Let's preview the MVC which has been the best Mid-Major Conference the past few seasons. It looks like a down year for the Valley, but they seem to produce a legit top 25 team every year lately.

Top Players in Conference
Andrew Warren, Bradley
Josh Young, Drake
Osiris Eldridge, Illinois St.
Adam Koch, Northern Iowa
Bryan Mullins, Southern Illinois

Player of the Year
Josh Young, Drake

Player to Look Out For
Kenny Lawson, Creighton

Projected MVC Standings
1. Drake 15-3
2. Southern Illinois 13-5
3. Creighton 12-6
4. Illinois St. 10-8
5. Northern Iowa 9-9
6. Missouri St. 9-9
7. Bradley 8-10
8. Indiana St. 6-12
9. Evansville 5-13
10. Wichita St. 3-15

Drake
Many people see them falling back to the middle of the pack this year, but I still think they're the team to beat. Why not? Josh Young is probably the best player in the conference, and although Jonathan Cox wasn't heavily involved in the offense last year, they'll enjoy giving him more to handle this year. Drake is still talented enough to repeat as MVC Champions.

Southern Illinois
People expected a lot more than 18 wins and a 3rd place finish out of the Salukis last year. They lost about as much as anyone in the conference, but they'll welcome incoming freshman Anthony Booker with open arms as he'll likely start right away. Defense has been a strength of SIU in quite some time and that's half the battle.

Creighton
Creighton is most people's team to beat heading into the season, but I say not so fast. Sure, they return more than any other team in the conference (other than lowly Evansville), but they did lose a couple starters including their best player in Dane Watts. This is still a pretty young team, and I'm not sure if P'Allen Stinnett is ready to lead them.

Illinois St.
Illinois St. just missed out on getting into the Big Dance last year, and after losing a trio of senior starters, their chances are a lot worse headed into the season. However, Osiris Eldridge returns for his junior year and is one of the best players in the conference. You also have to like how Jankovic had these guys playing outstanding defense in his first year.

Northern Iowa
UNI could surprise some people as they should be at least a .500 conference team. They return a decent amount, including underrated junior forward Adam Koch. They beat Southern Illinois twice, and also knocked off Illinois St. and UMass last year. Northern Iowas could be even better this year, especially if they can improve their perimeter defense.

Missouri St.
It's interesting to see them picked last in the preseason coaches poll when there's teams that were worse than them last year who lost more of their team. Missouri St. shouldn't fall off that badly as they still return a solid player in Fuehrmeyer as well as the Laurie brothers. The main concern appears to be a lack of size.

Bradley
Bradley was able to make it the CBI finals last year, but I have a hard time believing they'll live up to some decent expectations this year after losing star Jeremy Crouch. Andrew Warren is one of the better players in the conference but he can't carry them on his back. Defense has really been lacking for the Braves lately.

Indiana St.
This program hasn't been good in quite some time and it doesn't look any brighter in the near future. Like most of the teams in the MVC, they have to replace their featured player in PG Gabriel Moore. Anytime you have to do that from a team that only won 15 games the season prior, things aren't going to be too pleasant the following season.

Evansville
Evansville returns more than any other team in the conference, but they were god awful last year so that might not be such a good thing. Still, they should be good enough not to lose to teams as bad as the likes of Samford and SE Mizzou St. like last season. Not an overly talented bunch, but they do have some experience.

Wichita St.
Pretty crazy to think that they were a top 10 team about two years ago, and now they're my preseason pick to finish last in the MVC. There's little reason to be optimistic after going 4-14 in conference last year and losing more than any other team in the MVC. It's going to be a rough season.