What's Up In The Missouri Valley: What's Up In The Missouri Valley 11/5/2019

The Morning Dish – Friday, November 1, 2019--Hoopville

Side Dishes
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Missouri State is a solid pick as favorites in the Missouri Valley, especially now that they have West Virginia transfer Lamont West ready to go. Bradley, who won the conference tournament, should push them with five of their top seven scorers returning, while Northern Iowa, Loyola-Chicago and Drake should be in the mix as well.

College Basketball’s Team-by-Team Injury Report for the 2019-20 Season--Watch Stadium

MISSOURI VALLEY

Bradley – None
Drake – Brady Ernst (back) out until late November. Tremell Murphy (suspension) out for the first five games.
Evansville – None
Illinois State – None
Indiana State – Blake Brinkmeyer (academics) out indefinitely.
Loyola Chicago – Cooper Kaifes (hip) out for season. Keith Clemons (knee) out another four weeks. Franklin Agunanne (hand) out another three weeks.
Missouri State – None
Northern Iowa – None
Southern Illinois – Ronnie Suggs and Sekou Dembele both out indefinitely.
Valparaiso – None

Missouri Valley Basketball: Preseason power rankings for 2019-20 season--Busting Brackets
Arch Madness Staying Put!--Valley Hoops Insider

Drake basketball lands Illinois 2021 point guard Conor Enright--Des Moines Register
Some thoughts entering the Drake men's basketball season--Des Moines Register
Drake basketball's Tremell Murphy rejoins team, suspended five games--Des Moines Register
Men's Basketball Defeats Upper Iowa in Exhibition, 95-88--godrakebulldogs.com

October Drake Insider--godrakebulldogs.com
Drake Athletics Announces $5.15 Flash Sale For Basketball Home Openers--godrakebulldogs.com

Some thoughts entering the Drake women's basketball season--Des Moines Register
Women’s Basketball Cruises in Final Exhibition--godrakebulldogs.com
Hittner Named to Wooden Award Preseason Top 30 Watch List--godrakebulldogs.com

Here's what UE paid to play USI, and what Kentucky will pay UE--Evansville Courier & Press
Walter McCarty Radio Show 2019-20 schedule--gopurpleaces.com

Trio of Evansville natives eager to turn Aces women's basketball around--Evansville Courier & Press
Women's Basketball opens regular season with Education Day matchup--gopurpleaces.com

What watch for in the Illinois State basketball team's depth chart--The Pantagraph
Division I newcomers figure to make easier transition for Illinois State's basketball team--The Pantagraph
A breakdown of Illinois State's men's basketball schedule--The Pantagraph
Illinois State has first-hand knowledge (ouch!) about Belmont ahead of Wednesday's season opener at Redbird Arena--The Pantagraph
'Brothers' Fisher III, Hillsman share unique bond for ISU--Vidette Online
Arch Madness nets five year deal to stay in St. Louis--Vidette Online
https://goredbirds.com/news/2019/11/5/redbirds-set-for-2019-20-regular-season-opener.aspx?path=mbball--goredbirds.com

ISU, other state schools oppose NCAA Fair Pay to Play Act--Vidette Online

Lexi Wallen shows off new moves as Illinois State women dominate Lindenwood in basketball exhibition--The Pantagraph
Illinois State women's basketball team looks to set fast pace in opener vs. Truman State--The Pantagraph
Redbirds cruise past Lindenwood 89-61 in exhibition--Vidette Online
TeTe Magett: a force to be reckoned with in the MVC--Vidette Online
Redbirds Run Away with Exhibition Win Over Lindenwood--goredbirds.com
Illinois State Kicks Off Season Tuesday Against Truman State--goredbirds.com

Todd Aaron Golden: He's back! Odum imparts his wisdom to a new generation of Sycamores--Terre Haute Tribune Star
Forward Stephens is latest to join ISU fold--Terre Haute Tribune Star

3. Loyola Ramblers--Fansided
Pre-Season Happening Hoops Chicago College Basketball Power Rankings--Happening Hoops

2 – Loyola Chicago – Many have picked the ramblers to finish somewhere in the two to four range in the Missouri Valley. That being said the road to a top tier finish in the Valley is not easy. This is not the same Loyola Chicago team that made the final four two seasons ago. The roster only has seven underclassmen and only one senior. MVC pre-season player of the year Cameron Krutwig will do a lot of heavy lifting for the Ramblers. Lucas Williamson and Aher Uguak will need to fill their roles well if this team is to achieve their full potential. I can see coach Porter Moser and star center Cameron Krutwig being able to get this team to 15 wins by themselves, but however many more they pick up after that is up to what the supporting cast is able to produce night in and night out.

Loyola Men’s Basketball Drops Exhibition Opener to D-II Indianapolis--Loyola Phoenix
New Faces, Same Expectations for Men’s Basketball in 2019-20--Loyola Phoenix
Column: Five Thoughts on the 2019-20 Men’s Basketball Season--Loyola Phoenix
Postgame — Week of October 30: Men’s Basketball Falls to D-II Indianapolis in Exhibition--Loyola Phoenix
Former Ramblers Off To Solid Starts To Pro Seasons Overseas--loyolaramblers.com

Women’s Basketball Set for Year Four of Achter Era--Loyola Phoenix
Loyola Blows Out University of St. Francis in Exhibition Game--Loyola Phoenix
Five Loyola Student-Athletes Inducted Into Alpha Sigma Nu Honors Society--loyolaramblers.com
Loyola Raises Curtain On 2019-20 Season At Detroit Mercy Tuesday--loyolaramblers.com

College basketball rankings: Preseason mid-major Top 25 – Utah State earns top spot--Fansided

11. Missouri State: The Bears were one of the most interesting teams to watch last season. First-year coach Dana Ford started the season playing at a blistering pace, run and gun, then midway through the season completely altered their style and started playing slow, grind it out games. It will be fascinating to see which style he’ll choose this season after giving the roster a massive facelift. They picked up Lamont West, a double-digit scorer for West Virginia last season, and get decorated veterans Josh Hall (Nevada) and Tyrik Dixon (Middle Tennessee) eligible off of redshirt, and add four-star point guard Ford Cooper Jr. to returning all-Missouri Valley first-teamer Tulio Da Silva, an athletic 6-foot-8 matchup nightmare. On paper, the roster is better suited for an uptempo attack, but it’ll be interesting to see if the Bears can keep up with the likes of Xavier, Miami, LSU, and VCU in non-conference play.