Why cover a mid-major conference tournament like the MVC Tournament you may ask. The answer is simple: why not? To the teams and their fans, they are just colleges and universities vying for the same distinctions as the so-called Power Five conferences, namely, conference and tournament champions. Those titles hold no less value because these are smaller schools without the war chests of the perennial bigger-name schools.
It’s still competitive basketball, and while you might not recognize the names of the outstanding players in these conferences, their fans do, and that is what counts. I’ve chosen the MVC because I happen to have gone to an MVC school. Let’s leave it at that. So here we go.
Indiana State took care of Southern Illinois to open the MVC Tournament
Day 1 of the MVC Tournament gave us four games. The first was between the Indiana State Sycamores and the Southern Illinois Salukis. If you compare the scores and then look at some of the games in the Power Five tournaments, you won’t see any difference. Indiana State took the first half 33-23. The Sycamores scored the first bucket, and then it took a few minutes for the Salukis to get going.
While the final score of the quarter gave Southern Illinois a 1-point lead at 13-12, the Sycamores upped their scoring and took the second quarter 21-10, taking a ten-point lead into the half. The Salukis then closed the gap to within three due to a long scoring drought from Indiana State, which is where the third quarter ended, 48-45. Halfway through the fourth quarter, the Sycamores held a four-point lead, which ballooned to a 14-point lead by the 0:42 mark, and the game ended 66-54 Indiana State.
.@Mya_gee32's career day powers Sycamores to opening round MVC Tournament win
— Indiana State Women's Basketball (@IndStWBB) March 14, 2024
📰 https://t.co/zPWToLJKx1#MarchOn | #OneGoalOneFamily pic.twitter.com/u8mc1AnxEn
Teams run out of gas in Mid-Major games the same way they do in Power Five games. Mya Glanton led the Sycamores with 30 points, Ella Sawyer had 12, and Kiley Bess had 10. For the Salukis, Quierra Love scored 15, Paige Clubb 12, and Jaidynn Mason 11. Indiana State moves on to the quarterfinals and will meet conference winners Drake University.
Illinois State gets past Evansville by 21 to reach the next round
The second game matched Illinois State against Evansville. While the Redbirds posted a respectable overall record of 21-10, the Purple Aces of Evansville struggled mightily this season. Illinois State got off to a good start, and outscored Evansville 23-11 in the first quarter. In the second, Evansville found a little more juice, although the Redbirds matched their first-quarter points, and the half ended at 43-28. Illinois State increased their lead in the third to 70-47, and eventually won by a score of 85-64.
Evansville was led by Nevaeh Thomas with 23 points, Maggie Hartwig with 16, and Barbora Tomancova with 10. For the Redbirds, Shannon Dowell led with 14, DeAnna Wilson scored 11, and both Maya Wong and Brooke Coffey scored 10. Illinois State will face Northern Iowa in the quarterfinals.
UIC holds off Valparaiso in an MVC Tournament thriller
The Valparaiso Beacons got off to a great start against the UIC Flames in the third game. The Beacons took advantage of a slow shooting start for the Flames, and took the first quarter 26-17. UIC held steady in the second quarter, holding the Beacons to 15 points, and took it 17-15, going into the half trailing 41-34. In the third, UIC further closed the gap, outscoring Valparaiso 28-25. In the fourth, UIC tied the game at 66 all at the 7:49 mark and managed to hold on for a 79-77 victory.
Valparaiso played a good game even in a loss. They outshot UIC 54.7% to 45.% on 29-53 to 27-59. They shot 9-20 from three to UIC’s 2-10. However, Valparaiso had 19 turnovers, off of which UIC scored 23 points. Interestingly, the UIC bench outscored the starters 49-30, and against Belmont, the UIC starters are going to have to really step up. Leah Earnest led Valparaiso with 23 points and 8 boards, followed by Saniya Jackson with 16 and Olivia Brown with 12.
Danyel Middleton led UIC with 22 points, Mariah Williams with 17, and Jaida McCloud and Keimari Rimmer each with 12.
Murray State wins over Bradley to advance in MVC Tournament
Finally, Murray State took it to Bradley who, after a four-point lead at the 5:22 mark of the first quarter, saw it slip away, never to return. Murray State ended up routing the Bradley Braves 87-49, putting an end to a disappointing season for Bradley. For Murray State, Katelyn Young led with 16 points, Zoe Stewart had 15, Bria Sanders-Woods scored 14, and Ava Learn scored 10. Bradley was led by Halli Poock with 16, Alex Rouse with 12, and Isis Fitch with 10.
See y’all tomorrow! 👋 pic.twitter.com/OpMBiIFNii
— Murray State Women's Basketball (@RacersWBB) March 15, 2024
Murray State ended the regular season in the middle of the MVC pack at 12-8 in conference play. They go on to meet Missouri State in the next round. Looking at their records, this could be anyone’s game.
So the scores, the highs, the lows, and the details are really no different than any other conference. Only the names change, and you just might not recognize the ones in the MVC. But as I said, it is still basketball, and worth watching.
And that, my friends, as they say, is that.’ — Martin Ruben.
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