Murray State down 3 late to #291 Southeastern Louisiana at home. This has not been a great week for the Valley
Racer Scum loss by 6 at home.
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Valpo blows a late lead to Chicago State and loses
Chicago State just beat #25 Northwestern. They’re no pushover this year.
Bradley loses their 5th in a row, this time to a good Duquesne team. The Valley has been really shaky these last 2 weeks.
Murray State goes down by 14 at Little Rock
Yeah Murray State might be an 11th place team ahead of Valpo. Luckily they have 2 top 150 recruits coming in next year if they can hold them.
I received the email regarding the early purchase of all-session passes for Arch Madness which states the price is $179 if purchased before January 17th. If memory serves me correctly, last year the price was $155. Not that it affects my attendance but curious if there was a specific reason for a 15% increase.
Additionally, 2024 is the final year of the contract for the tournament in St. Louis. Has there been any discussion of the future status in St. Louis or elsewhere? My apologies if the topics were previously discussed and I missed them.
Rocco Miller's power rankings has SIU as the #3 Valley team behind Indy and Drake:
Additionally, 2024 is the final year of the contract for the tournament in St. Louis. Has there been any discussion of the future status in St. Louis or elsewhere? My apologies if the topics were previously discussed and I missed them.
Yes, this is the final year of the contract but the Valley holds the option for 2025. My guess is that someone/some city would have to blow the Valley away with an offer to ever get it out of St. Louis. With western teams leaving (like Creighton and the Wheatshockers) and newer teams are from the east (Murray, Belmont, UIC, Valpo), Kansas City seems less of an option. Chicago or Indianapolis might have a decent shot, if interested.
Indy would have a shot at The Valley Tournament if they wanted it, but St. Louis is the best location for it in my opinion.
Would it be beneath the Valley to use Chaifetz Arena for the Tournament if Enterprise Center becomes too expensive?
Would it be beneath the Valley to use Chaifetz Arena for the Tournament if Enterprise Center becomes too expensive?
It absolutely sends the wrong message. Playing in the arena of a school who’s a member of what most believe to be a peer conference? I just don’t see that happening.
Plus, I think Chaifetz barely holds 10k which doesn’t leave much room to expand if some teams get good that bring large crowds (ISU red, SIU, Murray, MSU). It is also pretty far removed from downtown. Maybe some see that as a good thing, but I don’t.
Would it be beneath the Valley to use Chaifetz Arena for the Tournament if Enterprise Center becomes too expensive?
It absolutely sends the wrong message. Playing in the arena of a school who’s a member of what most believe to be a peer conference? I just don’t see that happening.
Plus, I think Chaifetz barely holds 10k which doesn’t leave much room to expand if some teams get good that bring large crowds (ISU red, SIU, Murray, MSU). It is also pretty far removed from downtown. Maybe some see that as a good thing, but I don’t.
I just think the "Arch Madness" brand is too good to leave St. Louis for and it's a good location for a lot of schools to get to.
I thought last year's crowds were a step in the right direction and they even had the upper deck open for the Championship last year. The Valley desperately needs SIU & Bradley (and Illinois State/Murray State) to be competitive like last year, both fanbases really packed the place.
Yes sending the event to SLU would be a terrible message. If not the Enterprise Center, I think the tournament leaves STL. Keep in there! It makes too much sense to not do it there.
