Bradley, Illinois State Secure Top Seeds at Arch Madness

Braves and Redbirds earn high seeds after strong regular season finishes

Published on Mar. 2, 2026

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The Bradley Braves and Illinois State Redbirds both secured high seeds for the upcoming Arch Madness tournament in the Missouri Valley Conference. Bradley finished the regular season as the second seed after an 87-78 win over Murray State on Senior Day, while Illinois State clinched the third seed with a victory over top-ranked Belmont.

Why it matters

The seedings for Arch Madness, the MVC's conference tournament, are crucial as they determine the path to the championship. Bradley and Illinois State's strong finishes position them well to make deep tournament runs and potentially earn an NCAA Tournament bid.

The details

Bradley, a young team coming into the season, exceeded expectations by finishing second in the MVC. Senior transfer Alex Hubrigetse led the Braves with 21 points in the win over Murray State, while sophomore Jaquan Johnson added 16. Illinois State, meanwhile, needed a victory over regular season champion Belmont to secure the third seed. The Redbirds held on for the win, led by 16 points from Johnny Kinziger and 14 from Ty Pence off the bench.

  • Bradley closed the regular season on Sunday, March 2, 2026.
  • Illinois State defeated Belmont on the final day of the regular season to clinch the third seed.

The players

Alex Hubrigetse

A graduate transfer who led Bradley with 21 points in the win over Murray State.

Jaquan Johnson

Bradley's sophomore point guard who contributed 16 points in the victory.

Johnny Kinziger

Illinois State guard who scored 16 points in the win over Belmont.

Ty Pence

Illinois State forward who added 14 points off the bench in the Redbirds' victory.

Brian Wardle

Bradley's head coach, who expressed pride in his young team's unexpected success this season.

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What they’re saying

“To get the two seed and finish second with this team; If you told me that before the season, I would have laughed at you. But I'm so proud of them and how hard they've work. I pushed them. I pushed them to get better. You can see it's clicking in longer segments now and so go into St Louis with nothing to lose and play aggressive and in attack mode.”

— Brian Wardle, Bradley Head Coach (centralillinoisproud.com)

“Belmont's really hard to guard. You gotta be fresh. They're impressive on offense, so I was aware of trying to get guys breaks as much as possible. I think the depth is something that can work in our favor. I think we've got some guys on the bench that are really playing their best basketball of the year.”

— Dan Muller, Illinois State Head Coach (centralillinoisproud.com)

What’s next

The Braves will face either Valparaiso or Indiana State on Friday in the MVC quarterfinals, while the Redbirds will take on either Northern Iowa or Evansville on the same day.

The takeaway

Bradley and Illinois State's strong finishes to the regular season have set them up for potential deep runs in the Arch Madness tournament. The Braves' unexpected success and the Redbirds' ability to knock off the conference champion Belmont Bruins demonstrate the parity and competitiveness within the Missouri Valley Conference this year.