4. Bradley

Preseason poll: 5th

Bradley has won 20 games each of the last three seasons. If coach Jim Les wants the Braves to make that four in a row, all of his newcomers will need to step up.

Daniel Ruffin and Jeremy Crouch graduated, so the Braves will desperately need leadership and shooting help. Guard Sam Maniscalco (6'0" So.) was forced into point guard duties as Ruffin missed time for varying reasons. Though this scenario hurt Bradley in the short term, Maniscalco earned valuable experience that should give Braves fans confidence in his ability to take over for Ruffin. His shooting ability can be streaky but Maniscalco really excels in slashing to the hoop and getting layups. The better he gets, the better Bradley will play.

Bradley's best all-around player also returns in forward Theron Wilson (6'5" Sr.). This junior college transfer was the last signee for Les going into last season but has proven to be the best of the bunch. Wilson's long, athletic frame gives him the ability to be a tenacious rebounder as well as cutting through the lane and drawing contact on offense. If he has any weakness it is at the free throw line. Wilson only shot 60? percent last season, which is disheartening considering how often he got to the line (??? attempts).

The third returning starter is guard Andrew Warren (6'5" Jr.). The team's best pure scorer, Warren has a solid inside-outside game. The only concern about Warren going into the season is the foot surgery he had for a stress fracture. Bradley hopes to have him back by the beginning of the season, but these types of injuries can often take longer than expected to heal.

Bradley also has two interior players returning in center David Collins (7'0" Sr.) and forward Sam Singh (6'9" Sr.). Collins played very well during the 2008 postseason and will hopefully build on that success. He has a nice shooting touch for such a big guy, but can often play soft around the hoop.

Singh is one of those players that seem to have been around for a decade. This season is Singh's fifth after his Bradley career has been radically shortened by a series of injuries. He doesn't have the biggest skill set on the court, but Singh does provide a big body who can rebound, score close to the basket and knock down free throws.

Coach Jim Les will need to infuse a group of transfers and freshman into the remainder of the lineup and rotation. Considering their experience, expect junior college transfer guards Dodie Dunson (6'3 Jr.) and Chris Roberts (6'4 Jr.) to make the biggest splash.

Dunson is considered to be a tenacious defender and will be the Braves "stopper." Whatever Dunson can provide on the offensive end will just add to his value.

Roberts fits the mold of many "tweeners" that Les likes to recruit. The early comparisons of Roberts go to former Brave Lawrence Wright, who could nearly jump out of the building. The biggest question is how that athleticism translates to actual basketball skills.

Forward/center Will Egolf (6'9 So.) will be expected to be a bigger contributor this season. The Alaskan native has a load of talent but seemed scared by the bright lights of Division I basketball last season. Hopefully with a year under his belt he will be better for the Braves.

Center Anthony "Sticks" Thompson (6'10" R-Fr.) redshirted last season and has put on weight to his slender frame. He was a highly touted recruit out of high school — can he make the adjustment to the next level?

Bradley also has a bunch of other newcomers to the team, all of whom are a bit of an enigma until they're on the floor. Guards Eddren McCain (5'11" Fr.) and Darian Norris (5'11" Fr.) as well as forward Taylor Brown (6'6" Fr.) will likely see minutes this season, but it's too soon to tell who will emerge yet.

The Braves certainly have the talent to finish near the top of the Valley. Les will need to bring this team together as quickly as possible in order for that to happen.

5. Drake

Preseason poll: 4th

Drake escaped the world of Missouri Valley Conference mediocrity last season in a big way. The same type of success can't be expected again, but this team should still be pretty good overall.

The Bulldogs lost significant members of their 28-5 conference championship team. Start with former head coach Keno Davis, who deserted the program for a bigger offer at Providence. Arguably more important are the losses to graduation of three key players: MVC Player of the Year Adam Emmenecker, Leonard Houston and Klayton Korver.

Luckily for Drake, two of its best players from the Cinderella season do return. Guard Josh Young (6'1" Jr.) averaged 15.9 points per game last year and that will likely rise even higher in 2008-09. Outside of Illinois State's Osiris Eldridge, Young should be considered one of the top candidates for conference Player of the Year.

Forward Jonathan Cox (6'8" Sr.) should help alleviate some of the added pressure put on Young. "Bucky" averaged 12.3 points and 8.5 rebounds per game last season. In addition to his rebounding ability, Cox shoots well from the line (77.8 percent) and beyond the arc (44 percent).

New head coach Mark Phelps will have to find others to fill out three spots in the lineup. Transfer forward Adam Templeton (6'5" Jr.) may be one of the more intriguing new faces in the Drake lineup. Templeton now is eligible after sitting out a year for transferring from UC Irvine. He averaged eight points per game in 2006-07 and should provide valuable Division I experience to the Bulldogs.

Drake will have a three player battle to fill Emmenecker's spot. Guards Josh Parker (6'0" So.) and Jacob Baryenbruch (6'0" Sr.) have experience with Drake's system. But, transfer guard Craig Stanley (5'11" Jr.) might be the best suited to initially hold down the point.

Maybe the most important factor in Drake's success or failure this season will be the depth provided by returning players. Forwards Brent Heemskerk (6'8" Sr.) and Bill Eaddy (6'5" Jr.) are two examples of men who will need to have a bigger role this season.

One great season can help recruiting and catapult a team from the dredges of a conference for a few years. Drake must hope that its 25-win season will do that and help build the program up to prominence again.

6. Northern Iowa

Preseason poll: 6th

Blending of new and old seems to be theme for the Missouri Valley Conference this year. Northern Iowa certainly fits that mold.

The undersized conference star center Eric Coleman is gone. Long range gunners Adam Viet and Jared Josten graduated. Luckily for the Panthers, an impressive front court duo returns to Cedar Falls.

Forward Adam Koch (6'8" Jr.) scored nearly eight points and six rebounds per game last season. He also got to the line 153 times, knocking in 78 percent of his free throw attempts. Center Jordan Eglseder (7'1" Jr.) may be even more important to Northern Iowa's success. Unlike many seven-footers that have graced the Valley in the past, Eglseder has good offensive skills. If he can stay away from injuries, he will improve again this year.

Even with big time talent down low, questions abound concerning the back court. Kwadzo Ahelegbe (6'0" So.) had to sit out last season with an injury. Ali Farokhmanesh (6'0" Jr.) and John Moran (6'1" Fr.) are newcomers to the team. Kerwin Dunham (6'6" So.) and Travis Brown (6'3" Sr.) contributed last season but will be expected to turn a corner and step into more important roles.

If Koch and Eglseder can stay on the floor, the Panthers will be okay. This aspect is a necessity with very little depth behind them. Northern Iowa will have an up and down season, with likely more downs if their smaller lineups are unable to rebound.

7. Indiana State

Preseason poll: 7th

Most teams that lose their best returning player aren't thought of very highly by pollsters. But, with Indiana State, the "addition by subtraction" scenario might be working.

Marico Stinson, who averaged 12 points per game, left the program in early October. No official explanation has been given other than "personal reasons," but it's reasonable to assume that something happened which would have been detrimental to the team. Whether or not he had a family emergency or disliked his coach, any of these would likely hurt his ability to contribute to the team.

To make matters worse, guard Harry Marshall (6'0" Jr.) was declared academically ineligible for the first semester of the season. Marshall (10.1 PPG, 2.3 APG) will almost certainly take over the starting point guard role once he's allowed to play with the team.

So how can the Sycamores finish as the best of the "play-in" teams?

Start inside with forwards Jay Tunnell (6'8" Sr.) and Isiah Martin (6'8" So.). They combined for more than 13 points and 8 rebounds per game last season. Both must be key contributors on the interior if the Sycamores are to have success.

An even more intriguing prospect is forward/center Josh Crawford (6'11" Jr.). Even though he played sparingly, Crawford's first college stop was at Iowa, so it's clear he has talent. Let's see what he can do when given some playing time at the Division I level.

Similar to the front court players, Indiana State will rely on a combination of returnees, freshman and transfers to fill out their lineups. Transfer guard Rashad Reed (6'1" Jr.) will undoubtedly be asked to fill Marshall's shoes while he's out. The Sycamores also have talented guard Carl Richard (6'4" Fr.) coming to Terre Haute.

Lastly, who could forget this guy??

Okay, maybe that's the wrong Nick Carter.

But this Nick Carter (6'4" So.) should be able to knock down some 3-pointers for Indiana State this season (23-of-71 last year).

With the loss of Marshall and a tough non conference schedule, there's a good chance that the Sycamores will have the worst record of MVC teams going into conference play. But, similar to Bradley's team last year, some of the new faces will get a quick baptism into Division I basketball. This will make Indiana State stronger when facing conference foes.

8. Missouri State

Preseason poll: 10th

According to the Missouri Valley Conference pollsters, the Bears should finish last in the conference this season. This might be a little harsh on a team that finished in a tie for 7th last season (8-10). Sure, the Bears appear to be at a disadvantage with first-year head coach Cuonzo Martin at the helm. But in reality, this man isn't just some random choice or a favorite alum. Martin served as an assistant coach at Purdue for eight seasons, learning from and playing for coaching legend Gene Keady.

Outside of promising new coach, the Bears have another external factor in their favor - a new arena. John Q. Hammons, a hotel developer in the area, has made significant contributions to the school (similar to influence David Markin has had at Bradley) - his most recent being a $30 million donation to build JQH Arena. The arena seats 11,000, which will allow for more than 2,000 additional fans to watch Bears' games. This sort of intangible will likely give Missouri State an even bigger advantage at home.

As for on the court, forward Chris Cooks (6'4" Sr.) is arguably the best player on the team. As a junior, Cooks averaged 8.6 points and 4.3 rebounds per game. These stats are likely to both jump up significantly as the front court has been cleared out due to graduation. Dale Lamberth and Deven Mitchell combined for more than 11 RPG helped the Bears finish in the upper half of the MVC in rebounding.

This area will be a key for Missouri State to be successful - who can step in and grab 4-6 rebounds per game? The most likely candidates are forward Ryan Jehle (6'6" So.) and center Wade Knapp (6'8" Sr.). Neither averaged more than 10 minutes per game last season, so they will be tested in their increased roles.

If the Bears can take care of the glass, they should feel pretty confident with their back court players. The Laurie brothers, guards Shane (6'2" Sr.) and Spencer (6'1" Sr.), finally are completing their eligibility this season. They fall into that category of MVC players that seem to be around forever, like Anthony Tolliver of Creighton and Sam Singh of Bradley. Both can score in bunches if necessary. Couple these two with guard Justin Fuehrmeyer (6'0" Jr.), who had the best assist-to-turnover ratio in the Valley last year (+2.16). Clearly guard play should be a strength for Missouri State, one of the most important aspects of any successful team in the MVC.

Maybe the Bears lack a lot of experience going into this season, but they do have some positives going into the year that will help the team stay away from the basement of the Valley.