We have reached that time. Starting tonight, invitations to the Big Dance will be handed out for the next eight days. By late tonight, at least one and possibly two schools will have earned their way into the NCAA Tournament.
The overwhelming theme to early conference tournaments so far is that teams in the bottom half of the standings are advancing to the semfinal and final rounds with regularity, something that further proves parity in this non-dominating season.
The 30-second clock was supposes to help the dominant teams control the game, but what has happened is that additional possessions and quicker pace has led to the top teams occasionally showing a vulnerability against the lesser-talented teams. Where in a slower-paced game, a dominating team could hold on and win by slowing the pace down when it was not their best shooting night, or a big underdog could not upset the better team even when having a hot shooting night, the extra 5 to 10 possessions per game has led to more parity.
Take a look at the low seeds that have advanced to the semifinal or final rounds of their conference tournaments.
#7 Hartford in America East into semifinals
#7 Stetson in Atlantic Sun Finals (Stetson is ineligible for postseason play)
#6 Gardner-Webb in Big South semifinals
#6 Indiana State in Missouri Valley Semifinals
#6 Long Island in Northeast semifinals
#8 Austin Peay in Ohio Valley Finals
Before we meet again on late Monday afternoon, two more conference tournament will have commenced. The Mid-American Conference Tournament begins Monday on campus sites, with the four winners advancing to Cleveland, where the final three rounds will be played. The Mid-eastern Athletic Conference Tournament will start in Norfolk, Virginia, where the top two seeds get double benefits. Top seed Hampton and second seed Norfolk State receive a bye, and if they win, they also get a day off prior to the semifinal round. For NSU, they get to host the tournament, and the Spartans are 9-2 at home this year.
In the Ivy League, Harvard upset Princeton last night, while Yale won easily at Cornell. Yale finishes the season playing at tough third place Columbia tonight. If the Bulldogs pull out a victory, they will win the Ivy League and advance to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1962. If Columbia wins, and Princeton beats Dartmouth tonight and then defeat rival Penn, it will force a one-game playoff for the automatic bid to the Field of 68.
Here is how the in-play conference tournaments look through Friday night’s games.
| American East Conference Tournament | Score |
| Site: Campus Sites @ Higher Seeds | |
| Quarterfinal Round | |
| Wednesday, March 2 | |
| #8 UMBC (7-24) @ #1 Stony Brook (23-6) | 76-86 |
| #7 Hartford (9-22) @ #2 Albany (24-7) | 68-59 |
| #6 Maine (8-21) @ #3 Vermont (19-12) | 82-99 |
| #5 Binghamton (8-21) @ #4 New Hampshire (18-11) | 51-56 |
| Semifinal Round | |
| Monday, March 7 | |
| #7 Hartford (10-22) @ #1 Stony Brook (24-6) | |
| #4 New Hampshire (19-11) @ #3 Vermont (20-12) | |
| Championship | |
| Saturday, March 12 | |
| 11:00 AM EST on ESPN2 | |
| Atlantic Sun Conference Tournament | |
| Site: Campus Sites @ Higher Seeds | |
| Quarterfinal Round | |
| Tuesday, March 1 | |
| G1: #8 USC-Upstate (10-21) @ #1 North Florida (21-10) | 69-92 |
| G2: #5 Kennesaw St. (11-19) @ #4 Florida Gulf Coast (17-13) | 64-74 |
| G3: #7 Stetson (10-21) @ #2 NJIT (17-13) | 82-67 |
| G4: #6 Lipscomb (11-20) @ #3 Jacksonville (16-15) | 92-89 |
| Semifinal Round | |
| Thursday, March 3 | |
| #4 Florida Gulf Coast (18-13) @ #1 North Florida (22-10) | 89-56 |
| #7 Stetson (11-21) @ #6 Lipscomb (12-20) | 96-75 |
| Championship | |
| Sunday, March 6 12:30 PM on ESPN2 | |
| #7 Stetson (12-21) @ #4 Florida Gulf Coast (19-13) | |
| Note: If Stetson wins the tournament, then North Florida will | |
| represent the A-Sun in the NCAA Tournament due to Stetson | |
| being ineligible for the postseason. | |
| Big South Conference Tournament | |
| Site: Buies Creek, NC (Campbell) | |
| 1st Round | |
| Thursday, March 3 | |
| G1: #8 Longwood (9-22) vs. #9 Charleston Southern (9-20) | 75-69 |
| G2: #7 Radford (16-14) vs. #10 Presbyterian (10-19) | 64-65 |
| G3: #6 Gardner-Webb (15-15) vs. #11 Campbell (12-17) | 79-69 |
| Quarterfinal Round | |
| Friday, March 4 | |
| G4: #1 High Point (20-9) vs. #8 Longwood (10-22) | 89-78 |
| G5: #4 UNC-Asheville (19-11) vs. #5 Liberty (13-18) | 80-49 |
| G6: #2 Winthrop (21-8) vs. #10 Presbyterian (11-19) | 67-53 |
| G7: #3 Coastal Carolina (18-10) vs. #6 Gardner-Webb (16-15) | 65-69 |
| Semifinal Round | |
| Saturday, March 5 | |
| #1 High Point (21-9) vs. #4 UNC-Asheville (20-11) | |
| #2 Winthrop (22-8) vs. #6 Gardner-Webb (17-15) | |
| Championship | |
| Sunday, March 6 | |
| 2:30 PM on ESPN2 | |
| Colonial Athletic Association Tournament | |
| Site: Baltimore | |
| 1st Round | |
| Friday, March 4 | |
| G1: #8 Elon (16-15) vs. #9 Drexel (5-24) | 56-57 |
| G2: #7 Charleston (16-13) vs. #10 Delaware (7-22) | 67-63 |
| Quarterfinal Round | |
| Saturday, March 5 | |
| G3: #1 Hofstra (22-8) vs. #9 Drexel (6-24) | |
| G4: #4 James Madison (21-10) vs. #5 William & Mary (19-10) | |
| G5: #2 UNC-Wilmington (22-7) vs. #7 Charleston (17-13) | |
| G6: #3 Towson (20-11) vs. #6 Northeastern (17-14) | |
| Semifinal Round | |
| Sunday, March 6 | |
| G3 Winner vs. G4 Winner | |
| G5 Winner vs. G6 Winner | |
| Championship | |
| Monday, March 7 | |
| 7:00 PM on NBC Sports Network | |
| Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Tournament | |
| Site: Albany (Siena) | |
| 1st Round | |
| Thursday, March 3 | |
| G1: #8 Rider (12-19) vs. #9 Quinnipiac (9-20) | 60-57 |
| G2: #7 Canisius (13-18) vs. #10 Niagara (7-24) | 102-97 |
| G3: #6 Manhattan (12-17) vs. #11 Marist (7-22) | 81-63 |
| Quarterfinal Round | |
| Friday, March 4 | |
| G4: #1 Monmouth (25-6) vs. #8 Rider (13-19) | 59-48 |
| G6: #2 Iona (19-10) vs. #7 Canisius (14-18) | 71-55 |
| Saturday, March 5 | |
| G5: #4 Saint Peter’s (14-15) vs. #5 Fairfield (18-12) | |
| G7: #3 Siena (20-11) vs. #6 Manhattan (13-17) | |
| Semifinal Round | |
| Sunday, March 6 | |
| G4 Winner vs. G5 Winner | |
| G6 Winner vs. G7 Winner | |
| Championship Round | |
| Monday, March 7 | |
| 7:00 PM on ESPN | |
| Missouri Valley Conference Tournament | |
| Site: St. Louis | |
| 1st Round | |
| Thursday, March 3 | |
| G1: #8 Loyola (Chi.) (14-16) vs. #9 Bradley (5-26) | 74-66 |
| G2: #7 MIssouri St. (12-18) vs. #10 Drake (7-23) | 69-67 |
| Quarterfinal Round | |
| Friday, March 4 | |
| G3: #1 Wichita St. (23-7) vs. #8 Loyola (Chi.) (15-16) | 66-58 |
| G4: #4 Northern Iowa (19-12) vs. #5 Southern Illinois (22-9) | 66-60 |
| G5: #2 Evansville (23-8) vs. #7 Missouri St. (13-18) | 66-56 |
| G6: #3 Illinois St. (18-13) vs. #6 Indiana St. (14-16) | 57-65 |
| Semifinal Round | |
| Saturday, March 5 | |
| #1 Wichita St. (24-7) vs. #4 Northern Iowa (20-12) | |
| #2 Evansville (24-8) vs. #6 Indiana St. (15-16) | |
| Championship Game | |
| Sunday, March 6 | |
| 2:00 PM on CBS | |
| Northeast Conference | |
| Site: Campus Sites @ Higher Seeds | |
| Quarterfinal Round | |
| Wednesday, March 2 | |
| G1: #8 Robert Morris (10-21) @ #1 Wagner (20-9) | 50-59 |
| G2: #5 Mount St. Mary’s (13-18) @ #4 St. Francis (Bklyn) (15-16) | 60-51 |
| G3: #7 St. Francis (Pa.) (13-16) @ #2 Fairleigh Dickinson (15-14) | 72-74 |
| G4: #6 Long Island (15-14) @ #3 Sacred Heart (12-17) | 84-76 |
| Semifinal Round | |
| Saturday, March 5 | |
| #5 Mount St. Mary’s (14-18) @ #1 Wagner (21-9) | |
| #6 Long Island (16-14) @ #2 Fairleigh Dickinson (16-14) | |
| Championship | |
| Tuesday, March 8 | |
| 7:00 PM on ESPN or ESPN2 | |
| Ohio Valley Conference Tournament | |
| Site: Nashville | |
| 1st Round | |
| Wednesday, March 2 | |
| G1: #5 Tennessee Tech (19-10) vs. #8 Austin Peay (14-17) | 72-92 |
| G2: #6 Murray St. (16-13) vs. #7 Eastern Illinois (13-16) | 78-62 |
| Quarterfinal Round | |
| Thursday, March 3 | |
| G3: #4 Tennessee St. (20-9) vs. #8 Austin Peay (15-17) | 72-74 |
| G4: #3 Morehead St. (18-11) vs. #6 Murray St. (17-13) | 75-66 |
| Semifinal Round | |
| Friday, March 4 | |
| G5: #1 Belmont (20-10) vs. #8 Austin Peay (16-17) | 96-97 |
| G6: #2 UT-Martin (18-13) vs. #3 Morehead St. (19-11) | 83-70 |
| Championship | |
| Saturday, March 5 6:00 PM on ESPN2 | |
| #2 UT-Martin (19-13) vs. #8 Austin Peay (17-17) | |
| Southern Conference | |
| Site: Asheville, NC | |
| 1st Round | |
| Friday, March 4 | |
| G1: #8 Samford (13-18) vs. #9 VMI (9-20) | 92-85 |
| G2: #7 Mercer (18-13) vs. #10 Citadel (10-21) | 71-69 |
| Quarterfinal Round | |
| Saturday, March 5 | |
| G3: #1 Chattanooga (26-5) vs. #8 Samford (14-18) | |
| G4: #4 Wofford (15-16) vs. #5 Western Carolina (15-16) | |
| G5: #2 East Tennessee (21-10) Vs. Mercer (19-13) | |
| G6: #3 Furman (17-14) vs. #6 UNC-Greensboro (14-17) | |
| Semifinal Round | |
| Sunday, March 6 | |
| G3 Winner vs. G4 Winner | |
| G5 Winner vs. G6 Winner | |
| Championship | |
| Monday, March 7 | |
| 9:00 PM on ESPN2 | |
| West Coast Conference Tournament | |
| Site: Las Vegas | |
| 1st Round | |
| Friday, March 4 | |
| G1: #8 Loyola Marymount (13-16) vs. #9 San Diego (9-20) | 64-61 |
| Quarterfinal Round | |
| Saturday, March 5 | |
| G2: #3 BYU (22-9) vs. #6 Santa Clara (11-19) | |
| G3: #4 Pepperdine (17-12) vs. #5 San Francisco (15-14) | |
| G4: #1 Saint Mary’s (24-4) vs. #8 Loyola Marymount (14-16) | |
| G5: #2 Gonzaga (23-7) vs. #7 Portland (12-19) | |
| Semifinal Round | |
| Monday, March 7 | |
| G3 Winner vs. G4 Winner | |
| G2 Winner vs. G5 Winner | |
| Championship | |
| Tuesday, March 8 | |
| 9:00 PM on ESPN |
And, here are the brackets for the two tournaments beginning Monday.
| Mid-American Conference Tournament |
| Site: Cleveland, 1st Round at Higher Seed |
| 1st Round |
| Monday, March 7 |
| G1:#9 Toledo (17-14) at #8 Eastern Michigan (17-14) |
| G2: #12 Bowling Green (14-17) at #5 Kent St. (19-12) |
| G3: #10 Western Michigan (13-18) at #7 Northern Illinois (20-11) |
| G4: #11 Miami (O) (12-19) at #6 Ball St. (19-12) |
| Quarterfinal Round |
| Thursday, March 10 |
| G5: #1 Akron (24-7) vs. G1 Winner |
| G6: #4 Central Michigan (17-14) vs. G2 Winner |
| G7: #2 Ohio (20-10) vs. G3 Winner |
| G8: #3 Buffalo (17-14) vs. G4 Winner |
| Semfinal Round |
| Friday, March 11 |
| G5 Winner vs. G6 Winner |
| G7 Winner vs. G8 Winner |
| Championship Round |
| Saturday, March 12 |
| 7:30 PM on ESPN |
| Mid-eastern Athletic Conference Tournament |
| Site: Norfolk, VA |
| 1st Round |
| Monday, March 7 |
| G1: #5 Savannah St. (14-14) vs. #12 Delaware St. (7-24) |
| G2: #6 North Carolina A&T (10-21) vs. #11 Coppin St. (8-21) |
| Tuesday, March 8 |
| G3: #8 UM-Eastern Shore (10-21) vs. #9 Morgan St. (8-21) |
| G4: #7 UNC-Central (12-18) vs. #10 Howard (12-19) |
| Quarterfinal Round |
| Wednesday, March 9 |
| G5: #1 Hampton (18-10) vs. G3 Winner |
| G6: #2 Norfolk St. (16-15) vs. G4 Winner |
| Thursday, March 10 |
| G7: #3 South Carolina St. (17-13) vs. G2 Winner |
| G8: #4 Bethune-Cookman (14-17) vs. G1 Winner |
| Semifinal Round |
| Friday, March 11 |
| G5 Winner vs. G8 Winner |
| G6 Winner vs. G7 Winner |
| Championship Game |
| Saturday, March 12 |
| 1:00 PM on ESPN2 |
Now for our regular weekend fare. The power conferences conclude their regular seasons this weekend, and there are still multiple conference tournament seedings and byes to be determined.
Here are this week’s Red, White, and Blue ratings
| Games Scheduled for: | Saturday, March 5, 2016 | |||
| Home | Visitor | Red | White | Blue |
| Notre Dame | North Carolina St. | 8 | 8 | 7 |
| Boston College | Clemson | -9 | -11 | -7 |
| Florida St. | Syracuse | 4 | 3 | 3 |
| Georgia Tech | Pittsburgh | 1 | 2 | -2 |
| Virginia Tech | Miami (Fla.) | -5 | -5 | -9 |
| Duke | North Carolina | 1 | 2 | -2 |
| Virginia | Louisville | 6 | 5 | 6 |
| TCU | Oklahoma | -12 | -12 | -14 |
| Baylor | West Virginia | 1 | 1 | -2 |
| Texas Tech | Kansas St. | 5 | 5 | 10 |
| Kansas | Iowa St. | 9 | 7 | 15 |
| DePaul | Seton Hall | -10 | -12 | -8 |
| Villanova | Georgetown | 15 | 13 | 13 |
| St. John’s | Providence | -8 | -12 | -11 |
| Butler | Marquette | 9 | 9 | 10 |
| Xavier | Creighton | 10 | 9 | 12 |
| Michigan St. | Ohio St. | 15 | 12 | 14 |
| Rutgers | Minnesota | -5 | -6 | -3 |
| Michigan | Iowa | -1 | 1 | 1 |
| Arizona | Stanford | 12 | 12 | 10 |
| USC | Oregon | -1 | 1 | -5 |
| UCLA | Oregon St. | 5 | 4 | 2 |
| Arizona St. | California | -3 | -3 | -4 |
| Utah | Colorado | 9 | 6 | 7 |
| Tennessee | Ole Miss | 2 | 2 | -1 |
| Texas A&M | Vanderbilt | 4 | 5 | 4 |
| Kentucky | LSU | 13 | 11 | 15 |
| Mississippi St. | Auburn | 12 | 12 | 11 |
| Georgia | Alabama | 5 | 6 | 4 |
| Arkansas | South Carolina | 3 | 2 | 6 |
| Missouri | Florida | -6 | -8 | -5 |
| Games Scheduled for: | Sunday, March 6, 2016 | |||
| Home | Visitor | Red | White | Blue |
| Penn St. | Illinois | 3 | 2 | 3 |
| Northwestern | Nebraska | 5 | 6 | 5 |
| Indiana | Maryland | 6 | 4 | 7 |
| Purdue | Wisconsin | 7 | 7 | 5 |
The Pi-Rate Ratings 