What's Up In The Missouri Valley: What's Up In The Missouri Valley 2/10/2026

Missouri Valley chaos ramps up as March nears and the pressure rises--Busting Brackets
The Men’s Other Top 25: Santa Clara joins top five--Mid-Major Madness

Here is the full ranking:

Ranking

Team (First-Place Votes)

Points

Last Week

9 Belmont 69 9

20 Murray St. 19 NR

Ranking	Team (First-Place Votes)	Points	Last Week
9	Belmont	69	9
20	Murray St.	19	NR

Week 15 Watchlist: Cooler--Basket Under Review

Thursday, February 12
B Games
Northern Iowa at Belmont, 9 PM ET, ESPN+. Another Belmont game to watch, which means I don't have to sell it to you. How about a matchup of the league's best offense and defense? As of now, I would place my bets on a Belmont/Illinois State Arch Madness final, but Illinois State would (as it stands) have to get past UNI in the quarterfinals first, a team Ryan Pedon is 2-5 against.

Hunting a Bye--Valley Hoops Insider
Kings Conquering the MVC & OVC--Valley Hoops Insider

Kings Conquering the Player of the Week
Murray State big man Fred King came within one rebound of recording a pair of double-doubles. He scored sixteen points and grabbed 14 rebounds against Illinois Chicago and scored 17 and collected nine against Southern Illinois. The Valley’s ‘Player of the Week‘ is tied for seventh in the league scoring race (14.8 ppg) and leads the Valley in rebounds (9.4) and blocked shots (1.9). Murray State is two games out of first place.
Newcomers Gaining Traction
Southern Illinois’ Quel’Ron House joined the ‘multiple winners’ club for MVC newcomer awards. The Saluki guard claimed his second weekly honor by tossing up a pair of 20-point games. House scored 22 and 26 points during SIU’s two game split. This week’s ‘Newcomer of the Week‘ is the Valley’s eleventh leading scorer (14.4).
Rookies Padding Their Stats

Murray State freshman Roman Domon took over the MVC lead with four ‘Freshman of the Week‘ awards. He moved past Belmont’s Eoin Dillon who had claimed the previous three weekly honors. Domon moved into the Racers’ starting lineup and put up big numbers. He tallied Eighteen points and 8 boards against UIC and seventeen and five against the Salukis. Domon is tied with his teammate King in the league scoring race.

Snell & Layman Insights of the Braves & Bruins--Valley Hoops Insider
Monday Night Late Night--Valley Hoops Insider
Great Coaches Matching Wits--Valley Hoops Insider

Title Chasing: A Look at Each NCAAW Conference--Basket Under Review

Missouri Valley (MVC)

Murray State: 11-1
Belmont: 10-2

Murray State and Belmont are the only two teams in the conference with less than four losses, and thus, they are the two teams fighting for the #1 seed in the conference tournament. Murray State has the upper hand right now, as they have been Belmont's only two losses thus far, so they hold the tiebreaker over them for the #1 seed. Belmont still has a chance at winning the #1 seed, but they will absolutely need to not lose another game this season to give themselves a chance.

Meaningful Games to Watch This Week

2-13: Illinois Chicago @ Belmont
2-15: Illinois Chicago @ Murray State

There really aren't any games in the Missouri Valley this week that will play into the #1 seed or conference title chances. Now, if Belmont or Murray State loses to Illinois Chicago in an upset this week, that will change the entire equation. If either of these teams doesn't go 2-0 this week, something bad has happened.

Men's Basketball Drops Heartbreaker in Overtime at Bradley--belmontbruins.com
Strickland, Dillon Named Trane Student-Athletes of the Month for February--belmontbruins.com

'An electric game': Bradley Braves snap 9-game Belmont win streak with 95-84 win in overtime--Peoria Journal Star
A shot, a stop, a statement: Braves defeat top-seeded Bruins in overtime--The Bradley Scout
MBB Recap: Bradley topples first place Belmont in Monday night action--bradleybraves.com

Mya Wardle named Busey Bank Scholar-Athlete of the Week--bradleybraves.com

Quinn's 33 Not Enough As Bulldogs Fall to Beacons, 81-76--godrakebulldogs.com

Casey and Berridge post career efforts in win over Redbirds--gopurpleaces.com

Hot-shooting Evansville drops Illinois State men's basketball--The Pantagraph
A royal flush for the Aces: ISU stunned by Evansville--The Vidette
Late Comeback Comes up Short on Monday--goredbirds.com

Emerging guard Trista Fayta sparks Illinois State women past Drake--The Pantagraph

Old habits resurface to haunt Sycamores in loss to Salukis--Terre Haute Tribune-Star
Sycamores look to bounce back against Racers--Terre Haute Tribune-Star
Harding, St. Bernard named Hannig Construction Indiana State Student-Athletes of the Week--gosycamores.com
Indiana State falls to Southern Illinois on Monday--gosycamores.com

Sycamores fall to Braves--Sycamores fall to Braves

2/8 Racer Rewind--WPSD Local 6
Murray State suffers largest home loss in program history with 29-point landslide to Northern Iowa--WPSD Local 6
Looking for 3 in a row; Racer men must tame UNI to keep momentum rolling--Murray Ledger and Times
They’ve been strangers; So far, Northern Iowa has only visited The Bank once ... and won--Murray Ledger and Times
Northern Iowa turns late night into horror show for Racer men--Murray Ledger and Times
Racers Searching For Answers After Home Rout To UNI--goracers.com

5 in 5: A Look at the Week Ahead in Women's College Basketball--Basket Under Review

5 Teams to Watch This Week

Murray State
Murray State is at the top of the Missouri Valley with a record of 11-1 so far this season. They are one game clear of Belmont, who sits in second place, and then there is a two-game gap. So, the MVC winner will likely be one of these two teams. It might come down to the team that doesn't trip over themselves in the last couple weeks. Murray State has the tiebreaker over Belmont, as they are 2-0 against them this season, so Murray State has the ability to lose one additional game if Belmont wins out. They don't want that to happen this week when they face off with Valparaiso and Illinois Chicago. Look for two convincing wins from the odds-on favorite to win the conference.

Teams of the Week: Foxy Foxwell and the Pilots--Basket Under Review

HONORABLE MENTION: REMAINING CONFERENCE AWARDS
MISSOURI VALLEY: NORTHERN IOWA - Panthers have a healthy Tristan Smith again and that has everyone in Cedar Falls sleeping better at night. UNI's home win over Bradley was a crippling defensive effort, holding the Braves to 49 points. Similar to what we saw in non-conference games with defensive prowess. UNI is alive and well for an Arch Madness run.

College Men's Basketball: Northern Iowa stomps Murray State for season sweep--Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier
UNI men’s basketball rolls to 29-point rout at Murray State--unipanthers.com