WICHITA, Kan. (AP) – The most famous player ever to lace up his sneakers in the Missouri Valley Conference has been watching Northern Iowa and Wichita State for most of the season.
He watched them beat up on his alma mater, Indiana State. He watched as the Panthers’ Seth Tuttle and the Shockers’ Ron Baker became Oscar Robertson Trophy finalists. He watched both teams climb the polls, their regular seasons culminating with a massive showdown coming on Saturday.
At stake? The regular-season conference championship.
“It’s always great for any conference to have teams get national recognition, but especially for a conference like the Missouri Valley Conference,” Larry Bird told The Associated Press. “I’ve followed both teams, watched them a lot, and they’re both really good.”
The 10th-ranked Panthers (27-2, 16-1) are riding a school-record 17-game win streak, their last loss coming in their league opener to Evansville. Along the way, they ended Wichita State’s lengthy conference winning streak with a 70-54 victory at home on Jan. 31.