March 1, 2010
ST. LOUIS -
For Illinois State men's basketball fans, who can forget Osiris Eldridge's performance in the 2009 State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Tournament, Shawn Jeppson's three-point buzzer-beater over Drake in the 2002 quarterfinals, or Rico Hill's second-half effort and then-head coach Kevin Stallings' "stare" in the Redbirds' semifinal win over Northern Iowa in the 1997 event? These memories are a part of Redbird lore, and according the fans of the Missouri Valley Conference, each is among the 20 greatest moments in the history of Arch Madness.
In a two-month, online voting campaign sponsored by Fox Sports Midwest, Missouri Valley Conference fans chose from a list of 33 State Farm MVC Men's Basketball Championship flashbacks to determine the top-20 Arch Madness moments since the first St. Louis-based tournament was played at Kiel Auditorium in 1991.
Eldridge's performance last season was voted by the league fans as the fourth-greatest moment in Arch Madness history. His tournament effort was highlighted by his 21-point second-half display against Northern Iowa in the league's championship game.
Voted No. 7 by the fans was Jeppson's last-second heroics. Trailing, 63-61, with five seconds remaining, Illinois State called timeout and on the ensuing play, Jeppson drained a three-point game-winner at the buzzer and finished with a team-high 24 points.
In the No. 9-ranked moment, Illinois State trailed by nine points late in the first half in the 1997 semifinals against Northern Iowa. The Redbirds closed the half on a 12-2 run, ignited by head coach Stallings' time-out "stare" at the officials during the final media timeout of the first half. Hill scored 18 of his 29 points in the second half in ISU's 69-65 victory over the Panthers.
Fox Sports Midwest, home of the 2010 State Farm MVC Men's Basketball Championship quarterfinals and semifinals, produced 30-second spots that aired on the league's tournament web site -- www.archmadness.com -- and during Fox Sports Midwest programming to promote the Top 20 Arch Madness Moment voting.
All top-20 moments will be shown on the video board at Scottrade Center during the 2010 State Farm MVC Men's Basketball Championship on Thursday-Sunday, March 4-7. For tickets, visit www.archmadness.com or call TicketMaster at (314) 241-1888.
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