IF 12 does happen in a year or two and nobody else leaves, I'd like for the MVC to at least look at and consider Milwaukee, Valpo, Belmont, Wright State, Murray, ORU, Denver, NMSU, Arlington. I haven't done a ton of research on all of them and wouldn't be excited about all of them, but they all could have some value somewhere.

Milwaukee is a good sized market with a nice recruiting area. Questions about financials exist as well as size of arena/attendance. But we've proven with Loyola that the last part apparently isn't an issue.

Valpo has a good/decent history on the court and is solid. Financial considerations would have to be looked into. It seems to be the big reason Loyola was added. Do we need two teams in the Chicago area?

Belmont puts us in another nice market. Also have attendance and arena issues I believe. Not sure what their financial situation is but they're no less relevant in Nashville than Loyola in Chicago. Solid on court history.

Wright State has some ok on court history of late. Nothing spectacular, but would put the MVC in Ohio which would be big for exposure and recruiting. Not stellar attendance but a big arena that may give them growth potential with a little more success.

Murray has a pretty decent track record on the court, but has no market value or recruiting value really. Performance and support should get them consideration. Football though appears to be an issue with them as they'd have to be accepted into both the MVC and MVFC.

ORU has a decent market in Tulsa and recruiting area down there isn't that bad. They've shown the ability to get good support but will always be the 4th biggest team within the city behind OU, OSU and Tulsa. Have had some financial issues recently but should be in the past. But they're solid on the hardwood.

It's no secret I'm a fan of adding Denver. No money issues and an ever improving basketball program. Would have been a solid addition this time and helped the conference right away. Nice, new market to tap into and attendance has been growing there as well.

NMSU is a very solid program that has found a home for football but are stuck in a crap conference for everything else. I've heard rumors that they'd like to get into the MVC. Good reputation in basketball and good support. Would definitely be a positive boost to basketball strength.

Arlington I view as much like Denver. It's a larger school though but has been pumping money into basketball and improving every year. And while they're not a big deal in Dallas, it would put us in Texas. LOTS of recruiting to be done down there.

Personally, I don't care about distance, Wichita already has to travel farther than all the other schools and I want this conference to be as strong as possible in basketball. A little extra travel is worth it and some of these schools could end up generating more money for the conference to offset those costs and then some. Sadly, there are certain schools in the east that I think are more concerned with travel than they are with competition. Or in some cases, they're afraid of competition. I know the guy that runs the Indiana State board is terrified of schools that can spend more money than them and many on that board feel the same way. They don't seem to think that their school has the potential to increase revenue and is stuck where they are and they've basically reached their peak.

I don't think they're alone in their thinking and that's what could hurt this conference in the long run. Schools that think like that are only going to want to add schools that they can easily drive to even if it means they're a lesser team. And probably because they're a lesser team and they think it gives them a better chance at a few more wins. How good those wins are, are irrelevent in their minds.

If expansion isn't done for awhile, I could see a UMKC or Little Rock be considered IF they start making progress and committing to being more successful on the court. I do think the potential is there for both if they can stick with it and move forward. Neither would be a good option right away.

No other teams come to mind righ now off the top of my head though.