Drake
By Jacob Hypke
As a Bradley fan and student, it pains me to say that they aren’t my pick to win at Arch Madness this year.
One of the reasons for my lack of faith in the Braves comes from their combined 0-4 record versus second-seed Drake and first-seed Indiana State. Out of these two teams, I would give the edge to Drake to win Arch Madness. I could explain why by just saying the name Tucker DeVries, but I’ll go deeper.
As I stated above, Drake is 2-0 versus the Braves this season, which bodes well for the Bulldogs if they see Bradley in the semifinals. This season’s games had two similarities: their final and halftime scores. Their first matchup ended 74-67 and their most recent matchup finished 74-66. Drake also won the first half by over 10 points in both games.
The Braves have yet to show the ability to stop DeVries with his 51 combined points in both games. Bradley’s been able to beat Drake in the second half each game, but not enough to erase either of their first-half deficits this season.
Now for Drake’s potential championship matchup with Indiana State. They have shown to be neck and neck in the first half with scores of 43-43 in their first game and 37-36 in favor of the Sycamores in their second. Once the second half starts though, they have each taken a game, with Drake winning 89-77 in the first game and losing 75-67 in the second. In Drake’s loss to Indiana State, they shot a low 34.3%, which was still better than the Sycamores in that same half shooting 33.3%.
If Drake puts the ball in DeVries’s hands and doesn’t beat themselves by shooting below 40% in the second half, I believe they will beat Bradley and then, most likely, Indiana State to win Arch Madness.
Bradley
By Umar Syed
The third-seed Bradley Braves are the team that I truly believe can win Arch Madness and return to the NCAA Tournament.
The Braves, throughout the course of the season, have beaten powerhouse schools like Utah State, UAB and Vermont. With the powerful quartet of Darius Hannah, Duke Deen, Maley Leons and Connor Hickman, the Braves are the biggest threat that stands between Indiana State and Drake on their path to an MVC Tournament championship.
Bradley has the best chance of bringing home a championship trophy this year because they want to avenge last year’s defeat. As the No. 1 seed, Bradley narrowly beat Indiana State in the semifinals before dropping to Drake in the championship game, so everyone on the team wants to get back to the top.
The Braves got next, and everyone loves an underdog story.
