Missouri Valley Basketball: Preseason power rankings for 2020-21 season

By Tim Edmonds | Nov 15, 2020

ST. LOUIS, MO - MARCH 10: Members of the Bradley Braves celebrate after beating the Northern Iowa Panthers in the final game of MVC Basketball Tournament at the Enterprise Center on March 10, 2019 in St. Louis, Missouri. The Bradley Braves beat the Northern Iowa Panthers 57-54 to win the MVC Championship. (Photo by Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images) /

4 of 11

Missouri Valley Basketball Matt Lottich (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images) /

8. Valparaiso Crusaders

A single win away from their first NCAA Tournament bid since joining the conference last season, Valparaiso now sits at a crossroads after losing to Bradley in the MVC tournament title game.

Losing top scorer and MVC Player of the Year contender in Javon Freeman-Liberty, who transferred to DePaul this offseason, head coach Matt Lottich for the second year in a row faces a rotation rebuild.

Freeman-Liberty departs after a pair of exceptional seasons at Valpo and leaves behind several question marks in the backcourt.

Going forward, key returners of Donovan Clay, Daniel Sackey, and Mileek McMillan will need to pick up the slack left behind by Freeman-Liberty.

Clay will be key this year after he turned in a very impressive freshman season. Picking up 33 starts with averages of 9.4 points and 4.6 rebounds per game, he’s a true contender for MVC Most Improved Player this coming season.

Home/NCAA Basketball News