What's Up In The Missouri Valley: What's Up In The Missouri Valley 12/11/2023

The Other Top 25: Grand Canyon, Saint Joseph’s make big jumps--Mid-Major Madness

Four teams joined the ranking: St. Bonaventure at 22, McNeese State at 23, UC Irvine at 24 and Belmont at 25.

The Other Top 25: Dec. 11, 2023

Rank Team (First Place Votes) Points Previous

7 Indiana St. 91 9

11 Drake 76 10

25 Belmont 9 NR

Others Receiving Votes:

Santa Clara 8; San Francisco 8; Bradley 8; Tulane 6; Vermont 5; Weber St. 5; Louisiana Tech 4; Purdue Fort Wayne 4; George Mason 3; Longwood 3; Southern Illinois 2; Long Beach St. 2; Kent St. 1; George Washington 1; Hawaii 1

Dropped from Ranking:

Bradley – 19; Santa Clara – 23; Vermont – T-24; Tulane – T-24

Rank	Team (First Place Votes)	Points	Previous
7	Indiana St.	91	9
11	Drake	76	10
25	Belmont	9	NR

Gillespie leads Belmont over Middle Tennessee--nashvillehoops.blog
Total Team Effort as Men's Basketball Wins at Middle Tennessee--belmontbruins.com
Malik Dia Named MVC Newcomer of the Week--belmontbruins.com

Jailyn Banks Collects Third MVC Freshman of the Week Plaudit--belmontbruins.com

QT: Arizona rolls on a roller-coaster Saturday--Bracketology

Additional Quick Takes:

Drake throttled Nevada, moving the Missouri Valley favorites to 8-1 on the season.

News, Notes, and Highlighted Games: Sunday, Dec 10th--Hoops HD

NEWS AND NOTES:
-Drake is now 9-1 after handily beating a Nevada team that came into this one unbeaten. We were all really big on Drake coming into the year and thought they could land inside the bubble, but they did lose some key players from a year ago, and after getting blown out by Stephen F Ausitn a few weeks ago we just kind of wrote them off. Well, I think it’s time to write them back in. They’re now 9-1 with a couple of notable and impressive wins.

Drake men’s basketball comfortably defeats Missouri State--The Times-Delphic
Bulldogs Outrun Wolf Pack in Second Half at Jack Jones Classic--godrakebulldogs.com
Overton Picks Up MVC Freshman of the Week Recognition--godrakebulldogs.com

Tomancova earns first Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Week honor--gopurpleaces.com

Norfolk State topples Illinois State in spirited battle at Horton Field House--The Pantagraph
Kinziger's surge not enough as ISU men's basketball falls to Norfolk State in Return to Horton--The Vidette
Redbirds Unable to Overcome Slow Start in Return to Horton--goredbirds.com

Illinois State women's basketball welcomes No. 19 Marquette to CEFCU Arena--The Pantagraph
Illinois State women come up short in upset bid of No. 19 Marquette--The Pantagraph
Five things to know ahead of ISU women's basketball's matchup with No. 19 Marquette--The Vidette
Redbirds Can’t Hang on vs No.19 Golden Eagles--goredbirds.com

NCAA Basketball: Gonzaga’s weakness, Oklahoma’s emerging star highlight Dec. 11 Rauf Report--Heat Check CBB

It’s time to start paying attention to Indiana State

Let’s end on a positive note. The Indiana State Sycamores aren’t getting a lot of national love right now, but they absolutely deserve it.

A 9-1 start has Josh Schertz’s squad up to No. 12 in the NET rankings and No. 54 on KenPom. Outside of a loss to Alabama, this high-powered offense has been boatracing opponents.

Indiana State plays at a fast tempo and leads the country in effective field goal percentage, per KenPom. That’s likely because ISU ranks in the top 10 in shooting both inside and outside the arc. The Sycamores share the ball and rarely turn it over. They also have five different players averaging at least 10.5 points. Five players also average over 2.0 assists, including three that average 3.8 or more.

This is a balanced team with a dynamic backcourt. The Sycamores also have one of the nation’s most unique weapons in center Robbie Avila, who is a pretty apt comparison for college basketball’s Nikola Jokic given his production and skill set. Just look!

pic.twitter.com/VyamugXyKK
— college basketball (@BoogieWoogie690) December 10, 2023

It is worth noting that Avila did not play in the loss to Alabama, and his presence could have made a difference in that game.

Drake remains the favorite to win the Missouri Valley this season, but Indiana State is right there. The Sycamores have another chance to make a statement on Dec. 30 at Michigan State. You might want to tune in — because this is a group that could become America’s darling in the NCAA Tournament.