Paul Suellentrop’s Missouri Valley Conference report (Jan. 26)
The top and bottom of the Missouri Valley Conference look familiar at the halfway point. The middle is a mess.
As expected, Wichita State is in first place and Evansville is in the hunt. As expected, Drake and Bradley are woeful. Nobody expected Northern Iowa’s meltdown. Nobody expected Southern Illinois’ return to prominence and an unbeaten road record. Illinois State’s inconsistency is troubling and Indiana State is rebounding from non-conference struggles, as is its habit. The Sycamores, with strong guard play and a favorable schedule, are the team most likely to alter the race.
Honors at the halfway point
The favorite: The Shockers are 8-0 in the MVC with an average margin of victory of 20.5. They can knock out Evansville with a win Sunday at Ford Center. Then the Salukis come to Koch Arena on Feb. 3. Don’t overlook a Feb. 21 date at Indiana State.
Player of the year: WSU is 12-1 since Fred VanVleet’s left hamstring allowed him to play again. If the Shockers cruise to the MVC title for a third straight season, VanVleet’s contributions will out-weigh superb seasons by Evansville’s D.J. Balentine and Egidijus Mockevicius and Southern Illinois’ Anthony Beane.
Freshman of the year: It is a mild season for freshmen in the MVC, which doesn’t signal big things for the future. This is a close race between WSU’s Markis McDuffie and Missouri State’s Obediah Church. It doesn’t seem fair that the MVC’s best team owns the best freshman (and injured Landry Shamet). If McDuffie’s contributions continue at their present pace, he is the choice.
Newcomer of the year: Missouri State guard Dequon Miller owns five newcomer of the week awards. Nobody else has more than one. But Miller is not a good shooter and has as many turnovers (51) as assists. So don’t give up on SIU junior guard Mike Rodriguez, who runs the offense and scores enough to relieve some of the burden from Beane. His addition has made Beane a better player and revived a struggling program. Teammate Leo Vincent. a junior guard, scores big off the bench. If SIU finishes second, their resumes look stronger.
Coach of the year: SIU’s Barry Hinson is a strong and sentimental candidate. He won’t win if the Shockers go 18-0 for Gregg Marshall, who at that point should retire the award.
Surprise team of the year: The combination of Hinson and Beane may rejuvenate MVC Tournament attendance. A dream scenario is WSU-SIU on March 6 in a packed Scottrade Center.
Biggest disappointment: Northern Iowa’s inability to follow up last season’s success and this season’s wins over North Carolina and Iowa State darkened the tone of the MVC schedule.
All-MVC: VanVleet, Ron Baker (WSU), Balentine, Mockevicius, Beane
Fast breaks
▪ The Brenton Scott Show is changing the MVC race with its bold three-point shooting and fearless drives to the basket.
Scott, Indiana State’s sophomore guard, scored 24 points in Sunday’s 82-65 win over Evansville, dumping the Aces into third place with a challenging week ahead. Indiana State is tied for fourth, one game behind the Aces.
“That dude, when he steps across the half line … you better be in his jock,” Evansville coach Marty Simmons said. “He’s playing with enormous confidence.”
Scott, over the past five games, leads the MVC with a 22.6 scoring average, on 52.6-percent shooting, 60 percent from three-point range.
▪ Missouri State got senior guard Dorrian Williams back from a hamstring injury that cost him four games. Now center Camyn Boone is slowed by an ankle injury, suffered against Drake, that limited him to 10 minutes in Sunday’s loss to Southern Illinois.
“He got five staples in his head at Drake and blew his ankle out,” MSU coach Paul Lusk said. “He’s a tough kid. He just couldn’t go. We need Cam Boone back. That greatly affects us.”
Boone averages 11.2 points, second on the team, and a 6.2 rebounds.
▪ Don’t say coaches can’t have fun.
Bradley coach Brian Wardle wore a red suit jacket to celebrate the rivalry with Illinois State for last week’s game. He told the Peoria Journal Star a friend of the program gave him the gift.
At Indiana State, coach Greg Lansing had his team run the “picket fence” play to open Sunday’s game in keeping with the “Hoosiers” theme set by ESPNU broadcasters Mark Adams and Mitch Holthus for the all-Indiana rivalry. Lansing installed the play during Sunday’s shootaround and it produced a three-pointer for Scott, who weaved through a line of teammates screening for him at the foul line.
Trending up
SIU’s secondary scorers are stepping up. It won two games last week without Beane reaching double figures. Vincent came off the bench to score 18 points against Indiana State. Center Bola Olaniyan scored 17 at Missouri State, with Sean O’Brien, Tyler Smithpeters and Mike Rodriguez all reaching double figures. Beane, who averages 19.3 points, made 4 of 15 shots and missed all six of his three-pointers in the two games.
Trending down
Northern Iowa is tied for seventh and saddled with a four-game losing streak entering Wednesday’s game against Bradley. The Panther offense perked up a bit in a 76-67 loss at Illinois State on Saturday. They won’t get back on track until they solve defensive issues. Indiana State, Loyola, WSU and Illinois State combined to make 41 percent of their three-pointers in those four games.
Get to know an MVC neighbor
Q: How many NCAA men’s volleyball titles has Loyola won?
A: Two, defeating Lewis (Ill.) in 2015 and Stanford in 2014.
One to watch
Evansville at Southern Illinois, 7 p.m. Thursday (ESPN3.com) — The Salukis can put a huge drag on Evansville’s title hopes. The Purple Aces, of course, play Wichita State on Sunday. They don’t want to carry a two-game losing streak into that game.
This story was originally published January 26, 2016 at 2:54 PM with the headline "Paul Suellentrop’s Missouri Valley Conference report (Jan. 26)."