Missouri Valley Basketball: Bradley and Drake win Myrtle Beach and Charleston Classic

Missouri Valley Conference teams continue to excel in multi-team events. Bradley won the Myrtle Beach Invitational and Drake claimed the Shriners Children’s Charleston Classic crown. Missouri State opened the Cayman Islands Classic with an impressive win over previously unbeaten High Point. 

Valley teams are now 10-3 in MTE play with two championships.

Bradley not only won the Myrtle Beach Invitational championship game 80-69, but they won in impressive and balanced ways. During Sunday’s championship game, four Braves reached double figures with Christian Davis leading the charge with 19 points. Duke Deen added 15 and five assists and Darius Hannah recorded a 16-point, 13 rebound double-double. 

Bradley made .455 from deep and handed out 19 assists. During the three game tournament, Davis scored 47 points, Hannah added 43, Zek Montgomery contributed 41 and Deen put up 37 pints and Almar Atlason scored 29.

Bradley (6-1) players have a #ProveEm mantra and to a man they say the goal of this season is ‘championships’. They have their first of this season. 

Drake Claims Charleston Classic

Bennett Stirtz never left the floor during Drake’s three games of the Shriners Children’s Charleston Classic and the 6’4 junior picked up a double-double and the MVP to the MTE. Drake defeated Vanderbilt for the tournament championship. 81-70 was the final score.

The Bulldogs defeated two ‘power conference’ teams and none of Drake’s Charleston Classic games were really in doubt. They defeated Miami by eleven, Florida Atlantic by 12 and Vandy by 11. 

Stirtz scored 16 points and handed out eleven assists. Cam Manyawu produced a double-double of his own. The Wyoming transfer scored 18 points and grabbed eleven rebounds. Mitch Mascari (17 points) and Daniel Abreu (15) were big offensive performers. 

Drake made 18 of 20 free throw attempts and outrebounded the Commodores 37 to 20. The loss was Vanderbilt’s (6-1) first of the season. 

Bulldog head coach Ben McCollum is in his first year of coaching at the Division 1 level. Winning his sixth D1 game, is also his 400th head coaching victory. The first 394 came at Division 2, Northwest Missouri State. 

Cayman Islands Classic

Vincent Brady II exploded for 27 points and ten rebounds as Missouri State opened the Cayman Islands Classic with a ten-point win over previously unbeaten High Point. 

The 6’2 junior’s scoring performance was a career high and he made 13 of fourteen free throws to spark the Bears to a 71-61 win. Missouri State dominated the glass, grabbing forty rebounds, including 16 on the offensive end. 

Dez White scored 13 points and Mozae Downing-Rivers added nine and four assists. MO State converted 17 of twenty-one free throws. 

Monday, Missouri State (4-1) faces Boston College at 6:30 pm. The Eagles defeated Old Dominion 82-52.