Creighton has the offense we all knew they'd have. They keep winning and are looking good. Their D is still suspect and will result in some losses. But they could continue winning for a long time.

Wichita finally showed a little bit of offense in Cancun and their D continues to be their strength. They're a lot better right now than many Shocker fans thought and could give CU a run for the top spot.

Illinois State couldn't get things done. I don't think it means they're bad, but I don't think they're as good as I thought they'd be. At least right now. Depth could be an issue

Northern Iowa had a poor week not picking up any wins in Atlantis. I really thought they'd come away with one or two but couldn't seal the deal. They are what they are and that's a well coached team that uses their system. I still see them finishing 4th.

Drake seems to be much better than I expected. Never thought they'd have much of a shot with the loss of Rice, but they've played pretty well and may be able to finish in 5th or 6th.

Evansville will struggle without Ryan. For their sake, lets hope he stays healthy. They'll always be a pesky team that can beat anyone when their shots are falling, but they need a couple to step up and help Colt out.

Indiana State is an enigma. Not sure how good or bad they can be. I'm still not sold at this point and think they could be a Thursday team

Bradley I think is showing signs of life. I don't think they make much of a move this year, but they're moving in the right direction. Could surprise a couple of teams at some point.

SIU is going to struggle. Not much more to say.

MSU sucked this week. When they're not playing DII or NAIA schools, they haven't looked good. They're young though so there's always hope for the future....

Can't really disagree with your assessment of where teams are right now.

I still think UNI will be challenging for the top if they can shoot more consistently from outside.

I think the same for the Shockers, but they have more athletes to play an offense of throw it up and go get a rebound. Not sure how they'll deal with the very patient methodical teams in Valley play.

Looks like Creighton is not playing as deep into their line-up as I had expected. That may come back to bite them. But they're still the ones to beat.

Illinois State is an enigma. They got a lot of good pieces and Brown and Carmichael are playing great right now. Can they keep it up? Do they have enough depth for the long grind.

The surprise team to me is Bradley. I think they are a team that might play their way out of Thursday with a few breaks or if UE/DU/InSU suffer any injuries.

I think SIU and MSU will occupy the bottom two spots.

Kind of a 4-42 split right now as I see it. Still plenty of non-conference to play and see what shakes out.

Man this looks like a whole different WSU team compared to....well, ever in my lifetime.

They get after it, there's good team chemistry, and plenty of talent. Our 12th guy is in anyone's rotation.

I'm not saying WSU is going to run the table, but a bunch of teams are going to have to draw to an inside straight to beat this team at full strength.

I can't believe the Shocks are this good, this early, and they still aren't anywhere near their ceiling.

CU is probably the most well rounded team but that lonely perch is now occupied by 2 really strong teams.

I think Indiana State might surprise and be a shade better than expected. Just a feeling right now.

UNI may very well still compete for a top spot, I'm not ruling that out. I'd just like to see a little more from them before I can really make up my mind.

I'm not sure how well rounded CU is. But they're still a player even with the loss to Boise.

The Shox have impressed me more than I expected. As a Shocker fan, it's really pretty exciting to think of what they can do as they continue to improve. The shooting hasn't been where it can be and that should be scary to the others in the Valley.

It will be interesting to see how things shake out this season. Could be some interesting races throughout the conference. Bradley has been surprising, but I'm not sure how good they really are. They haven't played the best competition, but winning can do wonders for confidence and team chemistry.

ISUb and Drake are the two teams I've been surprised with and wonder how good they really are. They could knock off a few on any given night.