What's Up In The Missouri Valley: What's Up In The Missouri Valley 10/15/2026

‘Anything But Mid’ Podcast: Men’s Conference Previews for MVC, OVC, Pac-12--Mid-Major Madness

Missouri Valley
There’s a new format for Arch Madness this season that favors the teams who fared the best in the regular season. Belmont won the conference regular-season championship last year with a 16-4 mark but was knocked out by Drake in the quarterfinals. The Bruins return six players from last year, highlighted Bez Jenkins, Jack Smiley, Eion Dillon and Isaiah West.
Murray State should be an interesting watch in Ryan Miller’s second season at the helm. Roman Domon will be a go-to player for the Racers.
UIC has continued to improve over the last few seasons and has the chance to contend this season. The Flames bring back a slew of talent. Ahmad Henderson II (12 ppg), Andy Johnson (11 ppg) Rashun Washington Jr. (8.7 ppg, 5 rpg), Mekhi Lowery (8.1, 5.8 rpg) and Jayce Nathaniel (6.2 ppg, 4.5 rpg) all return for Rob Ehsan.

Brought into the World: The 2027 KenPom Rankings--Basket Under Review

Murray State (97th) leads a group of seven squads between 97 and 146 in the Valley. Surprisingly, Bradley is all the way down at 170. When was the last time Brian Wardle finished 8th? The answer is the COVID season of 2020-21 and his first year back in 2015-16. I think the Braves will outperform this.

Where Drake and UNI women are picked to finish in MVC this season--Des Moines Register

Women’s Basketball Picked Third in MVC Preseason Poll--belmontbruins.com

The Bradley Braves men's basketball team lands sixth in Valley preseason poll--Peoria Journal Star
Bradley Braves men's basketball team loses a key player to injury--Peoria Journal Star

From mountains to Midwest: Gabe Oldham's journey to Drake basketball--Des Moines Register

Drake Women Picked Fifth in 2026-27 Valley Preseason Poll--godrakebulldogs.com

Men’s Basketball Picked Second in MVC Preseason Poll--goredbirds.com

Missouri Valley Conference brings all its basketball teams under Enterprise Center roof--The Pantagraph
Redbirds picked second in both MVC preseason basketball polls--The Vidette

Illinois State Picked Second In MVC Preseason Poll--goredbirds.com

Racers tabbed for first, but Sycamores not overly concerned--Terre Haute Tribune-Star
Graves, Gregory, and Cooper to represent Indiana State at 2026 MVC Basketball Media Day--gosycamores.com

Meeting in St. Louis; ISU men, women take on MVC media day--Terre Haute Tribune-Star

Sycamores picked to finish 9th in MVC women's basketball race--Terre Haute Tribune-Star
Allen, Flowers, Mitchell to represent Sycamore women’s basketball at MVC Media Day--gosycamores.com

Best of the rest: Pac-12 returns, Mountain West shifts, new leagues, college hoops Cinderellas to know--CBS Sports

Mid-major coaches on the climb
Every year, I like to spotlight a handful of coaches at mid-majors who are on a path to potentially land a high-major job in the coming year(s). I don't like to repeat coaches on this list within a five-year period, so here's just some who've been highlighted since 2022: Casey Alexander (Belmont), Robert Jones (Norfolk State), Ritchie McKay (Liberty), Bob Richey (Furman), Pat Kelsey (Charleston), Darian DeVries (Drake), Dusty May (FAU), Kenny Blakeney (Howard), James Jones (Yale), Bucky McMillan (Samford), Josh Schertz (Saint Louis), Takayo Siddle (UNCW) and Tony Skinn (George Mason).
Ryan Miller, Murray State
Murray State has gotten serious about its NIL investments in the past two years, now ranking in the top 15 among all mid-majors. As a result, Miller's going to have the preseason favorites in the Missouri Valley. The Racers went 20-13 last season, Miller's first at the helm after his time as a Creighton assistant. Should Memphis open in 2027, Miller will be on the short list of candidates for that job.

Murray State waiting on NCAA for eligibility of two players--WPSD Local 6
Murray State men's basketball focused on blocking out preseason hype--WPSD Local 6
Missouri Valley Conference basketball; Racer men picked atop preseason poll for first time--Murray
Ledger and Times
Racers Picked Atop MVC Preseason Poll for First Time--goracers.com

Murray State men's and women's basketball each picked to win MVC in Preseason Polls--WPSD Local 6

Debbie Antonelli’s Top 10 Storylines for the 2026-27 Women’s College Basketball Season--Hoops HQ

2. NCAA Tournament expansion

With the NCAA Tournament expanding to 76 teams, I’m curious to see what the impact will be on the women’s side. First of all, they are reducing the size of the field in the WBIT, which I think is important because we don’t have 100 good teams in women’s college basketball. It seems like all the changes could present a programming conundrum for ESPN, but I’m sure Director of Programming Dan Margulis will figure out the right formula.

The other important thing to note regarding tournament expansion is that the women’s teams are now earning units (shares of tournament revenue) just like the men’s teams. Does that put more pressure on the committee when awarding bids? That leads me to one of my big ideas: I want to reshuffle the bottom of the bracket so that teams with automatic bids from lower-level conferences can actually have a chance to win and make more money. The question is, should we prioritize giving those teams and conferences an opportunity to get units or keep the focus on the other side of the business, which is ratings, sales, inventory, etc.? It’s a good conversation to have.

In terms of mid-major sleepers, keep an eye on Murray State in the Missouri Valley Conference. The Racers were fifth in the nation in scoring last year and have their core back.

Murray State women embrace pressure in pursuit of third straight MVC title--WPSD Local 6
Missouri Valley Conference basketball; Racer women tabbed for 3-peat in preseason poll--Murray Ledger and Times
Women's Hoops Tabbed First in MVC Preseason Poll--goracers.com