSU program.
Speaking of proud programs, I’m sure no one in the Valley is truly feeling sorry for SIU. They have, along with Creighton, owned the MVC for the better part of the last 10 years. They are down to 8 players on the bench, and are led by likely Freshman of the Year Kevin Dillard (12.7 ppg, 3.8 apg). And with a roster full of younger players, today’s ESPN2 road game in front of a White Out in the new JQH Arena might be a lot to handle. SIU already lost one White Out game on the road.
Picks
Creighton Otter: Missouri State
Panon: Missouri State
Dance Cam Guy: Southern Illinois
~ Creighton Otter
---
Drake (14-10; 5-7, t-6th) vs. Bradley (13-10; 7-5, 4th)
7:00 p.m.
Knapp Center; Des Moines, Iowa
MVC TV
Both of these teams come to tonight’s game reeling a bit. Bradley had UNI exactly where they and the rest of the Valley wanted them Tuesday night but couldn’t seal the deal. BU has lost four of their past six games. Drake had a solid first half against Creighton Wednesday night but gave up 51 second-half points and lost; that’s six losses in the last seven games.
Bradley is sitting about where they were last season; they are in sole possession of 4th place in the MVC with six conference games left to play. Drake has come back to Earth following last year’s magical run through the Valley and into the NCAA tournament. In a few weeks, the Bulldogs will honor not last year’s team but the one DU squad that puts all others to shame: the 1969 Final Four squad.
Bradley has suffered through two tough losses; how well can Jim Les keep them from hanging their heads? And will Josh Young break out of his 3-point shooting slump to right the ship for Drake? There seems to be a lot more questions than answers for both teams as they head into the final weeks of Valley play.
Picks
Creighton Otter: Bradley
Panon: Bradley
Dance Cam Guy: Bradley
~ Creighton otter
---
Evansville (14-8; 6-6, 5th) vs. Wichita State (11-12; 5-7, t-6th)
7:00 p.m.
Roberts Stadium; Evansville, Indiana
Two-thirds of the way through conference play, the calendar has flipped to February, and each game down the stretch becomes a little more important.
While Jays fans have been focused on the race at the top of the Valley, the next tier of teams are battling in a race that is just as intriguing. Evansville stands alone in the fifth spot at 6-6. Behind them is a trio of teams at 5-7 battling for the sixth seed and the opportunity to start their MVC tournament on Friday, and not in the dreaded Thursday night play-in games. Joining Wichita State in that group are Drake and Southern Illinois.
Evansville is coming off a tough loss on the road to Missouri State. Senior Nate Garner has two 20-point efforts in his last two games. He scored 20 in a road win at Drake and a career-high 24 against the Bears. Shy Ely stills leads the Valley in scoring, and he is looking to become the first Purple Ace to be tops in that category for a season. He will be the focus of the Shox defense.
WSU will go for the season sweep of this series today. They pulled off a 51-50 win in Wichita on a Toure Murry 3-pointer. After losing their first six conference games, the win against the Jays sparked a run during which the Shox have won five of six MVC showdowns. Gregg Marshall has to be pleased with the results of his team as of late, especially the Black and Gold picking up their first road win of the season in the previous game.
Picks
Creighton Otter: Evansville
Panon: Evansville
Dance Cam Guy: Evansville
~ Panon
posted by Creighton Otter at 10:37 AM
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