Getty Shamar Givance of the Evansville Aces
The Missouri Valley Conference Tournament kicks off at the Enterprise Center in St. Louis, Missouri on Thursday.
The first-round games (Thursday, Mar. 4) and quarterfinals (Friday, Mar. 5) will be exclusively on ESPN+, the semifinals (Saturday, Mar. 6) will be on CBS Sports Network, and the championship (Sunday, Mar. 7) will be on CBS.
If you don’t have cable or can’t get to a TV, here’s a rundown of all the different ways you can watch a live stream of every 2021 MVC tournament game online:
Note: Heavy may earn an affiliate commission if you sign up via a link on this page
First Round & Quarterfinals: ESPN+
The first six games of the tournament (two first-round games on Thursday, four quarterfinals on Friday) will be on MVC TV Network, which means anyone in the US can watch those games on ESPN+ right here:
ESPN+ is a streaming service that has dozens of different live sports, including college basketball, college football, MLB, UFC and international soccer, as well as every 30-for-30 documentary and other original content (both video and written) all for $5.99 per month.
Or, if you also want Disney+ and Hulu, you can get all three for $12.99 per month, which works out to about 31 percent savings:
Get the ESPN+, Disney+ and Hulu Bundle
Once signed up for ESPN+, you can watch the first six games of the tournament live on the ESPN app on your Roku, Roku TV, Amazon Fire TV or Fire Stick, Apple TV, Chromecast, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, iPhone, Android phone, iPad or Android tablet.
You can also watch on your computer via ESPN.com.
Semis & Championship: FuboTV
You can watch a live stream of CBS Sports Network, CBS (live in most markets) and 100-plus other TV channels on FuboTV, which you can use for free with a seven-day trial right here:
Once signed up for FuboTV, you can watch the semis and championship games live on the FuboTV app, which is available on your Roku, Roku TV, Amazon Fire TV, or Firestick, Apple TV, Chromecast, Xbox One, Samsung Smart TV, Android TV, iPhone, Android phone, iPad, or Android tablet. Or you can watch on your computer via the FuboTV website.
If you can’t watch live, FuboTV also comes with 250 hours of cloud DVR space, as well as a 72-hour look-back feature, which allows you to watch games on-demand within three days of their conclusion, even if you don’t record them.
Semis & Championship: AT&T TV
AT&T TV has four different channel packages: “Entertainment”, “Choice”, “Ultimate” and “Premier.” CBS (live in most markets) is included in every package, while CBS Sports Network is only in “Ultimate” and “Premier.” Fortunately, you can pick any package and any add-on you want for your free 14-day trial.
Note that the free trial isn’t advertised as such, but when you sign up and select whatever bundle and extras you want, you’ll see that–if you’re a new customer–the “due today” amount is $0. You won’t be charged for 14 days, and you can cancel at any time:
Once signed up for AT&T TV, you can watch the semis and championship games live on the AT&T TV app, which is available on your Roku, Roku TV, Amazon Fire TV or Firestick, Apple TV, Chromecast, Samsung Smart TV, iPhone, Android phone, iPad, or Android tablet. Or you can watch on your computer via the AT&T TV website.
If you can’t watch live, AT&T TV also comes with 20 hours of Cloud DVR storage (with the ability to upgrade to 500 hours).
Semis & Championship: Hulu With Live TV
You can watch a live stream of CBS Sports Network, CBS (live in most markets) and 65+ other TV channels via Hulu With Live TV, which you can try out for free with a seven-day trial:
Once signed up for Hulu With Live TV, you can watch the semis and championship games live on the Hulu app, which is available on your Roku, Roku TV, Amazon Fire TV, or Firestick, Apple TV, Chromecast, Xbox One, Xbox 360, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, Samsung Smart TV, LG Smart TV, Android TV, iPhone, Android phone, iPad, or Android tablet. Or you can watch on your computer via the Hulu website.
If you can’t watch live, Hulu with Live TV also comes with 50 hours of Cloud DVR storage (with the ability to upgrade to “Enhanced Cloud DVR,” which gives you 200 hours of DVR space and the ability to fast forward through commercials).
2021 MVC Basketball Tournament Preview
Arch Madness should not disappoint this year. Considering in the last 10 years, the No. 1 seed in the MVC tourney has won it all three times (and once since 2014), the top-seeded Ramblers (who are ranked 20th in the nation) may have their work cut out for them despite being the tourney’s top seed.
Per MVC Sports.com, “Thirty-nine of 44 previous tournament champions were seeded 1, 2, or 3. The top two seeds have had the most success, winning a combined 32 times, and the top two seeds have won 19 titles in St. Louis (in 30 total tries). The last 15 MVC tournament champions have consisted of six top seeds, five No. 2 seeds, a No. 3 seed, two No. 4 seeds (including Bradley last year) and a No. 5 (Bradley in 2019).”
Here are the teams competing in the MVC tourney, along with their records, listed by seed:
- No. 1 Loyola (16-2 conference, 21-4 overall)
- No. 2 Drake (15-3 conference, 24-3 overall)
- No. 3 Missouri State (12-6 conference, 16-6 overall)
- No. 4 Indiana State (11-7 conference, 14-9 overall)
- No. 5 Evansville (7-11 conference, 9-15 overall)
- No. 6 UNI (7-11 conference, 9-15 overall)
- No. 7 Valparaiso (7-11 conference, 10-17 overall)
- No. 8 Bradley (6-12 conference, 12-15 overall)
- No. 9 Southern Illinois (5-13 conference, 11-13 overall)
- No. 10 Illinois State (4-14 conference, 7-17 overall)
Here is a look at the MVC Tournament schedule:
Thursday, March 4
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Game 1: No. 8 Bradley vs. No. 9 Southern Illinois: 6 p.m. ET
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Game 2: No. 7 Northern Iowa vs. No. 10 Illinois State: 9 p.m ET
Friday, March 5
- Quarterfinal 1: No. 1 Loyola vs. Winner of Game 1, 12 p.m. ET
- Quarterfinal 2: No. 4 Indiana State vs. No. 5 Evansville, 3 p.m. ET
- Quarterfinal 3: No. 2 Drake vs. Winner of Game 2, 6 p.m. ET
- Quarterfinal 4: No. 3 Missouri State vs. No. 6 Valparaiso, 9 p.m. ET
Saturday, March 6
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Semifinal 1: Winner of quarterfinal 1 vs. Winner of quarterfinal 2, 12 p.m. ET
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Semifinal 2: Winner of quarterfinal 3 vs. Winner of quarterfinal 4, 3 p.m. ET
Sunday, March 7
- Championship: Winner of semifinal 1 vs. Winner of semifinal 2, 1:10 p.m. ET