Starting in St. Louis tomorrow is the Missouri Valley Conference tournament, known as Arch Madness.
The Favorite(s): Creighton & Wichita State
In 22 years of hosting the conference tournament, the top-seeded team has won the tournament only 6 times in St. Louis. Last year, Creighton won as a 2-seed. Creighton was the regular season champ while the Shockers finished 2nd. They split their regular season matchups. The Jays Doug McDermott is a likely All-American and probably a lottery pick.
Upset Minded: Evansville, Northern Iowa & Indiana State
All of these teams need to win for any chance to get to the big madness. Evansville enters with a 4-game winning streak. UNI is 7-1 in their last 8 Valley games, with their only loss coming without their leading scorer, Anthony James. All-everything big man Jake Koch is probably their best player. I add Indiana State though they faltered badly down the stretch, going from the right side of the bubble to no chance. Guard Jake Odum looks to spark a Sycamores run.
I'll take Wichita State
EDIT: KenPom's MVC Log5 has Illinois State as the 3rd most likely to win the conference tournament. Led by Jackie Carmichael, it's possible.
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