SIU forward Marcus Domask (1) goes to the basket at Drake Sunday night. Domask scored five points in the Salukis' 73-55 loss at the Knapp Center.
It's a weekend with first place on the line in Des Moines.
Loyola (7-2, 2-0 Missouri Valley Conference) heads to undefeated Drake (13-0, 4-0) in a battle of the only undefeated teams in the league with victories this weekend. Bradley (6-3) and Valparaiso (3-5) both open league play after missing the first two weekends because of COVID-19-related issues. Twelve of the Bulldogs' 13 wins have come by double digits. Since the start of the 2017-18 season, the Ramblers have the most road wins (15-12) of any team in the league.
Here are this week's power rankings:
MVC Power Rankings:
No. 1 — Loyola Ramblers (7-2, 2-0 MVC)
Previous rank: 1
Last week: Beat North Texas 57-49 / This week: At Drake (13-0, 4-0) Saturday, 5:30 p.m. (ESPN2); at Drake Monday, 6 p.m. (CBS Sports Network), Des Moines
No. 2 — Drake Bulldogs (13-0, 4-0 MVC)
Previous rank: 2
Last week: Beat Southern Illinois 73-55, beat Southern Illinois 86-55 / This week: Host Loyola (7-2, 2-0) Saturday, 5:30 p.m. (ESPN2); host Loyola Monday, 6 p.m. (CBS Sports Network), Des Moines
No. 3 — Bradley Braves (4-2)
Previous rank: 4
Last week: Did not play / This week: At Northern Iowa (2-7, 1-3) Sunday, 3 p.m. (ESPN+); at Northern Iowa Monday, 7 p.m. (MVC-TV), Cedar Falls, Iowa
No. 4 — Southern Illinois Salukis (7-3, 1-3 MVC)
Previous rank: 3
Last week: Lost 73-55 at Drake, lost 86-55 at Drake / This week: At Indiana State (3-6, 0-4) Saturday, noon (ESPN3); at Indiana State Sunday, noon (ESPN3), Terre Haute, Ind.
No. 5 — Missouri State Bears (6-1, 3-1 MVC)
Previous rank: 7
Last week: Beat Indiana State 84-74, beat Indiana State 70-66 / This week: At Valparaiso (3-5) Saturday, 1 p.m. (ESPN+); at Valparaiso Sunday, 1 p.m. (ESPN+)
No. 6 — Indiana State Sycamores (3-6, 0-4 MVC)
Previous rank: 6
Last week: Lost 84-74 to Missouri State, lost 70-66 to Missouri State / This week: Host Southern Illinois (7-3, 1-3) Saturday, noon (ESPN3); host Southern Illinois Sunday, noon (ESPN3), Terre Haute, Ind.
No. 7 — Northern Iowa Panthers (2-7, 1-3 MVC)
Previous rank: 6
Last week: Lost 65-61 at Evansville, lost 70-64 at Evansville / This week: Host Bradley (6-3) Sunday, 3 p.m. (ESPN+); host Bradley Monday, 7 p.m. (MVC-TV), Cedar Falls, Iowa
No. 8 — Valparaiso Crusaders (3-5)
Previous rank: 8
Last week: Did not play / This week: Host Missouri State (6-1, 3-1) Saturday, 1 p.m. (ESPN+); host Missouri State Sunday, 1 p.m. (ESPN+), Valparaiso, Ind.
No. 9 — Evansville Purple Aces (5-5, 3-1 MVC)
Previous rank: 9
Last week: Beat Northern Iowa 65-61, beat Northern Iowa 70-64 / This week: Host Illinois State (3-5, 0-2) Saturday, 1 p.m. (ESPN3); host Illinois State Sunday, 1 p.m. (ESPN3), Evansville, Ind.
No. 10 — Illinois State Redbirds (3-5, 0-2 MVC)
Previous rank: 10
Last week: Did not play / This week: At Evansville (5-5, 3-1) Saturday, 1 p.m. (ESPN3); at Evansville Sunday, 1 p.m. (ESPN3), Evansville, Ind.
Todd Hefferman
Sports reporter
Todd Hefferman has covered SIU athletics since 2008. A University of Iowa grad, he is a member of the U.S. Basketball Writers Association and a Heisman Trophy voter.
