I thought after last year they'd stop listing the Valley in the "Surprises" columns.
But in this week's summary of college basketball, Rivals lists two and only two "Biggest Surprises"
and both of them are the Valley wins:
"Biggest Surprises
1. Missouri State 66, No. 7 Wisconsin 64: Anybody still wondering why teams from major conferences are so hesitant to schedule Missouri Valley Conference teams got plenty of reasons in this big upset in the South Padre Invitational. The Bears, who were picked to finish fourth in the MVC, led by as many as 19 in the first half before rallying late to pull off the upset. The Bears exposed one of the Badgers' main weaknesses: the lack of an inside scoring threat outside of Alando Tucker. Their star scored a game-high 26 points, but the rest of the starting lineup combined for just 22. They endured a horrific shooting night, going 2-of-15 (13 percent) from 3-point range.
2. Wichita State 57, No. 6 LSU 53: This is the first sign that the Shockers could be even better than the squad that reached the Sweet 16 in the 2006 NCAA Tournament. Once again, they are extremely balanced. Five players finished in double figures, but no one scored more than 12 points. It's also the first sign that Glen Davis might not have the supporting cast to lead LSU back to the Final Four. Davis scored 17 points and grabbed 13 rebounds, but most of his teammates struggled offensively."
But in this week's summary of college basketball, Rivals lists two and only two "Biggest Surprises"
and both of them are the Valley wins:
"Biggest Surprises
1. Missouri State 66, No. 7 Wisconsin 64: Anybody still wondering why teams from major conferences are so hesitant to schedule Missouri Valley Conference teams got plenty of reasons in this big upset in the South Padre Invitational. The Bears, who were picked to finish fourth in the MVC, led by as many as 19 in the first half before rallying late to pull off the upset. The Bears exposed one of the Badgers' main weaknesses: the lack of an inside scoring threat outside of Alando Tucker. Their star scored a game-high 26 points, but the rest of the starting lineup combined for just 22. They endured a horrific shooting night, going 2-of-15 (13 percent) from 3-point range.
2. Wichita State 57, No. 6 LSU 53: This is the first sign that the Shockers could be even better than the squad that reached the Sweet 16 in the 2006 NCAA Tournament. Once again, they are extremely balanced. Five players finished in double figures, but no one scored more than 12 points. It's also the first sign that Glen Davis might not have the supporting cast to lead LSU back to the Final Four. Davis scored 17 points and grabbed 13 rebounds, but most of his teammates struggled offensively."
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