PiRate Ratings College Basketball–Tuesday, March 1, 2022

Tuesday’s Conference Tournaments
Atlantic Sun–1st Round –Campus Sites
Home	Visitors	Spread
Central Arkansas	Stetson	-0.2
Kennesaw St.	Eastern Kentucky	3.7
Florida Gulf Coast	North Alabama	10.0
Lipscomb	North Florida	1.3
Horizon League–1st Round–Campus Sites
Home	Visitors	Spread
Oakland	IUPUI	23.1
Detroit	Green Bay	11.3
Youngstown St.	Robert Morris	7.4
Milwaukee	Illinois Chicago	-1.1
Patriot League–1st Round–Campus Sites
Home	Visitors	Spread
Holy Cross	American	0.8
Lafayette	Bucknell	4.4
Regularly Scheduled Games
Home	Visitors	Spread
Villanova	Providence	9.2
Georgia	Tennessee	-16.2
Richmond	Dayton	0.6
Kentucky	Mississippi	17.1
Ohio St.	Nebraska	15.2
Manhattan	Saint Peter’s	-4.0
Maine	Vermont	-19.6
Stony Brook	NJIT	8.8
UMass Lowell	New Hampshire	3.1
Albany	Hartford	2.8
Maryland Baltimore Co.	Binghamton	5.2
Oklahoma	West Virginia	4.6
Eastern Michigan	Western Michigan	4.9
Bowling Green	Ohio	-7.4
Ball St.	Akron	-3.7
Buffalo	Toledo	-0.4
Central Michigan	Miami (O)	-2.3
South Carolina	Missouri	7.8
TCU	Kansas	-6.3
Pittsburgh	Duke	-15.1
Northern Illinois	Kent St.	-7.9
Michigan	Michigan St.	3.2
VCU	St. Bonaventure	3.7
Vanderbilt	Florida	0.3
Wisconsin	Purdue	-2.6
Houston	Cincinnati	15.6
Montana St.	Southern Utah	2.8
Virginia Tech	Louisville	10.2
Boise St.	Nevada	10.6
Air Force	San Jose St.	4.9
UC Santa Barbara	Cal St. Northridge	15.2
USC	Arizona	-5.4

PiRate Ratings Basketball Conference Tournament Update: March 2, 2020

Championship Fortnight is 24 hours away!  Can you believe it is Meteorological Spring already?  Some of you reading this may be saying that it has been Spring where you live for most of Winter, and if you are like us on the PiRate Ship in Nashville, we wonder if we need to get those instructions for building an ark.  The Captain’s back yard has a new little lake that has developed and basically stayed there since November.  It figures to increase in size this week as severe thunderstorms return.

With the weather being so wet, it just makes it easier to stay indoors and watch basketball until one can close his or her eyes and still see the ball bouncing up and down.

Starting Tuesday night, four conferences begin tournament play.  Three more conferences start on Wednesday, two more begin on Thursday, and one begins on Friday.  Four conferences wait until Saturday to begin.

Let’s take a look at the pairings for the tournaments that start between Tuesday and Friday (Saturday’s tournament information will be published Friday.

Every day there is conference tournament action, there will be a publication here with updated results and schedules.

 

TOURNAMENTS STARTING TUESDAY, MARCH 3

Atlantic Sun Tournament
Quarterfinals	March 3	at Higher Seed’s Home Court
Home	Visitor	Time (ET)	TV
1 Liberty (27-4)	8 NJIT (9-20)	7:00 PM	ESPN+
4 Stetson (15-16)	5 North Alabama (13-16)	7:00 PM	ESPN+
3 Lipscomb (14-15)	6 Florida Gulf Coast (10-21)	7:00 PM	ESPN+
2 North Florida (20-11)	7 Jacksonville (14-17)	7:00 PM	ESPN+
Semifinals	March 5	at Higher Seed’s Home Court
Home	Visitor	Time (ET)	TV
Liberty/NJIT	Stetson/North Alabama	TBA	ESPN+
N Florida/Jacksonville	Lipscomb/FGCU	TBA	ESPN+
Championship	March 8	at Higher Seed’s Home Court
Home	Visitor	Time (ET)	TV
		3:00 PM	ESPN

 

Liberty can move up to as high as a #11 seed if they win this tournament, but the Flames are most likely NIT-bound if they lose in this tournament.

North Florida split with Liberty during the regular season, while Lipscomb enters this tournament as the hottest team.

 

Big South Tournament
1st Round	March 3	at Higher Seed’s Home Court
Home	Visitor	Time (ET)	TV
7 USC Upstate (12-19)	10 High Point (9-22)	7:00 PM	ESPN3
6 UNC-Asheville (14-15)	11 Campbell (15-15)	7:00 PM	ESPN3
8 Charleston Sou. (13-17)	9 Presbyterian (10-21)	7:00 PM	ESPN3
Quarterfinals	March 5	at #1 Seed Radford
Team	Team	Time (ET)	TV
2 Winthrop (21-10)	USC-U/High Point	12:00 PM	ESPN3
3 Gardner-Webb (15-15)	UNCA/Campbell	2:00 PM	ESPN3
1 Radford (20-10)	Chas Sou./Presbyterian	6:00 PM	ESPN3
4 Longwood (14-17)	5 Hampton (13-18)	8:00 PM	ESPN3
Semifinals	March 6	at #1 Seed Radford
Team	Team	Time (ET)	TV
2/7/10 Seed	3/6/11 Seed	6:00 PM	ESPN+
1/8/9 Seed	4/5 Seed	8:30 PM	ESPN+
Championship	March 8	at Higher Seed’s Home Court
Team	Team	Time (ET)	TV
		1:00 PM	ESPN

Radford and Winthrop split their two regular season games with both teams winning on the other team’s home floor.  It would be a major surprise if these two teams failed to meet up in the Championship Game.

Number three seed Gardner-Webb and number four seed Longwood ended the season on four-game winning streaks, and in GWU’s winning streak was a road upset of Radford.

 

 

Horizon League Tournament
1st Round	March 3	at Higher Seed’s Home Court
Home	Visitor	Time (ET)	TV
4 Illinois Chicago (14-17)	9 IUPUI (7-24)	8:00 PM	ESPN+
5 Youngstown (17-14)	8 Milwaukee (12-18)	7:00 PM	ESPN+
6 Oakland (13-18)	7 Cleveland St. (11-20)	7:00 PM	ESPN+
Quarterfinals	March 5	at Higher Seed’s Home Court
Home	Visitor	Time (ET)	TV
3 Green Bay (16-15)	Lowest Remaining	8:00 PM	ESPN+
Highest Remaining	Second Lowest Remaining	7:00 or 8:00 PM	ESPN+
Semifinals	March 9	Indianapolis
Team	Team	Time (ET)	TV
1 Wright St. (25-6)	Lowest Remaining	7:00 PM	ESPNU
2 Northern Kentucky (21-9)	Highest Remaining	9:30 PM	ESPN2
CHAMPIONSHIP	March 10	Indianapolis
Team	Team	Time (ET)	TV
		7:00 PM	ESPN/ESPN2

 

Wright State and Northern Kentucky have been alternating as regular season and conference tournament champion for three years.  The last team other than these two to win the Horizon League Tournament was Green Bay in 2016.  The Phoenix are the number three seed in this year’s tournament, but the top two appear to be far more talented than the rest of the league, and a WSU-NKU championship game would be a good one for the league.

If one of the top two teams wins this tournament, they could move up to a 14-seed if there are some mid-major upsets, but they are most likely looking at a 15-seed.

 

 

Patriot League Tournament
1st Round	March 3	at Higher Seed’s Home Court
Home	Visitor	Time (ET)	TV
7 Bucknell (12-19)	10 Holy Cross (3-28)	7:00 PM	Pat League Network
8 Lehigh (10-20)	9 Loyola (MD) (15-16)	7:00 PM	Pat League Network
Quarterfinals	March 5	at Higher Seed’s Home Court
Home	Visitor	Time (ET)	TV
2 American (16-13)	Bucknell/Holy Cross	7:00 PM	Pat League Network
3 Boston U (18-13)	6 Navy (14-15)	7:00 PM	Pat League Network
4 Army (15-14)	5 Lafayette (18-11)	7:00 PM	Pat League Network
1 Colgate (23-8)	Lehigh/Loyola (MD)	7:00 PM	Pat League Network
Semifinals	March 8	at Higher Seed’s Home Court
Home	Visitor	Time (ET)	TV
American/Bucknell/HCU	Boston/Navy	12 or 2 PM	CBSSN
Colgate/Lehigh/Loyola	Army/Lafayette	12 or 2 PM	CBSSN
Championship	March 11	at Higher Seed’s Home Court
Home	Visitor	Time (ET)	TV
Higher Seed	Lower Seed	7:30 PM	CBSSN

 

This figures to be a wide-open affair.  Colgate will get to host every game they play in the Patriot League Tournament, but the Raiders are not overpowering.  Having to play a possible quarterfinal game with fourth-seeded Lafayette will be quite interesting as the Leopards swept the Raiders in two close games.

There is one caveat to the above statements: Colgate was a little weaker in 2019 than they were this year, and the Raiders romped to the Patriot League Championship with three double-digit wins in the tournament.  They followed that up by taking number one Tennessee to the last few minutes in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

 

 

TOURNAMENTS STARTING WEDNESDAY, MARCH 4

 

Mountain West Tournament
1st Round	March 4	Las Vegas (Thomas & Mack Center)
Team	Team	Time (ET)	TV
8 Fresno St. (11-18)	9 Air Force (11-19)	3:00 PM	Mountain West Net.
7 New Mexico (18-13)	10 San Jose St. (7-23)	5:30 PM	Mountain West Net.
6 Colorado St. (20-11)	11 Wyoming (7-23)	8:00 PM	Mountain West Net.
Quarterfinals	March 5	Las Vegas (Thomas & Mack Center)
Team	Team	Time (ET)	TV
1 San Diego St. (28-1)	Fresno St./Air Force	2:30 PM	CBSSN
4 UNLV (17-14)	5 Boise St. (19-11)	5:00 PM	CBSSN
2 Utah St. (23-8)	New Mexico/San Jose St.	9:00 PM	CBSSN
3 Nevada (19-11)	Colorado St./Wyoming	11:30 PM	CBSSN
Semifinals	March 6	Las Vegas (Thomas & Mack Center)
Team	Team	Time (ET)	TV
SDST/Fresno/Air Force	UNLV/Boise St.	9:00 PM	CBSSN
Utah St./N. Mexico/S J St.	Nevada/Col St/Wyoming	11:30 PM	CBSSN
Championship	March 7	Las Vegas (Thomas & Mack Center)
Team	Team	Time (ET)	TV
		5:30 PM	CBS

 

San Diego St. most likely secured a one-seed by finishing 17-1 in the league and 28-1 overall in the regular season.  Utah St. is squarely on the Bubble, and the Aggies need to get to the Championship Game to lock up an at-large bid.

Nevada, UNLV, Boise State, and Colorado State have enough talent to make a run in this tournament, but the Aztecs look like a near lock to cut the nets.

 

 

Northeast Tournament
Quarterfinals	March 4	at Higher Seed’s Home Court
Home	Visitor	Time (ET)	TV
1 Robert Morris (17-14)	8 St. Francis (NY) (13-17)	7:00 PM	http://necfrontrow.com/
2 St. Francis (PA) (20-9)	7 Bryant (15-16)	7:00 PM	http://necfrontrow.com/
3 Sacred Heart (19-12)	6 Mount St. Mary’s (11-20)	7:00 PM	http://necfrontrow.com/
4 Long Island (14-17)	5 Fairleigh-Dickinson (11-18)	7:00 PM	http://necfrontrow.com/
Semifinals	March 7	at Higher Seed’s Home Court
Home	Visitor	Time (ET)	TV
Highest Remaining Seed	Lowest Remaining Seed	12 or 2 PM	ESPN3
2nd Highest Remaining Seed	3rd Highest Remaining Seed	12 or 2PM	ESPN3
Championship	March 10	at Higher Seed’s Home Court
Home	Visitor	Time (ET)	TV
Higher Remaining Seed	Lower Remaining Seed	7:00 PM	ESPN2 or ESPN3

 

This is one of the most wide open tournaments of the season.  Unfortunately, the best team in this league is not eligible for the NCAA Tournament (or NIT) and will not play in this conference tournament.  First-year Division 1 member Merrimack became the first team ever to move from Division 2 to Division 1 and win their conference in the first season.  The Warrior will be allowed to play in the CIT Tournament.

So, which team is the second best team in the NEC?  St. Francis of Pennsylvania finished tied for second place with Robert Morris, with RMU winning the tiebreaker.  Number three seed Sacred Heart and number five seed Fairleigh-Dickinson finished the season on three-game winning streaks.  FDU beat Robert Morris twice, but they didn’t show up against SF (PA) or Long Island.

No matter which team wins this tournament, they will be a 16-seed in the NCAA Tournament, and barring some big upsets in other mid-major conferences, the NEC Champion will probably be faced in a play-in game in Dayton. 

 

 

Ohio Valley Tournament
1st Round	March 4	Evansville, IN (Ford Center)
Team	Team	Time (ET)	TV
5 Tennessee St. (17-14)	8 Morehead St. (13-18)	7:30 PM	ESPN+
6 Eastern Illinois (16-14)	7 Jacksonville St. (13-18)	9:30 PM	ESPN+
Quarterfinals	March 5	Evansville, IN (Ford Center)
Team	Team	Time (ET)	TV
4 Eastern Kentucky (15-16)	Tenn St./Morehead St.	7:30 PM	ESPN+
3 Austin Peay (20-11)	E. Illinois/Jacksonville St.	9:30 PM	ESPN+
Semifinals	March 6	Evansville, IN (Ford Center)
Team	Team	Time (ET)	TV
1 Belmont (24-7)	EKU/Tenn St./Morehead St.	8:00 PM	ESPNU
2 Murray St. (22-8)	APSU/E. Ill./Jax St.	10:00 PM	ESPNU
Championship	March 7	Evansville, IN (Ford Center)
Team	Team	Time (ET)	TV
		8:00 PM	ESPN2

 

The OVC has become something of a little ACC.  Murray State plays the role of North Carolina.  Belmont is the league’s Duke, and Austin Peay is the league’s Virginia.  Murray is the long-time dominant team in this league, while Belmont is the more recent dominant team.  Austin Peay found a great coach a few years ago and plays excellent defense and smart offense.

So, which one of these three teams will win the conference tournament?  Most likely, it will be either Belmont or Murray State, because the OVC’s tournament format gives the top two seeds byes to the semifinals.

Belmont must be considered the odds-on favorite to win the tournament, as the Bruins have won 10 games in a row by an average score of 79-67.

A potential second night match between Eastern Illinois and Austin Peay might be the best game of the tournament.  The Panthers have the best inside game in the league, and if the Governors don’t hit from the outside, EIU could be the surprise team in the semifinals.  EIU beat Murray State and Austin Peay down the stretch to give Belmont the OVC Championship.

 

 

TOURNAMENTS STARTING THURSDAY, MARCH 5

 

Missouri Valley Tournament (Arch Madness)
1st Round	March 5	St. Louis (Enterprise Center)
Team	Team	Time (ET)	TV
8 Drake (18-13)	9 Illinois St. (10-20)	7:00 PM	MVC TV Network
7 Valparaiso (16-15)	10 Evansville (9-22)	9:30 PM	MVC TV Network
Quarterfinals	March 6	St. Louis (Enterprise Center)
Team	Team	Time (ET)	TV
1 Northern Iowa (25-5)	Drake/Illinois St.	1:00 PM	MVC TV Network
4 Bradley (20-11)	5 Southern Illinois (16-15)	3:30 PM	MVC TV Network
2 Loyola (Chi.) (21-10)	Valpo/Evansville	7:00 PM	MVC TV Network
3 Indiana St. (18-11)	6 Missouri St. (15-16)	9:30 PM	MVC TV Network
Semifinals	March 7	St. Louis (Enterprise Center)
Team	Team	Time (ET)	TV
UNI/Drake/Ill St.	Bradley/Southern Illinois	3:30 PM	CBSSN
Loyola/Valpo/Evansville	Indiana St./Missouri St.	6:00 PM	CBSSN
Championship	March 8	St. Louis (Enterprise Center)
Team	Team	Time (ET)	TV
		2:10 PM	CBS

 

Arch Madness has ended with Cinderella cutting down the nets quite often in the last several years.  Bradley won the Tournament last year after going 9-9 in regular season conference play.

Northern Iowa has played a tough enough schedule so that three more wins in St. Louis could boost the Panthers up to as high as a number 10 seed.  Yet, at the same time UNI is not an overwhelming favorite to win the tournament, and if another team can pull off the upset, The Missouri Valley could get two teams into the Dance at the expense of a Bubble team.

Keep an eye on Indiana State.  The Sycamores won eight of their final 11 games, including wins over the top two seeds.  ISU played a tough out-of-conference schedule, including games against Dayton, Louisville, and Wright State.  They narrowly lost to Dayton and beat Wright State, so this team has the firepower to win three games in three days.

Missouri State is the mystery team in this league.  The Bears can dominate inside and control the glass at both ends, but they disappear for long stretches at a time.  They were blown away twice by Northern Iowa, but in a tournament scenario on a neutral floor, don’t count them out until they are.

 

 

West Coast Tournament
1st Round	March 5	Las Vegas (Orleans Arena)
Team	Team	Time (ET)	TV
8 Loyola Marymount (10-20)	9 San Diego (9-22)	9:00 PM	BYUtv
7 Santa Clara (19-12)	10 Portland (9-22)	11:30 PM	BYUtv
2nd Round	March 6	Las Vegas (Orleans Arena)
Team	Team	Time (ET)	TV
5 San Francisco (20-11)	Loyola Marymount/San Diego	9:00 PM	BYUtv
6 Pepperdine (15-15)	Santa Clara/Portland	11:30 PM	BYUtv
Quarterfinals	March 7	Las Vegas (Orleans Arena)
Team	Team	Time (ET)	TV
4 Pacific (23-9)	USF/LMU/San Diego	10:00 PM	ESPN2
3 Saint Mary’s (24-7)	Pepperdine/Santa Clara/Portland	12:30 AM	ESPN2
Semifinals	March 9	Las Vegas (Orleans Arena)
Team	Team	Time (ET)	TV
1 Gonzaga (29-2)	Pac/USF/LMU/USD	9:00 PM	ESPN
2 BYU (24-7)	SMC.Pepp/SCU/Portland	11:30 PM	ESPN2
Championship	March 10	Las Vegas (Orleans Arena)
Team	Team	Time (ET)	TV
		9:00 PM	ESPN

Gonzaga could lose this tournament and still be the number one seed in the West or at worst the East.  The news in this year’s WCC get-together will be whether or not three league teams can receive bids to the Dance.

BYU is squarely in the Field, but Saint Mary’s is vulnerable.  The Gaels need to definitely win their first tournament game, and they might need to knock off BYU to be guaranteed a spot in the field.  

Fourth-seeded Pacific and fifth-seeded San Francisco must be considered dark horses to contend for the Conference Tournament Championship.  They are likely going to meet in the quarterfinal round with the winner advancing to meet Gonzaga.  The Bulldogs handled both with relative ease during the season, but USF was a pest in their two games.

 

 

TOURNAMENT STARTING FRIDAY, MARCH 6

 

Southern Tournament
1st Round	March 6	Asheville, NC (Harrah’s Cherokee Center)
Team	Team	Time ET	TV
8 Samford (10-22)	9 VMI (8-23)	5:00 PM	ESPN+
7 Wofford (16-15)	10 The Citadel (6-23)	7:30 PM	ESPN+
Quarterfinals	March 7	Asheville, NC (Harrah’s Cherokee Center)
Team	Team	Time ET	TV
1 East Tennessee St. (27-4)	Samford/VMI	12:00 PM	ESPN+
4 Mercer (17-14)	5 Western Carolina (18-11)	2:30 PM	ESPN+
2 Furman (25-6)	Wofford/The Citadel	6:00 PM	ESPN+
3 UNC Greensboro (23-8)	6 Chattanooga (19-12)	8:30 PM	ESPN+
Semifinals	March 8	Asheville, NC (Harrah’s Cherokee Center)
Team	Team	Time ET	TV
ETSU/Samford/VMI	Mercer/Western Carolina	4:00 PM	ESPN+
Furman/Wofford/Citadel	UNCG/Chattanooga	6:30 PM	ESPN+
Championship	March 9	Asheville, NC (Harrah’s Cherokee Center)
Team	Team	Time ET	TV
		7:00 PM	ESPN

 

Of the early tournament starting this week, The SoCon may be the deepest.  Six teams are talented enough to win this tournament.  There are two shelves here.  East Tennessee State, Furman, and UNC Greensboro are the upper crust, while Mercer, Western Carolina, and Chattanooga are the second tier of the top six.

If East Tennessee wins the tournament championship, the Buccaneers could move up to a single-digit seed.  ETSU enters this tournament riding a nine-game winning streak, and the Bucs have wins against LSU and Little Rock out of conference.

Western Carolina just lost by a point at East Tennessee after being up double digits in the first half.  The Catamounts might be a tough out in a potential semifinal game against ETSU.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

PiRate Ratings College Basketball For Sunday, March 10, 2019

Today’s PiRate Ratings Spreads

Home	Rating	HCA	Visitor	Rating	Spread
Lipscomb	109.0	3.0	Liberty	105.9	6.1
Radford	102.7	2.5	Gardner-Webb	99.3	5.9
Hofstra	106.5	0.0	James Madison	93.8	12.7
William & Mary	97.6	0.0	Delaware	94.7	2.9
Northeastern	105.6	0.0	UNC Wilmington	94.7	10.9
Charleston	103.4	1.0	Drexel	95.2	9.2
Siena	95.4	2.5	Iona	97.7	0.2
Canisius	95.1	0.0	Monmouth	93.3	1.8
Northern Iowa	99.1	0.0	Bradley	99.5	-0.4
Colgate	102.1	2.5	Navy	92.8	11.8
Bucknell	101.4	2.5	Lehigh	100.3	3.6
Wofford	112.9	0.0	East Tennessee St.	106.6	6.3
UNC Greensboro	105.5	0.0	Furman	107.9	-2.4
North Dakota St.	97.5	0.0	Oral Roberts	92.8	4.7
South Dakota	97.4	1.0	Purdue Fort Wayne	98.7	-0.3
Cincinnati	111.8	3.0	Houston	114.5	0.3
Penn St.	109.9	2.5	Illinois	106.5	5.9
Indiana	110.4	3.0	Rutgers	106.3	7.1
East Carolina	93.7	2.5	Connecticut	105.2	-9.0
Nebraska	110.5	3.0	Iowa	110.8	2.7
South Florida	103.5	3.0	SMU	103.8	2.7
Ohio St.	110.3	3.0	Wisconsin	115.5	-2.2

Conference Tournaments Update

America East Conference
All games at home floor of higher seeds
Quarterfinals–Saturday, March 9
Md.-Baltimore Co.	62	Albany	54
Vermont	73	Maine	57
Binghamton	73	Stony Brook	71
Hartford	78	UMass Lowell	70

 

Semifinals–Tuesday, March 12
Seed	Home	Seed	Visitor
1	Vermont (25-6)	7	Binghamton (10-22)
3	Maryland-Baltimore Co. (20-12)	4	Hartford (18-14)

 

 

Atlantic Sun Conference

*** Championship Game–Sunday, March 10 ***
Seed	Home	Seed	Visitor
1	Lipscomb (25-6)	2	Liberty (27-6)

 

 

Big South Conference

*** Championship Game–Sunday, March 10 (at Radford) ***
Seed	Home Team	Seed	Visitors
2	Radford (22-10)	4	Gardner-Webb (22-11)

 

 

Colonial Athletic Association
Site: North Charleston Coliseum, North Charleston, SC
First Round–Saturday, March 9
James Madison	74	Towson	73
UNC Wilmington	93	Elon	86

Quarterfinals–Sunday, March 10
Seed	Team	Seed	Team
1	Hofstra (25-6)	8	James Madison (14-18)
4	William & Mary (14-16)	5	Delaware (16-15)
2	Northeastern (20-10)	10	UNC Wilmington (10-22)
3	Charleston (23-8)	6	Drexel (13-18)

 

 

Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference

Site: Times Union Center, Albany, NY (Siena)

Quarterfinals–Saturday, March 9
Monmouth	98	Quinnipiac	92
Siena	87	Rider	81

 

Semifinals–Sunday, March 10
Seed	Team	Seed	Team
1	Iona (15-15)	5	Siena (17-15)
2	Canisius (15-16)	6	Monmouth (13-20)

 

 

Missouri Valley Conference (Arch Madness)
Site: Enterprise Center, St. Louis, MO
Semifinals–Saturday, March 9
Bradley	53	Loyola (Chi)	51
Northern Iowa	60	Drake	58

*** Championship Game–Sunday, March 10 ***
Seed	Team	Seed	Team
6	Northern Iowa (16-17)	5	Bradley (19-14)

 

Northeast Conference
All games at home floor of higher seeds
Semifinals–Saturday, March 9
St. Francis (PA)	72	Long Island	64
Fairleigh-Dickinson	66	Robert Morris	62

 

Championship Game–Tuesday, March 12
Seed	Home	Seed	Visitor
1	St. Francis (PA) (18-13)	2	Fairleigh-Dickinson (19-13)

 

 

Ohio Valley Conference
*** Championship Game–Saturday, March 9 ***
Murray St.	77	Belmont	65

Champion:  Murray St.  27-4

 

 

 

Patriot League

All games at home floor of higher seeds

Semifinals–Sunday, March 10
Seed	Home	Seed	Visitor
1	Colgate (22-10)	5	Navy (12-18)
2	Bucknell (20-10)	3	Lehigh (20-10)

 

 

Southern Conference
Site: US Cellular Center, Asheville, NC
Quarterfinals–Saturday, March 9
Wofford	99	VMI	72
East Tennessee St.	68	Chattanooga	64
UNC Greensboro	77	Samford	70
Furman	85	Mercer	74

 

Semifinals–Sunday, March 10
Seed	Team	Seed	Team
1	Wofford (27-4)	4/5	East Tennessee St. (24-8)
2	UNC Greensboro (27-5)	3	Furman (25-6)

 

 

Summit League
Site: Denny Sanford Premier Center, Sioux Falls, SD
Quarterfinals–Saturday, March 9
Western Illinois	79	South Dakota St.	76
Omaha	81	North Dakota	76

 

Quarterfinals–Sunday, March 10
Seed	Team	Seed	Team
4	Purdue Fort Wayne (17-14)	5	South Dakota (13-16)
3	North Dakota St. (15-15)	6	Oral Roberts (11-20)

 

 

West Coast Conference
Site: Orleans Arena, Las Vegas, NV
Quarterfinals–Saturday, March 9
San Diego	80	BYU	57
Pepperdine	89	San Francisco	72

 

Semifinals–Monday, March 11
Seed	Team	Seed	Team
2	Saint Mary’s (20-11)	6	San Diego (21-13)
1	Gonzaga (29-2)	8	Pepperdine (16-17)

 

Teams In The Big Dance

Murray St.  (OVC)  27-4

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

PiRate Ratings College Basketball For Sunday, March 3, 2019

Games Scheduled for:			Sunday
Home	Rating	HCA	Visitor	Rating	Spread
Charlotte	91.7	2.5	UTEP	93.3	0.9
Connecticut	105.5	3.0	South Florida	103.4	5.1
DePaul	103.9	2.5	St. John’s	108.6	-2.2
Florida Int’l.	96.9	2.5	Louisiana Tech	101.7	-2.3
Georgia Tech	103.9	3.0	Boston College	104.8	2.1
Illinois	106.9	2.0	Northwestern	106.7	2.2
Louisiana	100.0	2.5	Appalachian St.	97.7	4.8
Louisville	113.5	3.0	Notre Dame	105.9	10.6
Marist	95.5	2.5	Rider	98.6	-0.6
Marquette	113.5	3.0	Creighton	109.5	7.0
Maryland	113.4	3.0	Michgan	117.8	-1.4
Niagara	92.2	2.5	Siena	95.3	-0.6
North Texas	101.6	3.0	Marshall	98.7	5.9
Oregon St.	106.2	3.0	Arizona St.	108.0	1.2
Quinnipiac	96.9	2.5	Manhattan	90.5	8.9
Rice	94.4	2.5	Middle Tennessee	94.9	2.0
Saint Peter’s	92.1	2.0	Fairfield	93.4	0.7
SMU	104.3	3.0	Wichita St.	104.3	3.0
Stanford	104.5	2.5	Washington	110.2	-3.2
Temple	106.8	3.0	Tulane	92.3	17.5
Tulsa	103.0	3.0	East Carolina	93.6	12.4
UTSA	100.1	2.5	UAB	99.7	2.9
Western Kentucky	103.3	3.0	Southern Miss.	102.2	4.1

 

Updated Conference Tournament Brackets

The Atlantic Sun Conference Tournament commences Monday night with four quarterfinal games.  In all, 11 conference brackets are now set and will begin play in the next week.  Here in order by the date these tournaments begin, are the 11 brackets.

Atlantic Sun Conference
All games at home floor of higher seeds
Quarterfinals–Monday, March 4
Seed	Home	Seed	Visitor
1	Lipscomb (23-6)	8	Kennesaw St. (6-25)
2	Liberty (25-6)	7	Jacksonville (12-19)
3	North Florida (15-16)	6	North Alabama (10-21)
4	Florida Gulf Coast (14-17)	5	NJIT (20-11)
Semifinals–Thursday, March 7
Seed	Home	Seed	Visitor
1/8	Higher Seed	4/5	Lower Seed
2/7	Higher Seed	3/6	Lower Seed
Championship Game–Sunday, March 10
Seed	Home	Seed	Visitor
1/8/4/5	Higher Seed	2/3/6/7	Lower Seed

 

Big South Conference
Site: Home and #1 Seed
First Round–Tuesday, March 5 (at Higher Seeded Teams)
Seed	Home Team	Seed	Visitors
7	Presbyterian (17-14)	10	UNC-Asheville (4-26)
6	Charleston Southern (15-14)	11	USC Upstate (6-25)
8	Hampton (14-15)	9	Longwood (15-16)
Quarterfinals–Thursday, March 7 (at Campbell)
Seed	Team	Seed	Team
2	Radford (20-10)	7/10	Presbyterian/UNC-Asheville
3	Winthrop (18-11)	6/11	Chas Sou./USC Upstate
1	Campbell (19-11)	8/9	Hampton/Longwood
4	Gardner-Webb (20-11)	5	High Point (16-14)
Semifinals–Thursday, March 8 (at Campbell)
Seed	Home Team	Seed	Visitors
2/7/10		3/6/11
1/8/9		4/5
Championship Game–Sunday, March 10 (at Higher Seeded Team)
Seed	Home Team	Seed	Visitors

 

Horizon League (Motor City Madness)
Site: Higher Seed and Little Caesars Arena, Detroit, MI
Quarterfinals–Tuesday, March 5 & Wednesday, March 6 (at Higher Seed)
Seed	Home Team	Seed	Visitors
1	Wright St. (19-12)	8	IUPUI (16-15)
4	Green Bay (16-15)	5	Illinois-Chicago (16-15)
3	Oakland (15-16)	6	Youngstown St. (12-19)
2	Northern Kentucky (23-8)	7	Detroit (11-19)
Semifinals–Friday, March 15 (Detroit for last two rounds)
Seed	Team	Seed	Team
1/8	Wright St./IUPUI	4/5	Green Bay/Illinois-Chi.
2/7	N Kentucky/Detroit	3/6	Oakland/Youngstown St.
Championship Game–Saturday, March 16
Seed	Team	Seed	Team

 

Patriot League
All games at home floor of higher seeds
First Round–Tuesday, March 5
Seed	Home		Visitors
8	Boston U (14-17)	9	Loyola (MD) (11-20)
7	Lafayette (10-19)	10	Holy Cross (15-16)
Quarterfinals–Thursday, March 7
Seed	Home	Seed	Visitor
1	Colgate (21-10)	8/9	Boston/Loyola (MD)
2	Bucknell (19-10)	7/10	Lafayette/Holy Cross
3	Lehigh (19-10)	6	Army (13-18)
4	American (15-14)	5	Navy (11-18)
Semifinals–Sunday, March 10
Seed	Home	Seed	Visitor
1/8/9	Higher Seed	4/5	Lower Seed
2/7/10	Higher Seed	3/6	Lower Seed
Championship Game–Wednesday, March 13
Seed	Home	Seed	Visitor
	Higher Semifinal Winner		Lower Semifinal Winner

 

Northeast Conference
All games at home floor of higher seeds
Quarterfinals–Wednesday, March 6
Seed	Home	Seed	Visitor
1	St. Francis (PA) (16-13)	8	Bryant (10-19)
2	Fairleigh-Dickinson (17-13)	7	Wagner (13-16)
3	Sacred Heart (15-16)	6	Long Island (15-15)
4	Robert Morris (16-15)	5	St. Francis (Bklyn) (17-14)
Semifinals–Saturday, March 9
Seed	Home	Seed	Visitor
	Highest Remaining Seed		Lowest Remaining Seed
	2nd Highest Remaining Seed		3rd Highest Remaining Seed
Championship Game–Tuesday, March 12
Seed	Home	Seed	Visitor
	Higher Semifinal Winner		Lower Semifinal Winner

 

Ohio Valley Conference
Site: Ford Center, Evansville, IN
First Round–Wednesday, March 6
Seed	Team	Seed	Team
5	Morehead St. (12-19)	8	SIU Edwardsville (10-20)
6	Eastern Illinois (14-17)	7	UT-Martin (11-18)
Quarterfinals–Thursday, March 7
Seed	Team	Seed	Team
4	Austin Peay (21-10)	5/8	Morehead/SIU-Edwardsville
3	Jacksonville St. (23-8)	6/7	E. Illinois/UT-Martin
Semifinals–Friday, March 8
Seed	Team	Seed	Team
1	Belmont (25-4)	4/5/8	APSU/Mhead/SIUE
2	Murray St. (25-4)	3/6/7	JvilleSt/EIU/UTM
Championship Game–Saturday, March 9
Seed	Team	Seed	Team

 

Missouri Valley Conference (Arch Madness)
Site: Enterprise Center, St. Louis, MO
First Round–Thursday, March 7
Seed	Team	Seed	Team
8	Indiana St. (15-15)	9	Valparaiso (14-17)
7	Illinois St. (16-15)	10	Evansville (11-20)
Quarterfinals–Friday, March 8
Seed	Team	Seed	Team
1	Loyola (Chi) (19-12)	8/9	Ind St./Valpo
4	Missouri St. (16-15)	5	Bradley (17-14)
2	Drake (23-8)	7/10	Ill St./Evansville
3	Southern Illinois (17-14)	6	Northern Iowa (14-17)
Semifinals–Saturday, March 9
Seed	Team	Seed	Team
1/8/9	Loyola/Ind St./Valpo	4/5	MSU/Bradley
2/7/10	Drake/Ill St/Evans	3/6	SIU/UNI
Championship Game–Sunday, March 10
Seed	Team	Seed	Team

West Coast Conference
Site: Orleans Arena, Las Vegas, NV
First Round–Thursday, March 7
Seed	Home Team	Seed	Visitors
7	San Diego (18-13)	10	Portland (7-24)
8	Pepperdine (13-17)	9	Pacific (14-17)
Second Round–Friday, March 8
Seed	Team	Seed	Team
6	Santa Clara (16-14)	7/10	USD/Portland
5	Loyola Marymount (20-10)	8/9	Pepper/Pacific
Quarterfinals–Saturday, March 9
Seed	Team	Seed	Team
3	BYU (19-12)	6/7/10	SCU/USD/Portland
4	San Francisco (21-9)	5/8/9	LMU/Pepper/Pacific
Semifinals–Monday, March 11
Seed	Team	Seed	Team
2	Saint Mary’s (20-11)	3/6/7/10	BYU/SCU/USD/Portland
1	Gonzaga (29-2)	4/5/8/9	USF/LMU/Pepper/Pacific
Championship Game–Tuesday, March 12
Seed	Team	Seed	Team

 

Southern Conference
Site: US Cellular Center, Asheville, NC
First Round–Friday, March 8
Seed	Team	Seed	Team
8	VMI (10-20)	9	Western Carolina (7-24)
7	Samford (16-15)	10	The Citadel (12-17)
Quarterfinals–Saturday, March 9
Seed	Team	Seed	Team
1	Wofford (26-4)	8/9	VMI/Western Carolina
4	East Tennessee St. (23-8)	5	Chattanooga (12-19)
2	UNC Greensboro (26-5)	7/10	Samford/Citadel
3	Furman (24-6)	6	Mercer (11-19)
Semifinals–Sunday, March 10
Seed	Team	Seed	Team
1/8/9	Woff/VMI/WCU	4/5	ETSU/Chatt
2/7/10	UNCG/Sam/Cit	3/6	Furman/Mercer
Championship Game–Monday, March 11
Seed	Team	Seed	Team

 

Colonial Athletic Association
Site: North Charleston Coliseum, North Charleston, SC
First Round–Saturday, March 9
Seed	Team	Seed	Team
8	James Madison (13-18)	9	Towson (10-21)
7	Elon (11-20)	10	UNC Wilmington (9-22)
Quarterfinals–Sunday, March 10
Seed	Team	Seed	Team
1	Hofstra (25-6)	8/9	JMU/Towson
4	William & Mary (14-16)	5	Delaware (16-15)
2	Northeastern (20-10)	7/10	Elon/UNCW
3	Charleston (23-8)	6	Drexel (13-18)
Semifinals–Monday, March 11
Seed	Team	Seed	Team
1/8/9	Hofstra/JMU/Towson	4/5	Wm&Mary/Delaware
2/7/10	NEastern/Elon/UNCW	3/6	Charleston/Drexel
Championship Game–Tuesday, March 12
Seed	Team	Seed	Team

 

Summit League
Site: Denny Sanford Premier Center, Sioux Falls, SD
Quarterfinals–Saturday, March 9 & Sunday, March 10
Seed	Team	Seed	Team
1 (sat)	South Dakota St. (24-7)	8	Western Illinois (9-20)
4 (sun)	Purdue Fort Wayne (17-14)	5	South Dakota (13-16)
3 (sun)	North Dakota St. (15-15)	6	Oral Roberts (11-20)
2 (sat)	Omaha (19-10)	7	North Dakota (12-17)
Semifinals–Monday, March 11
Seed	Team	Seed	Team
1/8	SDSU/WIU	4/5	PFW/USD
2/7	Omaha/UND	3/6	NDSUORU
Championship Game–Tuesday, March12
Seed	Team	Seed	Team

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

PiRate Ratings Conference Tournament Update–February 27, 2018

Last Night’s Games

Atlantic Sun Conference Tournament
Quarterfinals–February 26
Florida Gulf Coast 96	USC Upstate 76
North Florida 80	NJIT 76
Lipscomb 89	Stetson 73
Jacksonville 87	Kennesaw St . 68

Atlantic Sun Bracket

All times EST

Semifinals–March 1
Time	Home	Visitors	TV
7:00 PM	#1 Florida Gulf Coast	#5 North Florida	ESPN3
8:00 PM	#2 Lipscomb	#3 Jacksonville	ESPN3
Championship–March 4
Time	Home	Visitors	TV
3:00 PM	Higher Remaining Seed	Lower Remaining Seed	ESPN

Conference Tournaments in Action Today

Big South Conference Tournament
1st Round & Championship Game at Higher Seeds
Quarterfinals and Semfinals at #1 Seed
All Times EST
First Round–February 27
Time	Home	Visitors	TV
7:00 PM	#7 High Point	#10 Longwood	BSN
7:00 PM	#8 Charleston Southern	#9 Presbyterian	BSN
BSN TV	at http://bigsouthsports.com
Quarterfinals–March 1
Time	Higher Seed	Lower Seed	TV
1:00 PM	#2 Radford	High Point or Longwood	ESPN3
3:30 PM	#3 Winthrop	#6 Gardner-Webb	ESPN3
7:00 PM	#1 UNC-Asheville	Presbyterian or Chas Sou.	ESPN3
9:30 PM	#4 Campbell	#5 Liberty	ESPN3
Semifinals–March 2
Time	Higher Seed	Lower Seed	TV
6:00 PM	Rad/HP/Longwood	Winthrop/G-Webb	ESPN3
8:30 PM	UNCA/Presby/Chas Sou	Campbell or Liberty	ESPN3
Championship–March 4
Time	Home	Visitors	TV
1:00 PM	Higher Seed	Lower Seed	ESPN

UNC-Asheville should make it to the Championship Game, but Liberty could be a tough out in the semifinals.  Radford and Winthrop are fairly evenly matched on the other side of the bracket, but Radford probably has the better overall talent and is playing a little stronger at this point in the season.  Both Radford and Winthrop split their series against UNCA, with the home team winning every game, but UNCA narrowly won their home games over the two contenders, while they were blown out on the road.  The big news is that UNCA as the #1 seed will be at home for all games it plays in this tournament.

Patriot League Tournament
All Games Played at Higher Seed
All Times EST
First Round–February 27
Time	Home	Visitors	TV
7:00 PM	#7 Lafayette	#10 American	Stadium
7:00 PM	#8 Loyola (MD)	#9 Army	Stadium
Quarterfinals–March 1
Time	Home	Visitors	TV
7:00 PM	#1 Bucknell	Loyola or Army	Stadium
7:00 PM	#4 Lehigh	#5 Boston U	Stadium
7:00 PM	#2 Colgate	Lafayette or American	Stadium
7:00 PM	#3 Navy	#6 Holy Cross	Stadium
Semifinals–March 1
Time	Home	Visitors	TV
12/2	Bucknell/Loyola/Army	Lehigh or Boston U	CBSSN
12/2	Colgate/Lafayette/American	Navy or Holy Cross	CBSSN
Championship–March 4
Time	Home	Visitors	TV
7:30 PM			CBSSN

Bucknell is the overwhelming favorite to cruise to the Patriot League Championship.  The Bison did lose at home to Boston U during the regular season, but they won 15 of 16 games after that, with the only loss coming on the road against Lehigh in overtime.

One player to watch in this tournament is forward Zach Thomas of Bucknell.  He averages 21 points and 9 rebounds per game.  He is a multi-tool player, as he might be the best passer on the team as well.

Colgate has a couple of streaky three-point shooters in Will Rayman and Jordan Swopshire, but the Raiders have no inside muscle and will have to rely on hot shooting to have a chance to get past Bucknell, if they make it to the title game.

Lehigh is the team to watch in this tournament.  The Hawks are red hot and ride an eight-game winning streak as the tournament begins.  Included in that streak is a win over Bucknell, where the Hawks connected on 11 of 21 three-point shots.  Lehigh has what Clark Kellogg calls “spurtability.”  They get hot streaks and go on big runs, fueled by excellent defensive play from their guards that can pressure the ball.   A player to watch for Lehigh is tiny guard Kahron Ross.  He can pick your pockets clean and then feed a teammate for an easy bucket.  A potential semifinal game with Bucknell could be the most exciting tournament game this week.

If you were wondering what Stadium TV is, this is a free over the air network that is available in most markets.  It was American Sports Network at one time and merged with Campus Insiders online.  You can check for the proper channel in your market here: https://23455-presscdn-pagely.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/Stadium-Active-Markets-February-5.pdf

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

PiRate Ratings Bracket Gurus Report for February 26, 2018 & Conference Tourneys

A lot has changed in the week since the Gurus released their bracketology seedings.  However, as of this moment, the Gurus are sticking with normalcy.  Whereas some teams might eventually be declared ineligible for the NCAA Tournament, until it happens, the Gurus are going to keep seeding the teams where their resumes show they should be seeded.  To be more precise, the Gurus are not actually seeding the teams where THEY think they should be seed, but instead they are seeding the teams where they believe THE SELECTION COMMITTEE will seed the teams.  Please make a note of this:  The Gurus are not to blame if your favorite team (hear that Nebraska fans) is not included in the field.  It is plain and simple–The Committee has a set of criteria to select its teams and place them in proper seed lines.  Where a team finishes in its conference and conference record is not even in the criteria.  So, a Cornhusker team that is 13-5 in the Big Ten and tied for fourth with Michigan is not even among the last six teams in the Dance.  Nebraska only scheduled two non-conference opponents this year that could have helped their resume.  Losing at Creighton and losing at home to Kansas is not enough to put the Cornhuskers on the Bubble.  The KU loss was by a single point, but a miss is as good as a mile.  The only win that really helps them is the home win over Michigan.  Thus, if you are a Cornhusker fan, you better hope your team is still playing this Sunday, which would be the Big Ten Championship Game.  It will take wins over Michigan and Michigan State to even put Nebraska on the Bubble, and if Nebraska makes it to the title game without facing both Michigan teams, then they must win the automatic bid with no chance to make the field any other way.  So, Nebraska fans must cheer for Michigan to win Thursday and Michigan State to win Friday, just so your team can have a chance to pick up two Quadrant One wins.

A couple of teams made major moves forward in the Bracketology Gurus seed line this week.  Tennessee moved up to the 3-line with a win over Florida and another at Ole Miss.  The Volunteers now have a chance to win the SEC regular season championship if Auburn falters and loses its final two games (at Arkansas and vs. South Carolina), while the Vols win at Mississippi State and at home against Georgia.  Auburn has lost three of its last six games and has been moderately affected by the injury loss of Anfernee McLemore, who was one of the Tigers’ few talented big men.

Mississippi State is in a similar boat as Nebraska, but the Bulldogs are in better shape.  The Bulldogs are in a third place tie in the SEC and have won 21 games overall, but unless they upset Tennessee in Starkville and then close with a win at LSU, they will have to make it to the Championship Game of the SEC Tournament to have a chance.  Even if MSU finishes with two wins, at 11-7/23-8, they will still need to do some damage in the SEC Tournament.

In the Pac-12, UCLA has collapsed, and the Bruins are now on the outside, looking in.  Utah failed to win a crucial home game against USC after knocking UCLA to the Bubble.  Washington split on the road in the Bay Area, losing at Stanford and winning at Cal, but the Huskies have that win over Kansas at Phog Allen, plus wins against Arizona, Arizona State, and USC, so they are in contention for a bid.  USC made a slight upward move with road wins over Colorado and Utah, giving the Trojans four consecutive victories.  Arizona, most likely with Lorenzo Romar as interim head coach, closes at home with Stanford and Cal, so the Wildcats are likely to edge the Trojans for the top seed in the Pac-12 Tournament, but this is a team that has been wounded and may falter early.

In the ACC, North Carolina State has now won four consecutive games to move to 10-6 in the league.  The Wolf Pack have two winnable games to close out the season, and they could sneak up to the third seed in the ACC Tournament if they get to 12-6.  First year coach Kevin Keatts, who worked the same magic at UNC-Wilmington may be the best overall coach in college basketball, and he should compete with Tony Bennett for ACC COY and National COY.

In the Big East, Butler moved up thanks to home wins over Providence and Creighton, while Seton Hall won twice to earn a three-game winning streak after suffering a four-game losing streak prior.  After a 1-4 slide in conference play, Creighton rebounded with a big win over Villanova.

Middle Tennesse State and Western Kentucky continued winning big in CUSA play, and the two mid-major powers and arch-rivals could be headed to a momentous CUSA Tournament Championship Game where only the winner will be safely in the Dance.  Old Dominion and Marshall cannot be overlooked, but it would be ashamed if neither Middle or Western get in the tournament.  Both have Sweet 16 talent.

Out West, Gonzaga, Saint Mary’s, Nevada, and New Mexico State continued to win, and the first three on this list are locks for the NCAA Tournament.  NMSU might still have an outside chance to get in if they lost in the WAC Tournament, but the Aggies most likely must win the WAC automatic bid.  Grand Canyon, Utah Valley, and Seattle all have enough talent to pull off an upset.

Here is this week’s Bracket Gurus Bracketology Report

Seed	Team	Conference
1	Villanova	B-East
1	Virginia	ACC
1	Xavier	B-East
1	Kansas	B12
2	Duke	ACC
2	Auburn	SEC
2	North Carolina	ACC
2	Michigan St.	BTen
3	Purdue	BTen
3	Cincinnati	AAC
3	Tennessee	SEC
3	Texas Tech	B12
4	Wichita St.	AAC
4	Clemson	ACC
4	West Virginia	B12
4	Arizona	Pac12
5	Ohio St.	BTen
5	Kentucky	SEC
5	Gonzaga	WCC
5	Rhode Island	A-10
6	Michigan	BTen
6	Houston	AAC
6	Seton Hall	B-East
6	TCU	B12
7	Nevada	MWC
7	Texas A&M	SEC
7	Arkansas	SEC
7	Florida	SEC
8	Oklahoma	B12
8	Arizona St.	Pac12
8	Butler	B-East
8	Creighton	B-East
9	Florida St.	ACC
9	Alabama	SEC
9	Missouri	SEC
9	Miami (Fla.)	ACC
10	North Carolina St.	ACC
10	Providence	B-East
10	Virginia Tech	ACC
10	Saint Mary’s	WCC
11	St. Bonaventure	A-10
11	Texas	B12
11	Middle Tennessee	CUSA
11	New Mexico St.	WAC
12	Kansas St.	B12
12	USC	Pac12
12	Washington	Pac12
12	Louisville	ACC
12	Loyola (Chi.)	MVC
12	UL-Lafayette	SBC
13	Buffalo	MAC
13	South Dakota St.	Summ
13	Vermont	A-East
13	Murray St.	OVC
14	UNC-Greensboro	Socon
14	College of Charleston	CAA
14	Rider	MAAC
14	Bucknell	Pat
15	Montana	B-Sky
15	UC-Davis	B-West
15	Northern Kentucky	Horiz
15	Wagner	NEC
16	Penn	Ivy
16	UNC-Asheville	B-Sth
16	Nicholls St.	SLC
16	Florida Gulf Coast	A-Sun
16	Bethune-Cookman	MEAC
16	Arkansas-Pine Bluff	SWAC

 

Top 6 Out	Conf.
Baylor	B12
UCLA	Pac12
Syracuse	ACC
Utah	Pac12
Mississippi St.	SEC
Marquette	B-East

 

Last 10 Byes (highest to lowest)

Florida St.

Alabama

Missouri

Miami (Fla.)

North Carolina St.

Providence

Virginia Tech

Saint Mary’s

St. Bonaventure

Texas

 

First Four Round

Kansas St. vs. Washington

USC vs. Louisville

Florida Gulf Coast vs. Bethune-Cookman

Nicholls St. vs. Arkansas-Pine Bluff

 

Conference Tournament Action Tips Off Tonight

Championship Fortnight begins tonight, as the Atlantic Sun Conference Tournament begins on campus sites.  The A-Sun holds its tournament on the home floors of the higher seeds, so tonight’s quarterfinal round finds four games playing simultaneously.  ESPN3 will carry all four games.

Here is the bracket and schedule for the A-Sun.

Atlantic Sun Conference Tournament
All Games Played at Higher Seed
All Times EST
Quarterfinals–February 26
Time	Home	Visitors	TV
7:00 PM	#1 Florida Gulf Coast	#8 USC Upstate	ESPN3
7:30 PM	#4 NJIT	#5 North Florida	ESPN3
8:00 PM	#2 Lipscomb	#7 Stetson	ESPN3
7:00 PM	#3 Jacksonville	#6 Kennesaw St.	ESPN3
Semifinals–March 1
Time	Home	Visitors	TV
TBA	FGCU/USCU	NJIT/N.Fla.	ESPN3
TBA	Lipsc./Stetson	Jville/Kenn	ESPN3
Championship–March 4
Time	Home	Visitors	TV
3:00 PM	Higher Remaining Seed	Lower Remaining Seed	ESPN

Florida Gulf Coast (12-2/21-10) is the sexy team in this league, but the Lipscomb Bisons (10-4/20-9) are the hot team.  Lipscomb closed out the regular season on a five-game winning streak, which included a win at FGCU.  Lipscomb’s non-conference schedule was considerably stronger than FGCU, so the Bisons might be able to move up to a 15-seed if they win the automatic bid, while the Eagles and anybody else in the league would be a 16-seed.  If somebody other than the top two wins the tournament, they can book reservations in Dayton for a First Four game.

Eight other leagues begin their conference tournaments between today and Friday.  Here is a look at the brackets and schedules for these conferences.

Big South Conference Tournament
1st Round & Championship Game at Higher Seeds
Quarterfinals and Semfinals at #1 Seed
All Times EST
First Round–February 27
Time	Home	Visitors	TV
7:00 PM	#7 High Point	#10 Longwood	BSN
7:00 PM	#8 Charleston Southern	#9 Presbyterian	BSN
BSN TV	at http://bigsouthsports.com
Quarterfinals–March 1
Time	Higher Seed	Lower Seed	TV
1:00 PM	#2 Radford	High Point or Longwood	ESPN3
3:30 PM	#3 Winthrop	#6 Gardner-Webb	ESPN3
7:00 PM	#1 UNC-Asheville	Presbyterian or Chas Sou.	ESPN3
9:30 PM	#4 Campbell	#5 Liberty	ESPN3
Semifinals–March 2
Time	Higher Seed	Lower Seed	TV
6:00 PM	Rad/HP/Longwood	Winthrop/G-Webb	ESPN3
8:30 PM	UNCA/Presby/Chas Sou	Campbell or Liberty	ESPN3
Championship–March 4
Time	Home	Visitors	TV
1:00 PM	Higher Seed	Lower Seed	ESPN

 

Big Ten Conference Tournament
New York City
All Times EST
First Round–February 28
Time	Higher Seed	Lower Seed	TV
5:30 PM	#12 Iowa	#13 Illinois	Big Ten
7:45 PM	#11 Minnesota	#14 Rutgers	Big Ten
Second Round–March 1
Time	Higher Seed	Lower Seed	TV
12:00 PM	#8 Maryland	#9 Wisconsin	Big Ten
2:15 PM	#5 Michigan	Iowa or Illinois	Big Ten
6:30 PM	#7 Penn St.	#10 Northwestern	Big Ten
8:45 PM	#6 Indiana	Minn. or Rutgers	Big Ten
Quarterfinals–March 2
Time	Higher Seed	Lower Seed	TV
12:00 PM	#1 Michigan St.	Mary or Wisc	Big Ten
2:15 PM	#4 Nebraska	Mich/Iowa/Ill	Big Ten
6:30 PM	#2 Ohio St.	PSU or N’Western	Big Ten
8:45 PM	#3 Purdue	Ind/Minn/Rutg	Big Ten
Semifinals–March 3
Time	Higher Seed	Lower Seed	TV
2:00 PM	MSU/Mary/Wisc	Neb/Mich/Iowa/Ill	CBS
4:30 PM	OSU/Purd/NW	Purd/Ind/Minn/Rutg	CBS
Championship–March 4
Time	Higher Seed	Lower Seed	TV
4:30 PM			CBS

 

Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Tournament
Albany, NY
All Times EST
First Round–March 1
Time	Higher Seed	Lower Seed	TV
5:00 PM	#8 Monmouth	#9 St. Peter’s	ESPN3
7:30 PM	#7 Quinnipiac	#10 Siena	ESPN3
10:00 PM	#6 Fairfield	#11 Marist	ESPN3
Quarterfinals–March 2
Time	Higher Seed	Lower Seed	TV
7:00 PM	#1 Rider	Monmouth or St. Peter’s	ESPN3
9:30 PM	#2 Canisius	Quinn. or Siena	ESPN3
Quarterfinals–March 3
Time	Higher Seed	Lower Seed	TV
7:00 PM	#3 Niagara	Fair. or Marist	ESPN3
9:30 PM	#4 Iona	#5 Manhattan	ESPN3
Semifinals–March 4
Time	Higher Seed	Lower Seed	TV
7:00 PM	Rider/Monm/St. P	Iona or Manhattan	ESPN3
9:30 PM	Can/Quinn/Siena	Niag/Fair/Marist	ESPN3
Championship–March 5
Time	Higher Seed	Lower Seed	TV
7:00 PM			TBA

 

Missouri Valley Conference Tournament
St. Louis (Arch Madness)
All Times CST
First Round–March 1
Time	Higher Seed	Lower Seed	TV
6:00 PM	#8 Evansville	#9 Northern Iowa	ESPN3
8:30 PM	#7 Missouri St.	#10 Valparaiso	ESPN3
Quarterfinals–March 2
Time	Higher Seed	Lower Seed	TV
12:00 PM	#1 Loyola (Chi.)	Evansville or UNI	ESPN3
2:30 PM	#4 Drake	#5 Bradley	ESPN3
6:00 PM	#2 Southern Illinois	MSU or Valpo	ESPN3
8:30 PM	#3 Illinois St.	#6 Indiana St.	ESPN3
Semifinals–March 3
Time	Higher Seed	Lower Seed	TV
2:30 PM	Loyola/Evans/UNI	Drake or Bradley	CBSSN
5:00 PM	SIU/MSU/Valpo	Ill St. or Ind St.	CBSSN
Championship–March 4
Time	Higher Seed	Lower Seed	TV
1:00 PM			CBS

 

Northeast Conference Tournament
All Games at Higher Seed
Top 8 Teams Qualify and Tournament Re-seeds after Quarterfinals
All Times EST
Quarterfinals–February 28
Time	Home Team	Visitors	TV
7:00 PM	#1 Wagner	#8 Central Connecticut	NEC *
7:00 PM	#2 Mount St. Mary’s	#7 Robert Morris	NEC *
7:00 PM	#3 St. Francis (PA)	#6 Fairleigh-Dickinson	NEC *
7:00 PM	#4 Long Island	#5 St. Francis (Bkn)	NEC *
* NEC Front Row at http://necfrontrow.com/
Semifinals–March 3
Time	Home Team	Visitors	TV
12:00 PM	Highest Remaining	Lowest Remaining	ESPN3
2:00 PM	2nd Highest	3rd Highest	ESPN3
Championship–March 6
Time	Home Team	Visitors	TV
7:00 PM	Higher Seed	Lower Seed	ESPN2

 

Ohio Valley Conference Tournament
Evansville, IN
Top 8 Teams Qualify, Southeast Missouri ineligible due to low APR Scores
All Times CST
First Round–February 28
Time	Higher Seed	Lower Seed	TV
6:30 PM	#5 Tennessee Tech	#8 SIU-Edwardsville	OVC
9:00 PM	#6 Tennessee St.	#7 Eastern Illinois	OVC
OVC Network at http://www.ovcdigitalnetwork.com/watch
Quarterfinals–March 1
Time	Higher Seed	Lower Seed	TV
6:30 PM	#4 Jacksonville St.	Tenn Tech or SIU-E	OVC
9:00 PM	#3 Austin Peay	TSU or EIU	OVC
Semifinals–March 2
Time	Higher Seed	Lower Seed	TV
7:00 PM	#1 Murray St.	JSU/TTU/SIU-E	ESPNU
9:30 PM	#2 Belmont	APSU/TSU/EIU	ESPNU
Championship–March 3
Time	Higher Seed	Lower Seed	TV
7:00 PM			ESPN2

 

Patriot League Tournament
All Games Played at Higher Seed
All Times EST
First Round–February 27
Time	Home	Visitors	TV
7:00 PM	#7 Lafayette	#10 American	Stadium
7:00 PM	#8 Loyola (MD)	#9 Army	Stadium
Quarterfinals–March 1
Time	Home	Visitors	TV
7:00 PM	#1 Bucknell	Loyola or Army	Stadium
7:00 PM	#4 Lehigh	#5 Boston U	Stadium
7:00 PM	#2 Colgate	Lafayette or American	Stadium
7:00 PM	#3 Navy	#6 Holy Cross	Stadium
Semifinals–March 1
Time	Home	Visitors	TV
12/2	Bucknell/Loyola/Army	Lehigh or Boston U	CBSSN
12/2	Colgate/Lafayette/American	Navy or Holy Cross	CBSSN
Championship–March 4
Time	Home	Visitors	TV
7:30 PM			CBSSN

 

Southern Conference Tournament
Asheville, NC
All Times EST
First Round–March 2
Time	Higher Seed	Lower Seed	TV
5:00 PM	#8 The Citadel	#9 VMI	ESPN3
7:30 PM	#7 Samford	#10 Chattanooga	ESPN3
Quarterfinals–March 3
Time	Higher Seed	Lower Seed	TV
12:00 PM	#1 UNC-Greensboro	Citadel or VMI	ESPN3
2:30 PM	#4 Mercer	#5 Wofford	ESPN3
6:00 PM	#2 East Tennessee St.	Samford or Chatt.	ESPN3
8:30 PM	#3 Furman	#6 Western Carolina	ESPN3
Semifinals–March 4
Time	Higher Seed	Lower Seed	TV
4:00 PM	UNCG/Cit/VMI	Mercer or Wofford	ESPN3
6:30 PM	ETSU/Sam/Chatt	Furman or WCU	ESPN3
Championship–March 5
Time	Higher Seed	Lower Seed	TV
9:00 PM			ESPN2

 

West Coast Conference Tournament
Las Vegas
All Times PST
First Round–March 2
Time	Higher Seed	Lower Seed	TV
6:00 PM	#8 Loyola Marymount	#9 Portland	NBCSN
8:00 PM	#7 Santa Clara	#10 Pepperdine	NBCSN
Quarterfinals–March 3
Time	Higher Seed	Lower Seed	TV
1:00 PM	#3 BYU	#6 San Diego	NBCSN
3:00 PM	#4 San Francisco	#5 Pacific	NBCSN
7:00 PM	#1 Gonzaga	LMU or Portland	ESPN2
9:00 PM	#2 Saint Mary’s	Santa Clara or Pepperdine	ESPN2
Semifinals–March 4
Time	Higher Seed	Lower Seed	TV
6:00 PM	Gonz/LMU/Portland	USF or Pacific	ESPN
8:00 PM	SMU/SCU/Pepperdine	BYU or USD	ESPN2
Championship–March 6
Time	Higher Seed	Lower Seed	TV
6:00 PM			ESPN

All conference tournament brackets will be updated the morning after any conference games have been played. Check back here for up-to-date schedules and tip times.

 

 

 

 

 

NCAA Basketball Conference Tournaments–March 9 Update

Three More Tickets Punched

Horizon League Championship

Butler 59  Milwaukee 44

 The Bulldogs held Milwaukee to 30% shooting from the field, and Matt Howard connected on seven of nine shots to pace Butler with 18 points, as the defending National Final runner-up earned another spot in the Big Dance.

 Summit League Championship

Oakland 90  Oral Roberts 76 

The Golden Grizzlies displayed a great offensive show with the aid of numerous first half steals by Drew Valentine and Reggie Hamilton to build a double-digit lead by the break.  After withstanding an early second half run by the Golden Eagles, Oakland pulled away to win the automatic bid.  

Keith Benson topped Oakland with 28 points and 14 rebounds.  Hamilton added 25 with six assists, while Will Hudson recorded a double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds.

 

Sunbelt Conference Championship

U A L R  64  North Texas  63 

The Trojans won their first Sunbelt Championship and earned their first bid to the NCAA Tournament since 1990.

 

SBC Player of the Year Solomon Bozeman drove from the backcourt to the left side of the top of the key and drained a three-pointer with 1.5 seconds remaining to give UALR the decisive points.  Bozeman scored a game-high 20 points. 

North Texas had led by seven points with less than two minutes to go, but the Mean Green wilted under the Trojan pressure defense.  With one last chance to try to win, UNT committed a turnover on the inbounds pass. 

11 Automatic Qualifiers To Date

Team	Conference	Record
Arkansas-Little Rock	Sunbelt	19-16
Belmont	Atlantic South	30-4
Butler	Horizon	23-9
Gonzaga	West Coast	24-9
Indiana State	Missouri Valley	20-13
Morehead State	Ohio Valley	24-9
Oakland	Summit	25-9
Old Dominion	Colonial	27-6
St. Peter’s	Metro Atlantic	20-13
UNC-Asheville	Big South	19-13
Wofford	Southern	21-12

 

Two Tickets To Be Punched Tonight

Big Sky Tournament Championship @ 9PM ET On ESPN2

#2 Montana (21-9) at #1 Northern Colorado (20-10)

 

Semifinal Round

Montana 57  Weber State 40

Northern Colorado 73  Northern Arizona 70

 

These two split their regular season series with Northern Colorado winning 63-45 in Greeley, and Montana winning 55-42 in Missoula.  Tonight’s game will be played at Butler-Hancock Hall in Greeley, so Northern Colorado will enjoy the home court advantage. 

This game is a great study in contrasts.  Northern Colorado is a quicker team, but Montana is a stronger team.  Northern Colorado has one exceptionally dominant player, while Montana has more, albeit less exceptional, weapons.

 

The Bears’ offense runs through 6-1 senior guard Devon Beitzel.  Beitzel averages a league-best 21 points per game, and he is deadly at the free throw line, where he connects on 91% of his tosses. 

The rest of the team collectively shoots under 41% from the field and commits more turnovers than assists, so if the Grizzlies can stop Beitzel, or at least limit his touches, they have a chance of defending their crown.

 

Montana has the dominant big man in the conference in 6-11/260 senior center Brian Qvale.  If the Grizzlies can keep this game a half-court affair, they stand a great chance of winning with Qvale plugging the middle on defense and controlling the boards at both ends of the court.  Qvale averages 15 points and nine boards a game, and he had a double-double with 16 points and 17 rebounds in the semifinal round.  Montana likes to limit possessions, so those numbers are even more impressive than they look. 

In the win over UNC, Montana held the Bears to 23.3% shooting, while they shot just 32.6% in the loss at Greeley.

 

It is our opinion that the visiting number two seed will pull off the mild upset over the host numbone seed, but it is not a strong feeling. 

 Northeast Conference Tournament Championship @ 7PM ET On ESPN2

#3 Robert Morris (18-13) at #1 Long Island (26-5)

Semifinal Round

Long Island 69  Central Connecticut 67

Robert Morris 64  Quinnipiac 62

Brooklyn has not been this excited over one of their own sports teams since the Dodgers won the 1955 World Series.  Long Island is one of the most exciting teams in the nation, and their 26-5 record has throngs of Brooklynites cramming into the Wellness, Recreation, and Athletic Center.  The WRAC holds just 2,500 seats, but you can bet that more than that amount will find their way into the game tonight, as they “Pack the WRAC.” 

Those fans will be converging to the corner of Ashland and Dekalb tonight, dressed in all white, to watch what could be a blowout win for their team.   

LIU is on a roll.  The Blackbirds have won 12 games in a row (longest current streak in the nation) and 20 of their previous 21 games.  They average almost 83 points per game.  The Blackbirds have exceptional depth with eight players capable of scoring 15 or more points. 

 

The Blackbirds pose difficult matchups with their roster, as they rely on quick guards and medium-sized forwards with great leaping ability to play at a fast pace.  There is no center on the roster, but the two 6-7 forwards have controlled the boards in most games this year. 

Those forwards are Julian Boyd and Jamal Olasewere, who team up for 25.4 points and 15.7 rebounds per game.

 5-10 backup guard Jason Brickman plays just 22 minutes per game, but he leads the team with 5.3 assists per game.  When he comes in the game, the pace picks up, and the Blackbirds shoot a lot of threes in transition.

 

Robert Morris is definitely not cannon fodder.  The Colonials are the two-time defending NEC Tournament champions, and they believe they can three peat even on the road in hostile conditions. 

The Colonials have won eight games in a row, relying on a stellar defense that limits possessions and pressures the guards.  They are missing their leading scorer, as 5-9 guard Karon Abraham’s season ended two weeks ago with a torn Achilles Tendon.  On the positive side, Abraham missed RMU’s win at LIU on December 2, as he was serving a multi-game suspension. 

Velton Jones and Russell Johnson will have to shine tonight for the Colonials to pull off the upset.  The duo are the only double figure scorers left, but both shoot less than 39% from the field. 

Without Abraham, RMU shoots just 33.7% from behind the arc, so the only way they can possibly win tonight is to replicate the formula that was successful more than three months ago—control the tempo and prevent LIU from getting off any uncontested three-pointers. 

We believe this game will begin slowly with RMU taking the lead in the early stages.  Somewhere in the first half, LIU will go on one of their patented runs and gain the lead.  Then, a second spurt will give them a commanding lead.  RMU might cut into that lead, but we believe in the end, the Blackbirds will be celebrating at the WRAC.  We do not believe the Brooklynites will be crying “Wait ‘Til Next Year.”  This will be like October of 1955 in the borough.

 

Yesterday’s Other Tournament Results

Atlantic 10 Conference

First Round

LaSalle 75  St. Bonaventure 73  2ot

St. Joseph’s 71  George Washington 59  ot

Rhode Island 70  St. Louis 61

Dayton 78  U Mass 50

 

Big East Conference

First Round

Connecticut 97  DePaul 71

Rutgers 76  Seton Hall 70 ot

South Florida 70  Villanova 69

Marquette 87  Providence 66 

M A C

First Round

Bowling Green 74  Northern Illinois 54

Ohio U 74  Toledo 57

Akron 67  Eastern Michigan 53

Buffalo 64  Central Michigan 50

 

M E A C

First Round

MD-Eastern Shore 87  F A M U 85  2ot

S. C. State 64  Delaware State 59 

Ivy League Playoff Set

Princeton defeated rival Penn 70-58 last night in Philadelphia, forcing a one-game playoff for the Ivy League’s automatic berth.  Princeton (24-6) will take on co-champion Harvard (23-5) Saturday afternoon at 4PM Eastern Time.  The game will be played at Yale University in New Haven, CT, and it can be seen live on ESPN3.com.

Princeton has appeared in all seven Ivy League tiebreaking playoff games in the history of the league.  This is Harvard’s first Ivy League basketball championship of any kind.  The Crimson last appeared in the NCAA Tournament in 1946. 

There is a chance that the loser of this game could hold a slim chance of earning an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament.  Harvard is ranked #35 in the RPI, while Princeton is ranked #49.  Harvard has two wins over top 50 teams as well as three losses.  Their biggest win was at Boston College.  Princeton has just one win against the top 50 and two losses.  For the Ivy to earn two bids, the Tigers have to win Saturday and hope Harvard’s high RPI is enough to earn the second bid. 

Conference Tournaments In Action Today

Big 12 Conference

Tournament Site: Kansas City

1^st Round Games

#8 Nebraska (19-11) vs. #9 Oklahoma State (18-12)  12:30 PM ET

#5 Colorado (19-12) vs. #12 Iowa State (16-15)  3 PM ET

#7 Baylor (18-12) vs. #10 Oklahoma (13-17)  7PM ET

#6 Missouri (22-9) vs. #11 Texas Tech (13-18) 9:30 PM ET 

Big East Conference

Tournament Site: New York City

2^nd Round Games

#8 Georgetown (21-9) vs. #9 Connecticut (22-9)  12 Noon ET on ESPN

#5 St. John’s (20-10) vs. #13 Rutgers (15-16)  Approx. 2:15 PM ET on ESPN

#7 Cincinnati (24-7) vs. #15 South Florida (10-22)  7 PM ET on ESPN

#6 West Virginia (20-10) vs. #11 Marquette (19-13)  Approx. 9:15 PM ET on ESPN 

Conference USA

Tournament Site: El Paso, TX

1^st Round Games

#8 East Carolina (16-14) vs. #9 Central Florida (19-10)  1 PM ET

#5 Southern Miss (21-9) vs. #12 Tulane (13-16)  3:30 PM ET

#6 Marshall (21-10) vs. #11 Houston (12-17)  7:30 PM ET

#7 S M U (17-13) vs. #10 Rice (13-17)  10 PM ET 

M E A C

Tournament Site: Winston-Salem, NC

Note: The MEAC has a unique way of scheduling their tournament.  As a result, one first round game will be played today as well as two quarterfinal round games.  The other two quarterfinal round games will be played Thursday. 

1^st Round

#6 Norfolk State () vs. #11 Howard ()  3 PM ET

Quarterfinal Round

#1 Bethune-Cookman (20-11) vs. #9 South Carolina State (10-21)  7 PM ET

#2 Hampton (21-8) vs. #10 Maryland-Eastern Shore (9-21)  9:30 PM ET 

Mountain West Conference

Tournament Site: Las Vegas

1^st Round

#8 Wyoming (10-20) vs. #9 T C U (10-21)  5 PM ET 

Pac-10 Conference

Tournament Site: Los Angeles

1^st Round

#8 Stanford (15-15) vs. #9 Oregon State (10-19)  9 PM ET on Fox Sports Net

#7 Oregon (14-16) vs. #10 Arizona State (12-18)  11:30 PM ET on Fox Sports Net 

Southland Conference

Tournament Site: Katy, TX (Houston Area)

Quarterfinal Round

#2 Northwestern State (LA) (18-13) vs. #7 Texas-San Antonio (16-13)  1 PM ET

#3 Sam Houston (17-12) vs. #6 Stephen F. Austin (18-10)  3:30 PM ET

#1 McNeese State (19-10) vs. #8 Nicholls State (14-13)  7 PM ET

#4 Texas State (15-15) vs. #5 Southeastern Louisiana (15-13)  9:30 PM ET 

S W A C

Tournament Site: Garland, TX (Dallas-Ft. Worth Area) 

Quarterfinal Round

#2 Jackson State (16-14) vs. #7 Prairie View (10-21)  12:30 PM ET

#1 Texas Southern (18-11) vs. #8 Arkansas-Pine Bluff (7-23)  9 PM ET

W A C

Tournament Site: Las Vegas

1^st Round

#5 Hawaii (18-11) vs. #8 San Jose State (15-14)  3 PM ET

#6 Nevada (12-18) vs. #7 Fresno State (14-16)  5:30 PM ET

NCAA Basketball Conference Tournaments–March 8 Update

 

The Four Newest Dance Invitees

Did you see those conference championship games last night?  Was this the Monday Night Fights or basketball?  There were more cut men and cut women than in your average boxing card.

 

When it is all or nothing for these smaller conferences, you get what we saw last night—teams playing like their lives were on the line.

 

Colonial Athletic Association

Old Dominion 70

Virginia Commonwealth 65

 

Old Dominion 27-6

 

The Monarchs are capable of making a semi-surprise run in the Big Dance.  They lead the nation in rebounding margin, and they can score points in the paint. 

 

Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference

St. Peter’s 62

Iona 57

 

St. Peter’s 20-13

 

The Peacocks beat Alabama earlier in the season, and their defense could keep them within striking defense in an opening round game, but we cannot see SPC advancing to the second round.

 

Southern Conference

Wofford 77

College of Charleston 67

 

Wofford 21-12

 

The Terriers finally beat the Cougars (we predicted this yesterday), and they will not roll over and play dead in the first round.  This team returns to the Dance for the second consecutive season, and they will not back down.  They may not advance, but they will not be in awe of their heavily favored first round opponent.

 

West Coast Conference

Gonzaga 75

Saint Mary’s 63

 

Gonzaga 24-9

 

This edition of Zags may not be the most talented in the Coach Mark Few era, but they are playing their best ball at the right time.  It will depend on their bracket, but this team has Sweet 16 potential.

 

Three More Invitations Go Out Tonight

By 11:15 PM Eastern Time tonight, we will know the names of three more NCAA Tournament participants.  Let’s break down these games.

 

Horizon League Championship @ 9PM ET on ESPN

Butler (22-9)  at  Milwaukee (19-12)

 

Butler defeated Cleveland State in the semifinal round Saturday evening, while Milwaukee topped Valparaiso.  During the regular season, Milwaukee swept the Bulldogs, winning 76-52 at home and 86-80 in overtime on the road.  The top-seeded Panthers host this game.

 

Both teams are red hot coming into this title match.  Milwaukee has gone 10-1 in their last 11 games, and the only loss was in the Bracketbuster to Buffalo.  Their defense is what got them here, as they shoot only 43% from the field and 65% at the foul line.

 

Three Panthers average double figures in scoring, led by Anthony Hill.  Hill averages just under 16 points per game, but he broke out with a 24-point, 11-rebound performance in the semifinal game against Valpo.  Kaylon Williams is the X-factor for Panthers.  He can score when needed, rebound with the big men, and run the offense.  He recorded a triple-double earlier in the season against Butler (10 points-10 rebounds-10 assists), and he added a double-double in the second win over the Bulldogs.

 

Butler missed Gordon Hayward even more than most experts predicted.  The Bulldogs played a tough pre-conference schedule and limped into February.  With their backs against the wall, they reeled off eight consecutive victories to get to the title game tonight.

 

Most basketball fans know Matt Howard and Shelvin Mack from last year’s team that made the surprise run to the National Championship Game.  The duo has teamed for 32 points and 6.5 rebounds per game this year.  However, it has been the emergence of 6-11 sophomore center Andrew Smith that has allowed Butler to turn things around and look like a force to be reckoned with once again.  Smith averaged 11 points per game over the second half of the season.  In the eight game winning streak, he has averaged 32 minutes per game and pulled down close to eight rebounds per game.  His 63% field goal percentage has forced defenses to stop him first, giving Howard and Mack more room to get open.  Smith was a non-factor in the two games against Milwaukee, and he is the key to tonight’s game.  If he plays 32 minutes and gets double figure points and eight rebounds, Butler will be cutting down the nets yet again.

 

Summit League Championship @ 9PM ET on ESPN2

Site: Sioux Falls, SD

Oakland (24-9)  vs. Oral Roberts (19-14)

 

If you like high-scoring, fast-paced games, you will definitely clear your schedule to view this one.  Oakland is the second best offensive team in the nation, averaging 86 points per game (92 ppg in their last 10 games).  The Grizzlies connect on close to 50% of their field goal attempts, and they tend to hit spurts where they score 10 points in two minutes.  Oral Roberts averages 81 points per game and has no qualms running with Oakland.

 

Both teams are riding major winning streaks entering tonight’s title game.  Oakland has won 17 of their last 18 games, while the Golden Eagles have won 10 in a row.  In the regular season, Oakland won both high-scoring games, but both were nail-biters that went down to the wire. 

 

Oakland has a tall and short combination that has done a lot of the damage on opponents.  6-11 center Keith Benson is the best player in the league.  Benson averages 17.7 points and 10 rebounds per game.  He showed he can do it against the big schools, as he had 17 points and 12 rebounds in a close loss to Michigan State and 26 points and 10 rebounds in a big win at Tennessee. 

 

5-11 guard Reggie Hamilton is a threat to top 20 points any night.  He is quick and can get open without help from screens.

 

Oral Roberts has a star in its own right.  Dominique Morrison averages just under 20 points per game, and he doesn’t need to heave up 25 shots per game to get those points.  Morrison shoots 51.3% from the field, 40% from behind the three-point line, and 78.4% at the foul line.  He scored 56 points in the two games against Oakland.

 

This should be a great game, and we don’t believe Oakland is that much of a favorite.  ORU has been to the Big Dance four times in the last six years, while Oakland is the defending tournament champion.  We expect the winner to top 90 points in this game, and it is too close to call.  We say Oakland has about a 54% chance and Oral Roberts a 46% chance of winning.

 

Sunbelt Conference Championship @ 7PM ET on ESPN2

Site: Hot Springs, AR

 

North Texas (22-10)  vs. U A L R (18-16)

 

On paper this looks like a mismatch, even though the teams finished one game apart in the regular season.  North Texas finished fourth in the West with an 8-8 league mark, while Little Rock finished fifth at 7-9.

 

North Texas was one of the biggest underachievers this season.  The Mean Green returned four starters from their 2010 conference champion team and were expected to win again this year with the best backcourt and one of the best frontcourts in the league.  Instead, a 3-9 swoon in the middle of the season placed them out of contention for the West crown.  Since that awful slide, UNT has recovered with five consecutive victories.

 

6-5 senior guard Tristan Thompson has led the way for the Mean Green in the tournament, scoring 80 points in the first three games.  He has done a lot of the damage at the foul line, where he is 31-35 in Hot Springs, including an unbelievable 20-20 performance in the win over top-seed Florida Atlantic.  Thompson combines a quick move to the basket with a sweet shot from outside.  Beefy forward George Odufuwa averages 11 points and 10.2 rebounds per game, and UALR has a tough matchup problem against him.

 

The Trojans dropped both regular season games to North Texas, mostly because they could not compete under the basket.  Their chance to win this game will come down to limiting possessions and trying to win 55-50.  They have won three games in the tournament by getting to the foul line and hitting foul shots, while using the clock and taking 30 seconds to shoot on most possessions.  UALR’s big star in this tournament has been senior guard Solomon Bozeman.  Like Thompson, Bozeman has gotten to the free throw line and made the most of his opportunities.  He has connected on 37 of 42 attempts including an eye-popping 19 of 22 against Middle Tennessee last night.

 

We expect a low-possession, low-scoring game.  There may be fewer than 100 field goal attempts tonight.  North Texas has been there before, while UALR has never won the Sunbelt Conference Tournament.  We think that trend will continue, but it wouldn’t surprise us if this game stays relatively close for the entire 40 minutes.  We could see North Texas winning 60-54.

 

The Other Tournaments In Action Today

 

Atlantic 10 Conference

First Round At Higher Seed Home Court

 

#9 Dayton (19-12) at #8 U Mass (15-14)  9PM ET on CBSC

#12 St. Joseph’s (9-21) at #5 George Washington (17-13)  7PM ET on CBSC

#10 LaSalle (14-17) at #7 St. Bonaventure (16-13)  5 PM ET on CBSC

#11 St. Louis (12-18) at #6 Rhode Island (18-12)  7 PM ET no TV

 

Big East Conference

Madison Square Garden in New York City

 

#16 Depaul (7-23) vs. #9 Georgetown (21-9) 12 Noon ET on ESPN2

#13 Rutgers (14-16) vs. #12 Seton Hall (13-17) Approx. 2:15 PM ET on ESPN2

#15 South Florida (9-22) vs. #10 Villanova (21-10) 7PM ET on ESPNU

#14 Providence (15-16) vs. #11 Marquette (18-13) Approx 9:15 ET on ESPNU

 

Big Sky Conference

Semifinal Round At Higher Seed Home Court

#3 Weber State (18-11) at #2 Montana (20-9)

#4 Northern Arizona (19-11) at #1 Northern Colorado (19-10)

 

Mid-American Conference

1^st Round At Higher Seed Home Court  All Games At 7PM ET

 

#10 Northern Illinois (9-20) at #7 Bowling Green (13-18)

#11 Eastern Michigan (9-21) at #6 Akron (19-12)

#9 Central Michigan (10-20) at #8 Buffalo (17-12)

#12 Toledo (4-27) at #5 Ohio U (17-14)

 

Mideastern Athletic Conference

Lawrence Joel Coliseum in Winston-Salem, NC

 

#9 South Carolina State (9-21) vs. #8 Delaware State (9-20)  9PM ET

#10 Maryland-Eastern Shore (8-21) vs. #7 Florida A&M (12-19)  6:30 PM ET

 

Note: One more 1^st round game Wednesday plus two quarterfinal games

 

 

NCAA Basketball Conference Tournaments–March 7 Update

NCAA Tournament Qualifier #4

Congratulations to the Indiana State Sycamores, the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament champions.  ISU defeated Missouri State Sunday by a score of 60-56, giving them eight wins in their last nine games.  This Sycamore team is not to be confused with the 1979 National Finalists with some guy named Larry Bird doing a lot of the scoring, but ISU (20-13) has enough talent to pull off an upset in the first round.  The last time they were in the Big Dance, ISU upset Oklahoma 70-68 in the first round of the 2001 tourney; they lost 85-68 to Gonzaga in the next round.  The Sycamores lost by nine at Notre Dame and by 13 against Purdue, so they can compete against Top 10 teams.

 

Indiana State joins UNC-Asheville, Belmont, and Morehead State as automatic qualifiers in the NCAA Tournament.

 

Four More Teams To Enter The Dance Party Tonight

The field of automatic qualifiers doubles from four to eight tonight.  Let’s take a look at the four conference championships for Monday.

 

Colonial Athletic Association

Virginia Commonwealth (23-10)  vs. Old Dominion (26-6)

7:00 PM EST on ESPN

 

In the semifinal round, VCU upset top-seed George Mason 79-63, while Old Dominion ousted Hofstra 77-69.  Bubble teams will be cheering hard for ODU because if VCU wins, the CAA could send an extra team to the Dance.  George Mason and ODU are virtually assured at-large spots, but VCU will be College Insiders, CBI or NIT-bound if they lose tonight.

 

ODU has won eight games in a row and 12 of 13.  Big forward Frank Hassell has continued to improve and impress down below, and Notre Dame can tell you how well he plays in the postseason; ODU beat the Irish in the first round of last year’s NCAA Tournament.

 

VCU slumped at the end of the regular season, losing four of their final five games (and the one win was in the Bracketbuster) to fall from first to fourth.  The Rams won nine games in a row in the middle of the season, including a road victory over their opponent tonight. 

 

Forward Jamie Skeen will be the key man to watch.  If he can match or beat Hassell point-for-point and rebound-for-rebound, VCU should pull off the victory.  If Hassell wins the battle, then the Monarchs will live up to their preseason billing as best in the league. 

 

If the game comes down to the backcourt, then VCU has the superior tandem there with Bradford Burgess and Joey Rodriguez.  If the battle comes down to the rebounding game, ODU will win and maybe win by 10-20 points.

 

Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference

St. Peter’s (19-13)  vs.  Iona (22-10)

7:00 PM EST on ESPN2

 

St. Peter’s pulled off the big upset in this tournament, defeating #1-seed Fairfield 62-48 in yesterday’s semifinal round.  Iona slaughtered Rider 83-59 to earn their spot in the championship game.  The Gaels won their opener by 30 over Siena, so they are the clear-cut favorite tonight.

 

St. Peter’s is an experienced team.  The Peacocks’ top four players are seniors—Wesley Jenkins, Jeron Belin, Nick Leon, and Ryan Bacon.  The quartet averages a combined 45 points a game with all four averaging more than 10 points a game.  Their strongest asset is their defensive ability, and teams have a tough time scoring on SPU.  Unfortunately, the Peacocks barely top 40% shooting from the field and less than 64% at the foul line.  To win tonight, they need to connect on at least 45% of their shots and get some second chance opportunities.

 

Iona has the look of a champion.  The Gaels have won nine games in a row by an average margin of 18.6 points per game.  They swept SPU by 18 and 14 in the regular season.  Star forward Michael Glover has recorded 17 double-doubles, and the only thing that could prevent him from making it 18 tonight would be his early exit from the game due to the game being a blowout.

 

As you can surmise, we think Iona will put this game away with a big run about halfway into the opening half after a five to eight-minute period to calm the nerves.

 

Southern Conference

College of Charleston (24-9)  vs.  Wofford (20-12)

9:00 PM EST on ESPN2

 

Semifinal Scores

College of Charleston 63  Furman 58

Wofford 86  Western Carolina 72

 

The top two teams in the league meet for the third time and Charleston won the first two meetings.  The Cougars won the battle on the boards in both games and in turn took several more shots.  Andrew Goudelock was unstoppable in both games, and Wofford must do something to keep the ball out of his hands tonight and prevent him from scoring his average of 23 points per game to have a chance.

 

The Terriers are the defending SoCon Tournament champions, and they were the overwhelming pick to repeat as champions this year.  They will need a repeat of yesterday’s performance to pull off the upset.  Wofford connected on 54% of their field goals, 50% of their three-point attempts, and 80% at the foul line.  Their big three, Noah Dahlman, Jamar Diggs, and Cameron Rundles, teamed for 52 points and 16 rebounds.  Wofford also has excellent depth with three players capable of coming off the bench and scoring points and pulling down rebounds in massive numbers.

 

Charleston proved to be the better team in the regular season sweep, but we tend to believe this night will belong to Wofford.  The Terriers are playing up to their potential, while the Cougars are not. 

 

West Coast Conference

Saint Mary’s (24-7)  vs. Gonzaga (23-9)

9:00 PM EST on ESPN

 

Semifinal Round

Saint Mary’s 73  Santa Clara 64

Gonzaga 71  San Francisco 67

 

This is the game of the night.  We tend to believe both teams have done enough to punch a ticket to the tournament, but still, this will be a hard-fought rivalry game.

 

The teams split their regular season series, both winning close games on the other’s home court.  If you like offense, then this is the game for you.  Both teams routinely top 80 points per game, and both have enjoyed many nights where they shot in excess of 50% from the field.

 

Gonzaga has won eight games in a row, and the Bulldogs utilize great depth to wear down opponents.  They can go 10-deep with very little drop in talent, as no player averages over 14 points per game, and only one tops six rebounds per game. 

 

SMC relies on a trio of talented players in Mickey McConnell, Rob Jones, and Matthew Dellavedova.  They team up to average 43.3 points per game.  McConnell is one of the best outside shooters in the nation, and he is virtually automatic at the charity stripe.

 

This game is a tossup in the truest since, and we expect it to go down to the final minute for the third time this season.  They could not settle it in 40 minutes the last time they faced off, so this has to be considered a 50-50 game.  We will go with Gonzaga’s 50% chance tonight.

 

Continuing Tournaments

America East Conference

Semifinal Round

Boston U. 55  Hartford 49

Stony Brook 69  Vermont 47

 

Championship Game—Saturday, March 12@ 12 Noon on ESPN2

Stony Brook (15-16) at Boston U (20-13)

 

Northeast Conference

Semifinal Round

Long Island 69  Central Connecticut 67

Robert Morris 64  Quinnipiac 62

 

Championship Game—Wednesday, March 9 @ 7PM on ESPN2

Robert Morris (18-13) at Long Island (26-5)

 

Patriot League

Semifinal Round

Lafayette 73  American 71  2ot

Bucknell 66  Lehigh 64

 

Championship Game—Friday, March 11 @ 4:45 PM on ESPN2

Lafayette (13-18) at Bucknell (24-8)

 

Summit League

Quarterfinal Round

South Dakota State  85  I P F W  75

I U P U I  79  Missouri-KC  55 

 

Semifinal Round—Monday, March 7 @ Sioux Falls, SD

Oakland (23-9)  vs.  South Dakota State (19-11) @ 7:00 PM EST

Oral Roberts (18-14)  vs.  I U P U I (19-13) @ 9:30 PM EST

 

Sunbelt Conference

Quarterfinal Round

Western Kentucky 81  Louisiana-Lafayette 76

North Texas 78  Florida Atlantic 64

Middle Tennessee 73  Florida International 38

U A L R  59  Arkansas State 52

 

Semifinal Round—Monday, March 7 @ Hot Springs, AR

Western Kentucky (16-15)  vs. North Texas (21-10) @ 7:00 PM EST

Middle Tennessee (16-15)  vs.  U A L R (17-16) @ 9:30 PM EST

 

Coming Tomorrow: The Big Sky Conference and Horizon League Tournament Championships are decided, and four more conference tournaments begin.  Check back Tuesday afternoon for more coverage.

NCAA Basketball Conference Tournaments–March 6 Update

Congratulations To Three Champions

Three teams have punched their tickets to the Big Dance.

 

Big South Conference

UNC-Asheville 60  Coastal Carolina 47

 

UNC-Asheville 19-13

 

Atlantic Sun Conference

Belmont 87  North Florida 46

 

Belmont 30-4

 

Ohio Valley Conference

Morehead State 80  Tennessee Tech 73

 

Morehead State 24-9

 

Scores From Other Conference Tournaments

 

America East Conference

Vermont 57  Binghamton 46

Stony Brook 67  Albany 61

Boston U 69  New Hampshire 60

Hartford 66  Maine 63

 

Sunday, March 6 Semifinal Round

Vermont 23-7  vs. Stony Brook 14-16

Boston U. 19-13  vs. Hartford 11-19

 

Big Sky Conference

Weber State 79  Eastern Washington 70

Northern Arizona 65  Montana State 62

 

Tuesday, March 8 Semifinal Round

Montana 20-9  vs. Weber State 18-11

Northern Colorado 19-10  vs. Northern Arizona 19-11

 

Colonial Athletic Association

George Mason 68  Georgia State 45

Virginia Commonwealth 62  Drexel 60

Old Dominion 59  Delaware 50

Hofstra 72  William & Mary 56

 

Sunday, March 6 Semifinal Round

George Mason 26-5  vs.  Virginia Commonwealth 22-10

Old Dominion 25-6  vs. Hofstra 21-10

 

Horizon League

Butler 76  Cleveland State 68

Milwaukee 70  Valparaiso 63

 

Tuesday, March 8 Championship Game

Butler 22-9  vs. Milwaukee 19-12

 

Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference

Fairfield 55  Marist 31

St. Peter’s 70  Loyola (MD) 60

Rider 79  Canisius 64

Iona 94  Siena 64

 

Sunday, March 6 Semifinal Round

Fairfield 24-6  vs. St. Peter’s 18-13

Rider 23-9  vs. Iona 21-10

 

Missouri Valley Conference

Missouri State 60  Creighton 50

Indiana State 61  Wichita State 54

 

Sunday, March 6 Championship Game

Missouri State 25-7  vs. Indiana State 19-13

 

Southern Conference

Western Carolina 77 UNC-Greensboro 66

Wofford 67  Appalachian State 56

Furman 61  Chattanooga 52

College of Charleston 78  Elon 60

 

Sunday, March 6 Semifinal Round

Western Carolina 18-14  vs. Wofford 19-12

Furman 22-9  vs. College of Charleston 23-9

 

Summit League

Oakland 82  Southern Utah 66

Oral Roberts 72  North Dakota State 65

 

Sunday, March 6 Quarterfinal Round Continues

I P F W  18-11  vs. South Dakota State 18-11

I U P U I  18-13  vs. Missouri-Kansas City 16-13

 

Sunbelt Conference

Western Kentucky 66  Louisiana-Monroe 50

North Texas 83  Troy 69

Florida Int’l 53  Denver 49

U A L R  82  South Alabama 68

 

Sunday, March 6 Quarterfinal Round

Louisiana-Lafayette 14-14  vs. Western Kentucky 15-15

Florida Atlantic 21-9  vs. North Texas 20-10

Middle Tennessee 15-15  vs. Florida Int’l  11-18

Arkansas State 17-14  vs. U A L R  16-16

 

West Coast Conference

Santa Clara 76  Loyola Marymount 68

San Francisco 76  Pepperdine 59

 

Sunday, March 6 Semifinal Round

St. Mary’s 23-7  vs. Santa Clara 19-13

Gonzaga 22-9  vs. San Francisco 17-13