SIU’s Xavier Johnson is on pace to become just the third played to lead the MVC in scoring and assists in the same season. He’s averaging 22.0 points and 6.1 assists per game. (Photo courtesy: SIU Athletics)
Cedric Williams
Senior Editor
ST. LOUIS, MO — The Madness has descended on the city of St. Louis. And boy, is it gonna be glorious.
The 2024 Missouri Valley Conference Men’s Basketball Championship Tournament, also known as Arch Madness, will begin on Thursday with a set of four first-round games to be played at Enterprise Center.
The winners on Thursday will advance to Friday’s quarterfinals to play the event’s top four seeds (Indiana State, Drake, Bradley, and Northern Iowa), who earned first round byes by finishing in the top four.
Friday’s winners will advance to Saturday’s semifinals, which will set up Sunday’s Arch Madness championship game at 1 p.m. (CBS).
Fans of all 12 teams will be in St. Louis for the event, while the basketball world will be watching from abroad to see which team will claim the title and with it, the MVC’s automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament.
For many, Arch Madness is the unofficial beginning of March Madness, and as we all get ready for college basketball to take over the sports world, here’s STLBigTimeSports.com’s inside look at the 2024 MVC Men’s Basketball Tournament:
MVC Arch Madness Tournament Seedings
| SCHOOL | OVERALL | PCT. | MVC | PCT. | HOME | AWAY | NEUT | L10 | STREAK |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Indiana State | 26-5 | .839 | 17-3 | .850 | 13-1 | 9-4 | 4-0 | 8-2 | W4 |
| 2. Drake | 25-6 | .806 | 16-4 | .800 | 16-0 | 6-5 | 3-1 | 8-2 | W2 |
| 3. Bradley | 21-10 | .677 | 13-7 | .650 | 13-3 | 6-6 | 2-1 | 6-4 | L1 |
| 4. Northern Iowa | 18-13 | .581 | 12-8 | .600 | 11-3 | 6-8 | 1-2 | 6-4 | W3 |
| 5. Belmont | 19-12 | .613 | 12-8 | .600 | 12-2 | 6-9 | 1-1 | 7-3 | W3 |
| 6. Southern Illinois | 19-12 | .613 | 11-9 | .550 | 13-5 | 5-6 | 1-1 | 5-5 | L2 |
| 7. Illinois State | 15-16 | .484 | 9-11 | .450 | 10-6 | 4-8 | 1-2 | 5-5 | L1 |
| 8. Murray State | 12-19 | .387 | 9-11 | .450 | 8-8 | 4-9 | 0-2 | 4-6 | L2 |
| 9. Missouri State | 16-15 | .516 | 8-12 | .400 | 9-5 | 4-10 | 3-0 | 4-6 | W1 |
| 10. Evansville | 15-16 | .484 | 6-14 | .300 | 10-5 | 4-11 | 1-0 | 3-7 | L7 |
| 11. Illinois-Chicago | 11-20 | .355 | 4-16 | .200 | 6-9 | 3-10 | 2-1 | 3-7 | L3 |
| 12. Valparaiso | 7-24 | .226 | 3-17 | .150 | 6-11 | 1-13 | 0-0 | 1-9 | W1 |
MVC Arch Madness Tournament Schedule — Enterprise Center
Thursday, March 7, First Round
Game 1 – No. 8 Murray State vs. No. 9 Missouri State, 12 pm, Bally Sports Midwest
Game 2 – No. 5 Belmont vs. No. 12 Valparaiso, 2:30 pm, Bally Sports Midwest
Game 3 – No. 7 Illinois State vs. No. 10 Evansville, 6 pm, Bally Sports Midwest
Game 4 – No. 6 Southern Illinois vs. No. 11 Illinois-Chicago, 8:30 pm, Bally Sports Midwest
Friday, March 8, Quarterfinals
Game 5 – Game 1 winner vs. No. 1 Indiana State, 12 pm, Bally Sports Midwest
Game 6 – Game 2 winner vs. No. 4 Northern Iowa, 2:30 pm, Bally Sports Midwest
Game 7 – Game 3 winner vs. No. 2 Drake, 6 pm, Bally Sports Midwest
Game 8 – Game 4 winner vs. No. 3 Bradley, 8:30 pm, Bally Sports Midwest
Saturday, March 9, Semifinals
Semifinal #1 – Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner, 2:30 pm, CBS Sports Network
Semifinal #2 – Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 winner, 5 pm, CBS Sports Network
Sunday, March 10, Championship Game
Championship Game – Saturday’s semifinal winners, 1 pm, CBS
Arch Madness Predictions
Cedric Williams, senior editor — Northern Iowa
“I like the Panthers. They really impressed me with that win over Drake two weeks ago. That loss is the main reason why Drake fell out of contention for the MVC regular season title, and I just think UNI is gonna sneak up on some people, like they did Drake that day and come out of this tournament as the champions.”
Jason Barnes, staff writer — Indiana State
“Indiana State has been the best team in the league all year. They’ve got the unstoppable big man in Robbie Avila and in big moments, they play better than anybody in this conference. I’ve got the Sycamores.”
Paige Dale, staff writer — Drake
“Drake’s championship pedigree is going to take over this weekend. I know the Bulldogs are seething over not winning the regular season championship. They’re going to make up for it by winning the tournament.”
Torrance Terrell — Indiana State
“They’re the best team in the conference. Nobody can guard Robbie Avila.”
DeMarcus Dixon, staff writer — Southern Illinois
“Come tournament time, I always like the team that has a guy that can drop 35 or 40. Xavier Johnson from SIU can do that. And I can totally see him getting hot for four days this weekend and stealing the show from everybody else. This conference has probably five or six really good teams. SIU is one of them. I’m picking the Salukis.”
