Missouri Valley Conference Basketball Blog

1. How many states are represented in the Missouri Valley Conference?

A. 7

B. 4

C. 5

D. 6

2. Where is the confernece tournament mainly held?

A. Kansas City

B. Chicago

C. St. Louis

D. Indianapolis

3. Who won the Missouri Valley Men’s Regular Season Title in 2007?

A. Southern Illinois

B. Drake

C. Bradley

D. Creighton

4. What is the conference tournament called?

A. Arch Madness

B. Indy Tourney

C. The K.C. Classic

D. March in the Windy City

5. What team is in the conference?

A. St. Louis

B. UMKC

C. Indiana State

D. Southern Indiana

6. What team is not a member of the conference?

A. Illinois State

B. Bradley

C. Indiana State

D. Southern Kansas                                               

7. What is a nickname of a team in the conference?

A. Mountaineers

B. Blue Jays

C. Clippers

D. Yankees                                             

8.  What is a nickname of a team in the conference?

A. Sooners

B. Seminoles

C. Sixers

D. Shockers

9. What is a nickname of a team in the conference?

A. Braves

B. Mets

C. Panthers

D. Phillies

10. What network broadcasted the last two men’s basketball conference tournament title game?

A. ESPN
B. FSN

C. ABC

D. CBS

                                         

 

I havent been on in a few days, but I have been busy emailing so many big time MVC guys…I am trying to set up an interview with Dana Altman of Creighton right now! I will keep you guys posted!

-Cory McKnight

Currently, I have Creighton, Bradley and Southern Illinois making the tournament.

East                           South                        Mid West                         West

1. Georgetown           1. UNC                        1. Louisville                      1. UCLA

2. Syracuse               2. Tennesse                 2. Kansas                        2. Memphis

3. Marquette             3. Washington State     3. Ohio State                   3. Indiana

4. Stanford               4. West Virginia            4. Duke                          4. UCONN

5. Oregon                 5. Michigan State          5. USC                           5. Illinois

6. Virginia                 6.  Gonzaga                 6. Arizona                       6. N.C. State

7. Southern Illinois 7. Xavier                      7. Arkansas                     7. Kentucky

8. Purdue                 8. Creighton                 8. Washington                 8. Vanderbilt

9. Texas A.M            9. Wisconsin                 9. Florida                        9. Michigan

10. George Mason    10. Mississippi State      10. California                   10. UNLV

11. Nevada              11. VCU                       11. Bradley                    11. Iowa State

12. Alabama            12. Davidson                12. Mississippi                  12. San Diego State

13. Butler                13. Western Kentucky  13. Kent State                  13. Pacific

14. Oral Roberts      14. Pennslyvania           14. Texas AM CC              14. Winthrop

15. Bucknell            15. Belmont                  15. Monmouth                 15. Niagara

16. Montana           16. Play in game            16. Delaware State           16. Samford

Play in: Vermont vs Alabama St

By PC

The Shockers upcoming season’s non-conference schedule will boast eight home games and a trip to the Paradise Jam in the Virgin Islands.

Of the eight home games, three really stick out. The Shockers will host LSU, Wyoming, and UAB. LSU had a down season last season, but should be better in the coming season. Wyoming went 17-15 last season, but should be improved for the coming season. UAB went 15-16 last season, but landed the ninth best recruiting class in the nation.

New coach Gregg Marshall will have his hands full as the team travels to play in the Paradise Jam. In the opener, the Shockers play Baylor, who returns all starters from last season’s 15-16 performance. That is a very early test for the Shockers and could be an indication as to how their season will turn out. The winner of that game will play the winner of the Notre Dame-Monmouth game. Expect the Irish to take that. If the Shockers can get by Baylor and Notre Dame (or Monmouth), then they would be in the championship and either be playing Charlotte, Georgia Tech, Illinois-Chicago, or Winthrop.

The most interesting game at the Paradise Jam is the potential match up between the Shockers and Winthrop. Shockers coach Gregg Marshall came to Witchita State after the Shockers former coach, Mark Turgeon, left for Texas A&M. Marshall is set to make a little over $800,000 dollars, which is nearly three times the amount he made coaching Winthrop. If the two teams should happen to play, expect Marshall to be trying to prove his worth with a victory over his former school.

The Shockers will also be featured in the 2008 O’ Reilly’s Bracket Buster games. Their game will be between February 22nd and February 25th, and will be played on the road with other details still to be announced.

Witchita State has a tough road ahead of them before they begin brutal conference play in the Missouri Valley. However, new coach Gregg Marshall has a lot to prove and should have the Shockers above .500 as they enter with MVC play.

Jonathon VanHoose is no ordinary Kentucky player.

VanHoose was first team All-State in Kentucky, along with nine other players, while setting numerous school records. During his senior season, VanHoose averaged 20.2 points per game. Also during that season, VanHoose only averaged around ten shots per game. VanHoose, who is from Russell, Kentucky, set his school’s all-time scoring record while scoring 1, 897 points.

I have had the pleasure of watching VanHoose play against my school twice. My school, Ironton High School (Ohio), had the best shooter in the state of Ohio during VanHoose’s junior season. The game was at Russell, and was one of the best high school games I have ever watched. It was a back and forth game, and although VanHoose and Co. lost the game, I came away thoroughly impressed with Jon and what he could do on the basketball floor.

During VanHoose’s senior season, his Russell team came to Ironton. Although VanHoose only scored 14 points, I was still impressed with what he did on our floor. Again, his Russell Red Devils lost the ball game, but it was not at the fault of Jon VanHoose.

However, one knock on Jon is that on February 27th in a District Semifinal game, he tore his ACL. Recovery time for the surgery is around six months and VanHoose should be in full force when Evansville practice begins in October, according to his father Rob.

I would like to wish VanHoose and Evansville the best of luck in 2007-08 and wish Jon a speedy recovery!

Earlier this week Wichita State head basketball coach Mark Turgeon left the Shockers for Texas A&M. Just a few days later it appears that Wichita State may have their replacement in Winthrop’s Gregg Marshall. After Turgeon led Wichita State’s basketball program to a 128-89 record in 7 seasons, Marshall will have his hands full. But Marshall led Winthrop, a member of the Big South Conference, to a 194-83 record in 9 seasons and should be up to the task with a strong program with great fan support.

For fans looking for WSU Shockers merchandise or Wichita State hats, look no further than CollegeSports-Fans.com. College Sports Fans features a complete line of college basketball clothing & apparel options and college football tickets.

After trailing 27-24 at the half, the #4 Southern Illinois Salukis have outscored the #1 Kansas Jayhawks 9-2 in the second half to lead 33-29. With their first ever Elite 8 berth in sight, can the SIU Salukis hold on for what would be another great win for Missouri Valley Conference basketball?

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The Creighton Bluejays have their ticket to the Big Dance in 2007 as they upset the  Southern Illinois Salukis on Sunday in the Missouri Valley Conference Championship by a score of 67-61. The win marked Creighton’s 22nd of the season as they finished 2nd in the MVC’s regular season standings behind SIU.

Joining Creighton in the NCAA Tournament will be SIU as the Salukis (27-6), are ranked #6 in the RPI. Missouri State (22-10, RPI #38) and Bradley (21-12, RPI #44) are also considered strong contenders for at-large NCAA Tournament berths.

The Missouri Valley Conference is having yet another strong year and making headlines. As the race continues and teams continue to psition themselves to make the NCAA’s field of 65, MVC play continues this weekend. Here is a run-down of this weekend’s MVC basketball games.

• Wichita State @ Creighton
• Indiana State @ Bradley
• Illinois State @ Northern Iowa
• Evansville @ #14 Southern Illinois
• Drake @ Missouri State

MVC basketball fans are coming out of the woodwork to supports their teams thanks to the recent succes of many of their programs. College sports fans and MVC basketball fans can look to CollegeSports-Fans.com for Indiana State apparel, Southern Illinois merchandise, Illinois State gear and Wichita State merchandise.