CHICAGO (March 1, 2020) – After finishing in second place, one game behind Northern Iowa in the Missouri Valley Conference regular-season race, the Loyola University Chicago (21-10, 13-5 MVC) men's basketball team will be the No. 2 seed at this week's MVC Championship, which begins Thursday night at Enterprise Center in St. Louis. The Ramblers will not play their first game until Friday, March 6, at 6 p.m., when they battle the winner of the Valparaiso versus Evansville matchup, in quarterfinal round action.
 
Arch Madness officially kicks off Thursday night (March 5) with a pair of opening round contests, starting with No. 8 seed Drake (18-13, 8-10 MVC) taking on No. 9 seed Illinois State (10-20, 5-13 MVC) at 6 p.m. The nightcap that evening pits No. 7 seed Valparaiso (16-15, 9-9 MVC) against No. 10 seed Evansville (9-22, 0-18 MVC) at 8:30 p.m.
 
The Ramblers swept the regular-season series from both Valparaiso and Evansville this season and a year ago knocked off the Crusaders in quarterfinal play. Should Loyola prevail in its quarterfinal showdown versus either Valpo or Evansville, it would take on the winner of the No. 3 seed Indiana State (18-11, 11-7 MVC) versus No. 6 seed Missouri State (15-16, 9-9 MVC) game in semifinal round action at 5 p.m. on Saturday, March 7. The remainder of the quarterfinal round matchups on March 6 feature top-seeded Northern Iowa (25-5, 14-4 MVC) versus the winner of the Drake versus Evansville game, while No. 4 seed Bradley (20-11, 11-7 MVC) squares off against fifth-seeded Southern Illinois (16-15, 10-8 MVC).
 
This marks the third straight season that the Ramblers have been one of the top two seeds at the MVC Championship. Two years ago, Loyola was the No. 1 seed and stormed through Arch Madness to earn its first NCAA tournament berth in 33 years. Last season, the top-seeded Ramblers, who are seeking their third consecutive postseason berth, were upended in the semifinal round of Arch Madness.
 
A No. 2 seed has won the MVC Championship crown a total of 16 times, with Wichita State being the last second-seeded squad to accomplish the feat in 2017. 
 
Sunday's (March 8) championship game is scheduled for 1 p.m.
 
The complete schedule of 2020 MVC Championship games is listed below.
 
Thursday, March 5
Game 1 – No. 8 Drake vs. No. 9 Illinois State, 6 p.m.
Game 2 – No. 7 Valparaiso vs. No. 10 Evansville, 8:30 p.m.
 
Friday, March 6
Game 3 – No. 1 Northern Iowa vs. Drake or Illinois State, 12 p.m.
Game 4 – No. 4 Bradley vs. No. 5 Southern Illinois, 2:30 p.m.
Game 5 – No. 2 Loyola vs. Valparaiso or Evansville, 6 p.m.
Game 6 – No. 3 Indiana State vs. No. 6 Missouri State, 8:30 p.m.
 
Saturday, March 7
Game 7 – Winner of Game 3 vs. Winner of Game 4, 2:30 p.m.
Game 8 – Winner of Game 5 vs. Winner of Game 6, 5 p.m.
 
Sunday, March 8 
Game 9 – Winner of Game 7 vs. Winner of Game 8, 1 p.m.