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Missouri Valley mediocre at best

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Also by Jonah Braun:

Missouri Valley mediocre at best (February 14, 2008)
Comeback falls short as Badgers blow early lead (February 11, 2008)
Knight leaves Tech, legacy stays (February 7, 2008)
Senior powers Badgers (February 5, 2008)
This week in college, losers win (January 31, 2008)

by Jonah Braun

Thursday, February 14, 2008

Year after year, sports analysts make statements that wind up haunting them for months at a time. One would figure that after making these mistaken predictions, they would stop — but apparently they do not.

Among these analysts’ thoughtful visions lies the case of the Missouri Valley Conference. In recent years, analysts across the country choose several teams from the mid-major conference to take a big step and challenge some of the national powerhouses. However, these sports moguls have been incorrect almost every year they make these farfetched predictions.

One might think this year has been different. After Drake’s 20-plus game winning streak, MVC is on the rise. But this is a bold statement, one worth rebutting.

The Drake Bulldogs are performing at a high level, but not without the help of lowly competition. The best school Drake has played this season was St. Mary’s, a team to which the Bulldogs lost 72-66. Besides that one loss, Drake has dominated its opponents, but that’s really not saying much.

The next team in MVC remotely matched to the Bulldogs is Illinois State, a team boasting a 9-4 conference record. Even so, Illinois State only lost to Drake by three points in their Feb. 5 match.

Some expect Bradley, Creighton and Southern Illinois to compete with the best schools annually. That is something that cannot and should not be even considered a rational thought.

The last team from the Valley that made any noise was the Southern Illinois Salukis, and they shocked the nation and made it to the Sweet Sixteen just last year. Before then, the Salukis had not gotten past the second round in four years. So Southern Illinois was not necessarily a result of a good conference or a difficult conference schedule; it was simply a decent team during the 2006-07 season.

The Creighton Blue Jays, who beat Southern Illinois last year in MVC Tournament, did not get by the first round and have only done so three times since 1975.

Bradley University’s story is a bit more well-rounded. The Braves managed two Final Four appearances in their storied existence. Those appearances, however, were in 1950 and 1954, and the team has not returned to that particular stature ever since.

So the Valley has had some success, but not many in recent years. A few Sweet Sixteen appearances highlight the best of times for the conference, but in retrospect, it should not be compared to some of the better conferences in the country.

The major difference lies in the overall performance of the respective conferences. This year, for example, the Southeastern Conference is underachieving. Its teams have not fared particularly well against some of the better teams in the nation. However, even though it is having an off year, it still has two ranked teams including No. 4 Tennessee. Moreover, there were as many as four teams ranked in the SEC at one point this season.

In the Valley, though, Drake has been the only team that has been winning consistently all season. Nevertheless, that is not saying much about the team’s ability. Its nonconference schedule was unimpressive, and its conference competition is mediocre at best.

That being said, do not expect Drake or any other MVC team to make any noise in the NCAA Tournament come March. Few teams in the conference have competed with any team better than the average ones that play in the Valley.

Yes, the conference does have some bright spots. Since 2001, Southern Illinois’ home record was 79-3 before this season, representing the best home record in the entire country. Besides the Salukis, though, the Valley has little to brag about. One team does not create a great conference.

Every year, one team grabs national attention and maybe gets by the second round of the NCAA Tournament. But can an entire conference really be proud of one team’s success year after year? Well, in the case of the Missouri Valley Conference, that may be quite a personal accomplishment, but that doesn’t mean it should be compared to the better conferences in the nation.

Right now, Drake is receiving a great deal of national attention, as it should. Before Wednesday’s game against Southern Illinois, the Bulldogs won 22 straight games, clearly a remarkable feat for any team to accomplish. However, Drake did not defeat any ranked teams during that stretch and should not truly impress critics, unless it makes a serious run in the Tournament.

Analysts can continue to make their statements and predictions about MVC’s legitimacy, but the fact remains that the numbers do not lie. It is often regarded as one of the best mid-major conferences in the nation, but as some start to give it the title of a powerful conference, remember that the Valley is nothing more than a mediocre conference with one above-average team.

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Anonymous (February 14, 2008 @ 6:41am):

I am a freshmen girl in Chad and I love jewish boys who can break down mid-majors. Take me on a date, Jonah.

Anonymous (February 14, 2008 @ 3:58pm):

Your right, we should continue to reward mediocrity in the big ten by giving them 6 ncaa bids. Lets also praise Indiana's amazingly difficult non-conference schedule. I mean 124 SOS non-conference, whew, dont hurt yourself. Oh wait were getting excited about purdue now, their 240 ranked nonconference SOS is so powerful as well, not to mention there loss to Wofford. B10 got 6 teams into the NCAAs last year and other than Ohio State, no one made it past the second round. If a mid-major had over half their league in the tournament, they might make some noise as well. The big ten is the 6th best conference just ahead of the A10 and MVC, if there so weak than maybe the big ten should only get 2 into the tournament.

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