How to Watch MVC Tournament Quarterfinal, Southern Illinois vs Drake: Stream Men’s College Basketball Live, TV Channel

Top-seeded Drake opens its run at Arch Madness on Friday when it takes on Southern Illinois in St. Louis

Drake (27-3) rolled to the Missouri Valley Conference regular-season title, finishing 17-3 while earning the top seed for the conference tournament, known as Arch Madness. On Friday afternoon, the Bulldogs open play in the tournament with a quarterfinal matchup against No. 8 seed Southern Illinois (14-18), who won its opening-round game on Thursday. Drake has played in the last two NCAA tournaments while the Salukis haven’t reached the Big Dance since a Sweet Sixteen run in 2007. Their last postseason bid game a season later in the 2008 NIT.

How to Watch MVC Tournament, First Quarterfinal, Southern Illinois vs. Drake in Men’s College Basketball Today:

Game Date: Friday, March 7, 2025

Game Time: 1 p.m. ET

TV: Chicago Sports Network Plus

Live stream the Southern Illinois vs. Drake MVC men’s basketball tournament quarterfinal on Fubo: Start your free trial today!

Davion Sykes hit a layup with four seconds remaining on Thursday to lift Southern Illinois to an 86-85 opening-round win over ninth-seeded Indiana State. Ali Dibba poured in 30 points in the victory while Kennard Davis Jr. added 22. Dibba leads the team at 17.2 points per game, Davis gets 16.5 points a night and Jarrett Hensley averages 10.6 points and 5.8 rebounds.

After Tavion Banks tied the game with a pair of free throws with nine seconds left, the Bulldogs blitzed visiting Missouri State in overtime for a 68-60 victory on Sunday afternoon. Bennett Stirtz paced the attack with 23 points while Banks finished with 13 points and 11 boards. Stirtz averages 18.9 points and 5.9 assists, with Daniel Abreu scoring 11.0 points per game and Cam Manyawu putting up 7.1 points and 5.4 rebounds per contest.

The Salukis lead the all-time series 61-43, but Drake picked up its fifth straight head-to-head victory on Feb. 1 with a 75-65 road decision. Ben McCollum is in his first season coaching the Bulldogs after winning four Division II titles in 15 seasons at Northwest Missouri State. Scott Nagy left Wright State after last season to take over the program at Southern Illinois. The winner meets the victor of the Illinois State-Belmont quarterfinal on Saturday afternoon.

Regional restrictions may apply.