With college basketball season officially underway, the Bradley Scout returns with our first edition of weekly power rankings for the 2025-26 season. With plenty of turnover in the Missouri Valley Conference, there’s sure to be new contenders rising to the top of the conference.
Below, contributors Jake Aimone and Jaylen Harris have presented their power rankings for the first week of the 2025-26 MVC regular season based on preseason expectations and performances. It is important to note that power rankings are not the standings.
- Illinois State Redbirds (0-1):
The Redbirds are prepared to fly to the regular-season title, benefiting
from exceptional stability among their top producers.
The personnel foundation is not to be ignored. Forward Chase Walker returns after earning all-MVC first team honors and being named captain of the MVC Most Improved Team. Guard Johnny Kinziger, an all-MVC second team selection, returns as the team’s primary perimeter scoring threat, with the duo averaging 15.2 and 14.6 points per game, respectively. The return of forward Jack Daugherty, an all-freshman and all-bench team honoree, is critical. He’ll provide crucial floor spacing, having made 47.6% of his long-range attempts last season.
The combination of returning star power, proven production and added depth from the portal confirms Illinois State possesses the highest overall competitive ceiling and the most robust floor in the conference.
- Northern Iowa Panthers (1-0):
Ready to carve their mark at the top of the conference are the Panthers.
They are well positioned to contend for the championship, given their unmatched roster stability. The Panthers return 11 players and 72.1 percent of their minutes played from the previous season –a figure that leads all of Division I men’s basketball. This degree of cohesion can surely help ensure system execution and minimize variance, positioning the Panthers to excel in contests throughout the 20-game gauntlet.
The foundation of the returning guards includes third-team all-MVC selection Trey Campbell, along with veteran Ben Schwieger. Their established fluency with Coach Jacobson’s system almost certainly guarantees stability. The Panthers have specifically addressed their physical size limitations through strategic recruiting, bringing in high-major transfers Ismaël Diouf and Marino Dubravcic.
This infusion of size dramatically improves UNI’s capability to handle dominant frontcourts, suggesting a targeted effort to dismantle the interior attacks of conference rivals.
- Murray State Racers (1-0):
When thinking about Murray State, five words should come to mind: The sky is the limit.
The Racers enter a new era, retaining zero, yes, zero players from the previous season. This spot in the rankings reflects high confidence in new head coach Ryan Miller’s calculated risk strategy: bypassing a traditional rebuild by immediately injecting the roster with star-level transfer talent.
Key acquisitions include sophomore guard Layne Taylor, who arrives as a proven 17.4 PPG scorer from Central Arkansas. Backed by positional size and high-major length acquired through senior transfers J.J. Traynor, Mason Miller and center Fredrick King, Murray State’s ceiling is undeniable, with all the experience and talent being brought in.
The critical question remains whether the 13 newcomers can achieve seamless chemistry by the start of league play in year one of the Ryan Miller Era. Still, the talent-acquisition mandates this high preseason placement.
- Bradley Braves (0-1):
The Braves return a crucial veteran core, despite losing key players Duke Deen and Darius Hannah, which will be a challenge to adjust to. But the Braves also quietly invested in defense and stability this offseason.
Key returners include sophomore guard Jaquan Johnson and junior guard Demarion Burch, both known for their reliable play. The backcourt is further bolstered by graduate transfer Alex Huibregtse from Wright State, who can provide scoring maturity to this developing core. Anchoring the interior is senior forward Corey Thomas, who can give necessary rebounding and rim protection.
Most importantly, the roster returns a notable size addition, which was much needed for the Braves, 7’1” center Ahmet Jonovic, giving Bradley the defensive continuity and the reliable frontcourt required to remain consistently above the league’s high-risk middle tier and finish in the top four.
- Belmont Bruins (1-0):
The Bruins are a reliable, consistent threat in Arch Madness, securing the fifth spot in our rankings. Belmont’s strength lies in its established offensive system and the high continuity of a strong returning core that avoids the chaos of radical transfer portal overhauls.
The backcourt is operated by senior guard Tyler Lundblade, a veteran presence who previously played at TCU and SMU, leading the Bruins in 3-point shooting a year ago. The primary source of stability, however, is the formidable frontcourt pairing of sophomore forwardSam Orme and junior forward Brigham Rogers.
This duo offers reliable interior scoring, rebounding depth and critical positional length. Rogers will provide substantial interior muscle, while Orme will give the Bruins length and versatility. Their strong system fluency and high roster continuity mean they are well-equipped to capitalize on the instability and chemistry issues plaguing mid-tier rivals from the transfer portal, consistently positioning Belmont as a highly reliable team among the conference’s contenders.
- Indiana State Sycamores (1-1):
Under second-year head coach Matthew Graves, the number one scoring team in the Valley last year – with defense historically their primary problem – is attempting to become a more “international team,” reliant on new cohesion. While Indiana State suffered catastrophic departures, losing 68 percent of its scoring and 60 percent of its minutes played, their ranking is based on the hope of favoring the high quality of their portal haul over the severe losses.
The new core is structured by graduate center Markus Harding, a transfer from Central Michigan and a product of Canada’s basketball system, providing a proven interior anchor. Junior guard Camp Wagner, a transfer from Rice, offers essential backcourt stability. Remaining returners, including guards Bruno Alocen and Sterling Young, can help integrate a roster that includes multiple international signees. If the transfers can gel quickly, the Sycamores will be able to secure a good seed in Arch Madness.
- Drake Bulldogs (1-1):
Placing Drake in the lower half of the rankings in the MVC, especially after last season’s NCAA tournament bid, feels criminal. However, Drake not only lost their leader, head coach Ben McCollum, but also watched the players who orchestrated the upset over Missouri in the first round walk. With that being said, Eric Henderson has built this year’s team from the ground up.
Starting off with some familiar faces, Henderson brought Owen Larson with him from South Dakota State and acquired seven footer Isaiah Carr from Denver due to his performance against Henderson and the Jackrabbits. Other notable additions include sharpshooters Jaehshon Thomas from Charlotte and Braden Appelhans from New Mexico, premier defenders Jalen Quinn from Loyola and Wilguens Exacte from Bowling Green, and Gatorade Players of the Year in their respective states Griffen Goodbary from South Dakota and Bryson Bahl from Nebraska should round out a new core of Bulldogs.
Drake’s performance this season depends on how quickly and effectively this group of players can mesh together.
- Southern Illinois Salukis (1-0):
Following a 14-19 season, the Salukis look to bounce back as they have a healthy amount of returners, including five who played in at least 27 games. Headlined by Drew Steffe, who acquired a starting role near the midpoint of the season, head coach Scott Nagy wasn’t as involved in the offseason as he was in his freshman campaign. Now, just because he wasn’t as active doesn’t mean he hasn’t made significant acquisitions.
All eyes will be on the triad of newcomers: Isaiah Stafford, Quel’Ron House and Caden Hawkins. Stafford, a transfer from Valparaiso, missed last year due to a knee injury, but averaged almost 17 points per game the year before. House, a sophomore transfer from Jacksonville State, started in 22 of 29 games played and averaged over eight points per contest for the Gamecocks. Hawkins, a junior transfer from John A. Logan College, has Saluki royal blood coursing through his veins as his father, Shane Hawkins, is one of the greatest three-point shooters in SIU’s history.
Combine the returning group with the trio of incoming guards, and Nagy has got himself an intriguing team with the potential to right the wrongs from last season.
- University of Illinois Chicago Flames (1-0):
Clearly in a rebuilding phase, UIC only has three players returning from last year’s squad. Furthermore, two of those three are redshirt freshmen with only three games of experience between them. The final member, however, Ahmad Henderson II, led the MVC in free-throw percentage (.899) last season. Undaunted, head coach Rob Ehsan dialed in and recruited 12 new athletes ranging from freshmen to graduate students.
Beginning with the seasoned vets, Ehsan hauled in four graduate students — Abdul Momoh, Josiah Hammons, Sam Silverstein, and Tai Walters-Whitaker — and a redshirt senior, Chris Walker. Walker looks to light up the scoreboard in the Windy City as he averaged 11.5 points and hit 43 percent beyond the arc last year for the Binghamton Bearcats. Ehsan also recruited four young bucks in Nano Barrantes, Rashund Washington Jr., Andy Johnson and AJ Morgan. Barrantes and Washington earned all-state honors twice in their prep careers.
Seeing as 80 percent of their roster is fresh to the system, it will be interesting to see how quickly they can adapt to Ehsan’s play style and build chemistry amongst themselves.
- Evansville Purple Aces (0-1):
The transfer portal may have hit Evansville the hardest in the MVC. Unfortunately for the Purple Aces, four of their top five scorers from last year opted for the transfer portal. In response, head coach David Ragland hit the recruiting trail and reeled in some size and veteran presence. The size is provided by 6’11” freshman James Dyson-Merwe from Australia, and the veterans arrive in numbers; Keishon Porter, Alex Hemenway and A.J. Casey are all seniors or older.
On the flip side of that coin, Evansville is thrilled to welcome back 2024-25 MVC Defensive Player of the Year, Connor Turnbull. Factor in returning Joshua Hughes who was top five in blocks last year, and the Purple Aces are primed to be a tough defensive out on every possession this season. However, the question for them this season is how long the apparent “defense wins championships” motto will last.
- Valparaiso Beacons (1-0):
After last year’s incredible improvement in terms of their record, head coach Roger Powell Jr. and the Beacons watched helplessly as the past two MVC Freshman of the Year players, Cooper Schwieger and All Wright, departed. Coincidentally, the Beacons will be relying on young talent this season as ten of their 17 players rostered are sophomores and younger with seven of them being freshmen. Not to mention, four of their transfers are coming from Division II and the NAIA.
Two bright spots appear in the transfers of Isaiah Barnes and Owen Dease. Both are redshirt seniors with plenty of playing time, and they both produced nine-plus points per game last year. Yet, when you add it all up, the vast majority of the Beacon’s personnel have zero experience at the Division I level. Whether this young, inexperienced team will find success in the MVC remains to be seen.
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