Missouri Valley Conference Tournament Recap
by Neal Heston
Bluejays soar into NCAA
As Selection Sunday approaches, there is one thing for certain: Creighton is not on the bubble. After sitting in the middle of the league with a 7-7 Missouri Valley Conference record last month, the Bluejays have reeled off eight consecutive wins – the last loss a 71-67 setback at Southern Illinois on Feb. 12. Now, after a one year absence from the Dance, Creighton has punched its ticket, and by the team’s strong finish, are also in position for as high as an eight or nine seed.
“When is it going to be our turn?” was the question leaving several SMS fans after another championship game defeat.
For the second consecutive season, the Southwest Missouri State Bears fell one game short of clinching a spot in the NCAA Tournament. Last year the Bears fell in double overtime to Northern Iowa in the championship game. While revenge was had against the Panthers in the quarterfinals, this tournament ended similar to last year’s.
SMS fought back from deficits all night long in the MVC Tournament final on Monday night. The Bluejays saw a 12-point lead in the first half diminish into a tie before Creighton ended with a 38-32 halftime advantage.
SMS tied the game at 40 shortly in the second half, and Creighton’s advantage was down to as little as two with about seven minutes remaining, but the Bluejays flew away with the win, outscoring the Bears 23-7 the rest of the way.
Tournament Most Valuable Player Johnny Mathies scored 14 points in the contest. Dane Watts chipped in another 14 points, and Jimmy Mots contributed 12. Deke Thompson and Anthony Shavies scored in double figures for SMS with 14 and 10 points, respectively.
Creighton now just needs to sit back and see where they will play. SMS will prepare to likely accept an NIT bid – along with as many as three other conference foes (Northern Iowa, Wichita State and Illinois State).
A look at the rest of the MVC Tourney – and postseason possibilities
For the fourth consecutive year, Southern Illinois entered the tournament as the top seed, only to fall in the semifinals to SMS for the second straight time. This year’s loss to the Bears might have stung a little more, as SIU let a 16-point halftime lead and 23-point second-half lead fade away. No worries though. With a 26-7 record, the Selection Committee won’t overlook the Salukis.
Wichita State didn’t help its bubble status with a 70-60 loss to Creighton in the semifinals. The Shockers looked off balance most of the contest after dominating Drake in the quarterfinals. Now WSU will sweat profusely on Sunday, as the Selection Committee votes. If the MVC gets a third bid, it should come down to the Shockers and Northern Iowa. In WSU’s favor is a second-place finish in the eighth strongest conference in the country. Against them is a somewhat weak non-conference slate and a 2-6 finish to the season.
Only one upset was recorded in the quarterfinals, and given the quality of the No. 5 Bears, it wasn’t much of a surprise SMS knocked down No. 4 Northern Iowa, 70-62, ending a four-game losing streak to the Panthers. The Bears did an outstanding job of containing UNI’s Ben Jacobson, the MVC’s leading scorer. Jacobson was limited to eight points and four turnovers.
Northern Iowa now enters this week in the same position as Wichita State – sweating. First of all, the Panthers must worry about whether the MVC will get three bids, and if it does, who will it be? UNI finished strong and owns a stronger non-conference schedule than the Shockers and was successful against it, but the early MVC Tourney exit could prove costly.
Other quarterfinal scores included Southern Illinois getting past a stingy Indiana State squad in the final minutes after leading by a score of just 49-46. Wichita State and Creighton got past their opponents easily – WSU by 20 over Drake and Creighton by 17 over Illinois State. Drake’s loss ended the Bulldog’s longest winning streak since the 1980s (5), and Illinois State closed the season with its seventh consecutive loss in the Valley and finished with a 17-13 mark overall.
