The best of the mid-major conference tourneys starts on Thursday in St. Louis, Arch Madness. The Valley isn’t the same league it was in the past but it’s still a great tournament. The regular season champ was Northern Iowa and they are the favorite. They’re 39th in KenPom and went 25-5 (14-4) on the season. The Panthers own wins over South Carolina and Colorado. Brian has them as an 11-seed at the moment, so making the final is probably a must.
No other teams crack the KenPom top 100, though Loyola is at 100. Indiana State and Bradley tied for 3rd and are 108 and 116 respectively. Bradley won the tournament last year.
Northern Iowa isn’t nearly the sloth they were a few years ago, though they still play pretty slow. The offense is the 18th most efficient in the nation. It’s the best offense in the league and it isn’t close. They also have the 2nd best defense.
Southern Illinois is the 5-seed and don’t mind playing ugly. They also own a win over UNI but lost 5 of their last 6.
The Pick: UNI
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