Busting Brackets
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Missouri Valley Basketball: 2021 Conference Tournament preview

By Joey Loose

Drake junior guard Roman Penn fires a shot over Loyola's Cameron Krutwig in the first half on Saturday, Feb. 13, 2021, at the Knapp Center in Des Moines.20210213 Drakevsloyola
Drake junior guard Roman Penn fires a shot over Loyola's Cameron Krutwig in the first half on Saturday, Feb. 13, 2021, at the Knapp Center in Des Moines.20210213 Drakevsloyola /
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Members of the Loyola men’s basketball team 20210213 Drakevsloyola
Members of the Loyola men’s basketball team 20210213 Drakevsloyola /

Bracketology

In recent weeks, things have gotten a bit simpler in the MVC. This league hasn’t gotten a second team into the NCAA Tournament since 2016 and this really looked like the season it could happen. Loyola and Drake have both been ranked nationally in the last month and both looked like great candidates for at-large bids.

Unfortunately, Drake proceeded to lose their unbeaten season to Valparaiso and has since dropped another rough game at Bradley, two losses that are worse than many that fellow bubble teams possess. Drake did pick up a non-conference win at Kansas State, though that victory looks pretty insignificant given the Wildcats struggle, leaving their overtime win over Loyola as the resume’s lone bright spot.

Regardless of what the committee thinks of the Bulldogs, the Ramblers seem like a much safer bet to make the NCAA Tournament. They don’t really have that potent nonconference win, but they currently sit at 18th in the NET rankings, are nationally ranked, and have certainly looked like an NCAA Tournament team for most of the season.

If Loyola is upset in the MVC Tournament, it’s very possible that they will still get an NCAA Tournament bid. With Drake’s recent downfall and their injury woes, this may be the only route to a 2-bid Valley this season. It certainly looks like their biggest competition will be Missouri State or Indiana State but anything can happen.