Getty The MVC Tournament kicks off Thursday.
The Missouri Valley Conference Tournament kicks off Thursday with its first two games at the Enterprise Center in St. Louis.
Here’s a look at the complete tournament schedule and live stream options for every game, followed by a more complete guide on how to watch every game on your computer, phone, Roku, Fire TV or other streaming device if you don’t have cable:
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| Date | Game | Start Time (ET) | TV Channel | Live Stream |
| Thu, Mar 5 | Drake vs Illinois St | 7:05 p.m. | MVC TV | ESPN+ |
| Thu, Mar 5 | Valparaiso vs Evansville | 9:35 p.m. | MVC TV | ESPN+ |
| Fri, Mar 6 | UNI vs Drake/Ill St | 1:05 p.m. | MVC TV | ESPN+ |
| Fri, Mar 6 | Bradley vs SIU | 3:35 p.m. | MVC TV | ESPN+ |
| Fri, Mar 6 | Loyola vs Valpo/UE | 7:05 p.m. | MVC TV | ESPN+ |
| Fri, Mar 6 | Indiana St vs Missouri St | 9:35 p.m. | MVC TV | ESPN+ |
| Sat, Mar 7 | Semifinal 1 | 3:35 p.m. | CBS Sports Network | FuboTV |
| Sat, Mar 7 | Semifinal 2 | 6:05 p.m. | CBS Sports Network | FuboTV |
| Sun, Mar 8 | Championship | 2:05 p.m. | CBS | FuboTV |
How to Watch 2020 MVC Tournament Online Without Cable
Round 1 & Quarterfinals: ESPN+
The first six games of the tournament will be televised only on the MVC TV Network, but if you don’t have that channel or don’t have cable, anyone in the U.S can watch all of those games live on ESPN+:
ESPN+ is the digital streaming service from ESPN that has exclusive coverage of over 1,500 college basketball games this season (including many other conference tournament games), plus other live sports every day, all the 30-for-30 documentaries, and additional original content (both video and written) all for $4.99 per month.
Or, if you also want the new Disney+ streaming service and Hulu, you can get all three for $12.99 per month, which works out to 25 percent savings.
Get the ESPN+, Disney+ and Hulu Bundle
Once signed up for ESPN+, you can then watch the first six games of the MVC tournament live on your computer via ESPN.com, or on your phone (Android and iPhone compatible), tablet, Roku, Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV, Chromecast, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, or other streaming device via the ESPN app.
Both semifinals will be televised on CBS Sports Network, while the championship will be on CBS. Both of these channels are among the 95-plus live TV channels included in the main FuboTV bundle, which comes with a free seven-day trial:
Once signed up for FuboTV, you can watch a live stream of the MVC semifinals and championship on your computer via the FuboTV website, or on your phone (Android and iPhone supported), tablet, Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, Chromecast, or other supported device via the FuboTV app.
If you can’t watch live, FuboTV comes with 30 hours of cloud DVR space, as well as a 72-hour look-back feature, which will allow you to watch the games on-demand within three days of their conclusion, even if you don’t record them.
Other cable-free, live-stream options that include both CBS Sports Network and CBS: AT&T TV Now, Hulu With Live TV or YouTube TV
2020 MVC Tournament Preview
- No. 9 Illinois State (10-20, 5-13 in MVC) and No. 8 seed Drake (18-13, 8-10 in MVC) will kick off the tournament Thursday. Illinois State is scoring 66.2 points a game, which is second-to-last in the MVC, and they will be playing a Drake team that is netting 69.1 points per game.
- Northern Iowa (25-5, 14-4 in MVC) is the No. 1 seed in the tourney, and with good reason. The Panthers finished the season on a three-game winning streak, and they led the MVC in scoring, netting 75.8 points a game. UNI also led the conference in margin of victory, winning its games by an average of 11.5 points, and it has arguably the best player of the tourney in A.J. Green. The Larry Bird MVC Player of the Year lead the conference in scoring with 19.7 points a game. The Panthers will be facing the winner of the Drake-Illinois State matchup.
- No. 10 Evansville (9-22, 0-18 in MVC) will take on No. 7 seed Valparaiso (16-15, 9-9 in MVC) in the second matchup Thursday. Evansville is seeking to play spoiler in the tournament, and it very well could, as the team’s upset against Kentucky last fall shows. Evansville coach Todd Lickliter thinks the tourney could give his team a clean slate of sorts. “It’s a new opportunity and the cliché is everybody is all even up, 0-0. We look at it as an opportunity and the best thing you can do is focus on the task at hand, which is Valpo,” Lickliter said.
- Loyola Chicago (21-10, 13-5 in MVC) is the No. 2 seed, and the Ramblers will play the victors of the Evansville-Valpo game. The Ramblers are averaging 68.5 points a game, and they boast the second-best defense in the conference in points allowed, giving up just 62.4 points per contest. Their defense will likely carry them deep into the tournament.
- On Friday, 4th seed Bradley (20-11, 11-7 in MVC) will face off against No. 5 seed Southern Illinois (16-15, 10-8 in MVC) in the first game, while No. 6 ranked Missouri State (15-16, 9-9 in MVC) will play No. 3 Indiana State (18-11, 11-7 in MVC) in the second tourney matchup of the day. Bradley won the MVC tournament last year as the 5th seed, and they are looking to repeat again this year.
- The Sycamores are scoring 69 points a game, while Missouri State is averaging 70 points.
- Bradley is third in the MVC in scoring, netting 71.5 points per contest, and they’ll be going up against a Salukis team that is last in the MVC in scoring offense, netting just 62.7 points a game.