Arch Madness games

[Da Coach]

Arch Madness Tournament Preview show to air Thursday, March 5, 3:00 pm (Central), prior to the first game (link contains TV stations that will carry the show)-

2026 State Farm MVC Men's Basketball Tournament Preview Show

The Missouri Valley Conference will spotlight the 2026 State Farm MVC Men’s Basketball Tournament with its tourney preview show on Gray Media affiliate and non-affiliate stations and nationally on ESPN+.

mvc-sports.com

Main MVC Arch Madness website - https://mvc-sports.com/sports/arch (has links for tickets, discounts, hotels, fan hangout, and Enterprise Center info)
Tournament Central and schedule (has links to Live Stats, Video, etc)- https://mvc-sports.com/sports/2025/12/30/26archmadness.aspx
Bracket (- https://mvc-sports.com/documents/2025/12/30//2026_Arch_Madness_Bracket.pdf?id=5304
Tournament history- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Missouri_Valley_Conference_men's_basketball_tournament#Tournament_champions_by_year

 

[Stevezall]

Do we know which teams are playing Thursday night and what the overall seedings are? Did Illinois State move up to 3rd seed with that win over Belmont? Is Valparaiso in the 7th seed? I'm hoping this is true as I would still rather draw Valparaiso or lower seed in First round! Plus I'd love to see another rivalry game with Illinois State if both make final 4! Please coach let me know ASAP!!!

 

[Da Coach]

Do we know which teams are playing Thursday night and what the overall seedings are? Did Illinois State move up to 3rd seed with that win over Belmont? Is Valparaiso in the 7th seed? I'm hoping this is true as I would still rather draw Valparaiso or lower seed in First round! Plus I'd love to see another rivalry game with Illinois State if both make final 4! Please coach let me know ASAP!!!

Yes, Illinois State is the #3 seed. Here is the bracket, thanks to Matt Hackman. Bradley will play the winner between Indiana State and Valparaiso. In fact, I like the side of the bracket that Bradley is on (Bradley, Illinois State, and the winners between Valpo & InSU and UNI & Evansville).
The other side has Belmont, Murray State, and UIC, plus the winner between SIU & Drake.-

 

[tomahawk chop]

Belmont 1, BU 2 , ISUR 3 UIc 4 Murray st 5, Valpo6 UNI 7 , SIU 8, Drake 9 , ISUB 10, Evansville 11.
UIC and Murray St. could be flipped as far as 4 or 5 seeds but this is how the brackets in seeding would go starting Thurs.

 

[tomahawk chop]

Yes, Illinois State is the #3 seed. Here is the bracket, thanks to Matt Hackman. Bradley will play the winner between Indiana State and Valparaiso. In fact, I like the side of the bracket that Bradley is on (Bradley, Illinois State, and the winners between Valpo & InSU and UNI & Evansville).
The other side has Belmont, Murray State, and UIC, plus the winner between SIU & Drake.-

https://twitter.com/x/status/2028260679849845017

Beat me to it.

 

[Stevezall]

Oh Wow I just saw we probably draw Northern Iowa as they are 7th seed! I think Valpo would have been a better draw but they are tough also!! There are no easy games in this tournament! Even Southern Illinois as 8th seed is not a push over for Belmont assuming they advance! I'm bummed we won't play Illinois State in a potential 2nd round. Both BU and Illinois St.would have to make the championship game and while possible, still unlikely. I think we can handle Northern Iowa, but it's gonna be tough!!!

 

[Da Coach]

According to the Matt Hackman bracket, it's Murray State #4 and UIC #5, UNI #6 and Valpo #7

I didn't calculate all the tiebreakers, but Hackman usually has all that programmed into his algorithm.

 

[Stevezall]

Forget what I just said!!!! I'm much happier drawing Valparaiso!

 

[Da Coach]

Those seedings from Matt Hackman are based on the NET rankings from today. However, those will change, and the official final tiebreaker is based on the NET as of tomorrow morning. So we can't be 100% sure yet, but it looks almost certain that there will be no change in those seedings.. Illinois State (current NET 92), who won, is currently ahead of Murray State (current NET 99) and UIC (current NET 110) who both lost.
The other tie dependent on NET is much easier to predict. UNI, who beat Drake is at NET 86 will stay ahead of Valpo (NET 152), who didn't play.

Here is the explanation from Matt Hackman-

https://twitter.com/x/status/2028260681791758779

 

[BUfan17]

I like our odds here as the 2nd seed. I'm looking forward to Arch Madness.

 

[daveineureka]

I like the bracket we are in. I can see Bradley making it to the title game on Sunday. Will not be easy, but it can happen yet again. Assuming Belmont also plays Sunday, we have beaten them once and we can do it again. Will be there making as much noise as I can with my group of friends.Is this the third year in a row we have played on Sunday? Let us hope if we play on Sunday we can get over the hump and play in the big dance. "LET'S GO BRAVES"

 

[Mikovio]

Nice to get the 2 seed instead of the 3. The 3 has to win 3 games in 36.5 hours. I know the 2 is still 39, but at least they get back to the hotel at a decent hour the first night.

 

[Da Coach]

Some interesting late-season trends-

Drake, who was still in contention midway through the season, lost their last 9 games, starting with the beatdown Bradley gave them in Des Moines-

Drake Bulldogs 2025-26 Regular Season NCAAM Schedule - ESPN

ESPN has the full 2025-26 Drake Bulldogs Regular Season NCAAM schedule. Includes game times, TV listings and ticket information for all Bulldogs games.

www.espn.com

Murray State, who won their first 8 games in the MVC, lost 8 of their last 12 games. Their only 4 wins over that final 12 game schedule were mostly against the bottom teams in the MVC, including SIU, Indiana State, Evansville, and UIC.-

Murray State Racers 2025-26 Postseason NCAAM Schedule - ESPN

ESPN has the full 2025-26 Murray State Racers Postseason NCAAM schedule. Includes game times, TV listings and ticket information for all Racers games.

www.espn.com

Belmont lost 2 of their first 5 games in the MVC to lowly SIU and Indiana State. Then they won 9 in a row until Bradley beat them on Feb.9. After that, they won 4 straight before losing their final game at Illinois State.

Belmont Bruins 2025-26 Regular Season NCAAM Schedule - ESPN

ESPN has the full 2025-26 Belmont Bruins Regular Season NCAAM schedule. Includes game times, TV listings and ticket information for all Bruins games.

www.espn.com

Illinois State won their first 4 MVC games, but then never won more than 1 or 2 straight games the rest of the season.
ISU has the distinction of being the only team to lose to both of the bottom 2 teams, Indiana State and Evansville.

Illinois State Redbirds 2025-26 Postseason NCAAM Schedule - ESPN

ESPN has the full 2025-26 Illinois State Redbirds Postseason NCAAM schedule. Includes game times, TV listings and ticket information for all Redbirds games.

www.espn.com

UIC lost their first 4 MVC games, then won 8 straight, then went 4-4 over their final 8 games.-

UIC Flames 2025-26 Postseason NCAAM Schedule - ESPN

ESPN has the full 2025-26 UIC Flames Postseason NCAAM schedule. Includes game times, TV listings and ticket information for all Flames games.

www.espn.com

UNI, who was picked #2 in the preseason poll, started 4-0 in the MVC, but then lost 5 straight, and struggled with consistency the rest of the way to finish 11-9 and miss out on a first round bye.-

Northern Iowa Panthers 2025-26 Postseason NCAAM Schedule - ESPN

ESPN has the full 2025-26 Northern Iowa Panthers Postseason NCAAM schedule. Includes game times, TV listings and ticket information for all Panthers games.

www.espn.com

And Valpo was another team that struggled early, going 2-5 in their first 7 games, then went 9-4 over their last 13 games.-

Valparaiso Beacons 2025-26 Regular Season NCAAM Schedule - ESPN

ESPN has the full 2025-26 Valparaiso Beacons Regular Season NCAAM schedule. Includes game times, TV listings and ticket information for all Beacons games.

www.espn.com

SIU also played well down the stretch. They lost 7 of their first 9 games, then after going 2-2, they won 6 of their last 7 games.-

Southern Illinois Salukis 2025-26 Regular Season NCAAM Schedule - ESPN

ESPN has the full 2025-26 Southern Illinois Salukis Regular Season NCAAM schedule. Includes game times, TV listings and ticket information for all Salukis games.

www.espn.com

Indiana State beat Belmont and Illinois State early in the season, then lost 11 of their final 13 games, with the only 2 wins against Evansville and UIC.

Indiana State Sycamores 2025-26 Regular Season NCAAM Schedule - ESPN

ESPN has the full 2025-26 Indiana State Sycamores Regular Season NCAAM schedule. Includes game times, TV listings and ticket information for all Sycamores games.

www.espn.com

And Evansville was bad from start to finish. They had losing streaks of 6, 6, and 4 games, with their 3 wins against Indiana State, Illinois State, and Valparaiso.

Evansville Purple Aces 2025-26 Regular Season NCAAM Schedule - ESPN

ESPN has the full 2025-26 Evansville Purple Aces Regular Season NCAAM schedule. Includes game times, TV listings and ticket information for all Purple Aces games.

www.espn.com

Bradley was one of the most consistent teams. They lost 2 games in a row at Belmont and Murray State early in the season, but then never lost more than 1 game in a row after that.

Bradley Braves 2025-26 Postseason NCAAM Schedule - ESPN

ESPN has the full 2025-26 Bradley Braves Postseason NCAAM schedule. Includes game times, TV listings and ticket information for all Braves games.

www.espn.com

 

[Da Coach]

The MVC announces the final official seeding and matchups for the MVC Tournament, and as expected, the NET numbers changed slightly, but not enough to change the projected bracket posted above in post #3.
This article also has some interesting MVC Tournament facts-

Missouri Valley Conference Announces Game Times / Seeds for State Farm MVC Tournament

There were two ties in the standings that utilized the NET to break the tie.

mvc-sports.com

 

[Da Coach]

Official bracket- https://mvc-sports.com/documents/2026/3/2//2026_Arch_Madness_Bracket.pdf
Schedule (with other info and links)- https://mvc-sports.com/sports/2025/12/30/26archmadness.aspx

 

[tomahawk chop]

Anything can happen in this Tour. because no team is head and shoulders better then any others. I just hope the Valley hires the best officials because so far this season I have witnessed some very poorly officiated games and not just the Bradley ones.

 

[Da Coach]

Here are some early odds someone posted to win the MVC Tournament, reportedly from DraftKings Sportsbook.
Surprisingly, Bradley is only the 4th best odds, behind Belmont, UNI, and ISU! I expect those Bradley odds to come down a little.
Considering Bradley finished above UNI and ISU, I find this surprising, especially with UNI, who is playing on Thursday!

https://twitter.com/x/status/2028292877223116941

 

[Da Coach]

Note: I have not been able to confirm those odds above. They may be legit, but they were posted by someone other than the DraftKings twitter account, and I cannot find confirmation on the DraftKings website or their social media sites.

These are the NCAA Conference Tournament odds DraftKings has posted on their website so far, and it does not include the MVC odds-

https://sportsbook.draftkings.com/leagues/basketball/ncaab?category=conference-tournaments&subcategory=conference-tourney-winners

Fanduel also does not yet have the MVC odds listed-

FanDuel Sportsbook

sportsbook.fanduel.com

Other websites that predict odds, also appear to have UNI with the 2nd best odds, and Bradley 4th-

MVC Bracket 2026 & MVC Tournament Predictions

Complete 2026 MVC bracket and 2026 MVC tournament predictions, including round-by-round MVC tournament bracket odds.

www.teamrankings.com

 

[LittleBrave]

Some interesting late-season trends-

Drake, who was still in contention midway through the season, lost their last 9 games, starting with the beatdown Bradley gave them in Des Moines-

Drake Bulldogs 2025-26 Regular Season NCAAM Schedule - ESPN

ESPN has the full 2025-26 Drake Bulldogs Regular Season NCAAM schedule. Includes game times, TV listings and ticket information for all Bulldogs games.

www.espn.com

Murray State, who won their first 8 games in the MVC, lost 8 of their last 12 games. Their only 4 wins over that final 12 game schedule were mostly against the bottom teams in the MVC, including SIU, Indiana State, Evansville, and UIC.-

Murray State Racers 2025-26 Postseason NCAAM Schedule - ESPN

ESPN has the full 2025-26 Murray State Racers Postseason NCAAM schedule. Includes game times, TV listings and ticket information for all Racers games.

www.espn.com

Belmont lost 2 of their first 5 games in the MVC to lowly SIU and Indiana State. Then they won 9 in a row until Bradley beat them on Feb.9. After that, they won 4 straight before losing their final game at Illinois State.

Belmont Bruins 2025-26 Regular Season NCAAM Schedule - ESPN

ESPN has the full 2025-26 Belmont Bruins Regular Season NCAAM schedule. Includes game times, TV listings and ticket information for all Bruins games.

www.espn.com

Illinois State won their first 4 MVC games, but then never won more than 1 or 2 straight games the rest of the season.
ISU has the distinction of being the only team to lose to both of the bottom 2 teams, Indiana State and Evansville.

Illinois State Redbirds 2025-26 Postseason NCAAM Schedule - ESPN

ESPN has the full 2025-26 Illinois State Redbirds Postseason NCAAM schedule. Includes game times, TV listings and ticket information for all Redbirds games.

www.espn.com

UIC lost their first 4 MVC games, then won 8 straight, then went 4-4 over their final 8 games.-

UIC Flames 2025-26 Postseason NCAAM Schedule - ESPN

ESPN has the full 2025-26 UIC Flames Postseason NCAAM schedule. Includes game times, TV listings and ticket information for all Flames games.

www.espn.com

UNI, who was picked #2 in the preseason poll, started 4-0 in the MVC, but then lost 5 straight, and struggled with consistency the rest of the way to finish 11-9 and miss out on a first round bye.-

Northern Iowa Panthers 2025-26 Postseason NCAAM Schedule - ESPN

ESPN has the full 2025-26 Northern Iowa Panthers Postseason NCAAM schedule. Includes game times, TV listings and ticket information for all Panthers games.

www.espn.com

And Valpo was another team that struggled early, going 2-5 in their first 7 games, then went 9-4 over their last 13 games.-

Valparaiso Beacons 2025-26 Regular Season NCAAM Schedule - ESPN

ESPN has the full 2025-26 Valparaiso Beacons Regular Season NCAAM schedule. Includes game times, TV listings and ticket information for all Beacons games.

www.espn.com

SIU also played well down the stretch. They lost 7 of their first 9 games, then after going 2-2, they won 6 of their last 7 games.-

Southern Illinois Salukis 2025-26 Regular Season NCAAM Schedule - ESPN

ESPN has the full 2025-26 Southern Illinois Salukis Regular Season NCAAM schedule. Includes game times, TV listings and ticket information for all Salukis games.

www.espn.com

Indiana State beat Belmont and Illinois State early in the season, then lost 11 of their final 13 games, with the only 2 wins against Evansville and UIC.

Indiana State Sycamores 2025-26 Regular Season NCAAM Schedule - ESPN

ESPN has the full 2025-26 Indiana State Sycamores Regular Season NCAAM schedule. Includes game times, TV listings and ticket information for all Sycamores games.

www.espn.com

And Evansville was bad from start to finish. They had losing streaks of 6, 6, and 4 games, with their 3 wins against Indiana State, Illinois State, and Valparaiso.

Evansville Purple Aces 2025-26 Regular Season NCAAM Schedule - ESPN

ESPN has the full 2025-26 Evansville Purple Aces Regular Season NCAAM schedule. Includes game times, TV listings and ticket information for all Purple Aces games.

www.espn.com

Bradley was one of the most consistent teams. They lost 2 games in a row at Belmont and Murray State early in the season, but then never lost more than 1 game in a row after that.

Bradley Braves 2025-26 Postseason NCAAM Schedule - ESPN

ESPN has the full 2025-26 Bradley Braves Postseason NCAAM schedule. Includes game times, TV listings and ticket information for all Braves games.

www.espn.com

Nice capsule of each team DC!

 

[64NIT]

The two BU schools are in opposite brackets, so could potentially meet in the championship.