Missouri Valley Basketball: Storylines for league after Loyola-Chicago’s exit

Now that the latest round of the merry-go-round of realignment (for the upcoming season) in college athletics is over, I want to look at a conference that not only was hit by the realignment but also took advantage of it as well by adding programs that will hopefully continue their legacy as one of, if not the most dangerous mid-major conferences in the country, Missouri Valley Basketball.

Since 2012, The Valley has had multiple teams make the NCAA Tournament, and since 2018 when someone mentions the Missouri Valley, it is the Loyola-Chicago Ramblers. Over the last few years, they have been the team that most people identify with the conference, thanks to a final four run in 2018 and a trip to the sweet 16 in 2021. But the conference has had plenty of recent postseason success including another trip to the final four in 2013 by Wichita State.

For a conference so steeped in tradition and depth with four different tournament winners and 10 programs making the tournament championship game since 2012, one would think losing one team to another conference wouldn’t seem like that big of a deal. But when that one team is the program that has captured the country’s attention most recently it could be seen as a big blow for the Valley.

Loyola-Chicago officially joined the Atlantic 10 conference this summer, leaving the MVC with one less pillar. As fluid and swift as realignment news comes, most conferences that are impacted either win or lose. Is it possible that the MVC could be considered both winners and losers in this latest cycle?