Saturday, March 8, 2014

Mid-Major Conference Tournaments Might Have Eliminated One Of The Best Mid Majors

The big upset of the day was Green Bay's loss in the Horizon League tourney to Milwaukee. Not only did Green Bay lose to someone other than Cleveland State, they lost at home. Green Bay's at-large chances are shaky, at best. Some things are going to need to break Green Bay's way for them to squeeze in, but my instant reaction was out.

There were a number of other major games involving teams falling out. Eastern Kentucky beat the Ohio Valley's #2 Murray State and #1 Belmont to win the OVC tournament, snagging the only berth from that conference. Green Bay, at the very least, could worry bubble teams for the next week. As you'll see below, some teams, like St. John's, got the job done, while others, like Arkansas, fell apart.

@Florida 84, Kentucky 65
@West Virginia 92, Kansas 86 - KU likely out of #1 seed hunt with loss at WVU
Cincinnati 70, @Rutgers 66
@Memphis 67, SMU 58 - Memphis near lock with win over SMU
St. John's 91, @Marquette 90 (2OT) - MU out, SJU in good position with good BE tourney showing
Baylor 76, @Kansas State 74 - KSU falls close to the edge of the bracket in home loss
@Toledo 77, Eastern Kentucky 66
@Villanova 77, Georgetown 59
@Louisville 81, Connecticut 48
@Iowa State 85, Oklahoma State 81 (OT) - major seeding win for ISU, OSU should be safe
@Georgia State 73, Western Kentucky 55
@Stanford 61, Utah 60 - tough loss for bubble Utes, win keeps Cardinal in bracket
Oklahoma 97, @TCU 67
@Texas Tech 59, Texas 53 - bad loss from seeding standpoint for UT
@Tennessee 72, Missouri 45 - Mizzou in big trouble now
@Alabama 83, Arkansas 58 - Arkansas just about dead too
@Oregon 64, Arizona 57 - UO should be a lock, and Zona might lose #1 overall, but not #1 seed
Pittsburgh 83, @Clemson 78 - Clemson likely out
@Oregon State 78, Arizona State 76 (OT) - ASU's seed takes hit, can't afford bad tourney loss
George Washington 70, @Fordham 67
Georgia 69, @LSU 61 - LSU dead as well
Weber State 82, @Eastern Washington 78
@Michigan 84, Indiana 80
@California 66, Colorado 65 (OT) - Cal stays alive with win, Colorado still in OK shape
Texas Southern 67, @Southern 64
Harvard 98, @Brown 93
@Dayton 60, Richmond 48
@VCU 86, Saint Bonaventure 67
@UC Irvine 74, UC Davis 46
@Stephen F. Austin 85, Central Arkansas 61
@Creighton 88, Providence 73 - Friars needed this, but good showing in BE tourney can be enough
Illinois 66, @Iowa 63
@Duke 93, North Carolina 81
@San Diego State 51, New Mexico 48
@Washington State 73, UCLA 55 - absurdly bad loss for UCLA

Ohio Valley Tournament Championship

#3 Eastern Kentucky 79, #1 Belmont 73

Notes: Eastern Kentucky gets automatic NCAA tournament berth. Game at Nashville, TN.

America East Tournament

#1 Vermont 77, #8 New Hampshire 60
#4 Albany 86, #5 UMBC 56
#2 Stony Brook 80, #7 Maine 54
#3 Hartford 69, #6 Binghamton 42

Notes: See below for future tournament information. All games at Albany, NY.

Big South Tournament

#4S Winthrop 80, #2S UNC Asheville 79
#1S Coastal Carolina 66, #2N VMI 62

Notes: See below for future tournament information. All games at Conway, SC.

Colonial Tournament

#1 Delaware 87, #8 Hofstra 67
#5 Northeastern 90, #4 Drexel 81
#2 Towson 80, #7 James Madison 71
#3 William & Mary 70, #6 Charleston 59

Notes: See below for future tournament information. All games at Baltimore, MD.

Horizon Tournament

#3 Wright State 68, #2 Cleveland State 63
#5 Milwaukee 73, #1 Green Bay 66 (OT)

Notes: Milwaukee plays at Wright State on March 11 for the Horizon League tournament championship. Winner gets an automatic berth into the NCAA tournament. Semifinal games at Green Bay, WI.

MAAC Tournament

#1 Iona 94, #8 Rider 71
#4 Canisius 71, #5 Siena 65
#2 Manhattan 72, #7 Saint Peter's 58
#3 Quinnipiac 89, #11 Niagara 80

Notes: See below for future tournament information. All games at Springfield, MA.

Missouri Valley Tournament

#1 Wichita State 67, #4 Missouri State 42
#2 Indiana State 62, #6 Southern Illinois 59

Notes: See below for future tournament information. All games at Saint Louis, MO.

Northeast Tournament

#4 Mount St. Mary's 77, #2 Wagner 72
#1 Robert Morris 60, #6 Saint Francis (PA) 57

Notes: Mount St. Mary's plays at Robert Morris on March 11 for the Northeast Conference Tournament Championship. Winner gets an automatic berth into the NCAA tournament.

Patriot Tournament

#1 @Boston U 91, #5 Army 70
#2 @American 57, #3 Holy Cross 46

Notes: American plays at Boston U on March 12 for the Patriot League Tournament Championship. Winner gets an automatic berth into the NCAA tournament.

Southern Tournament

#1 Davidson 77, #8 Samford 54
#5 Western Carolina 66, #4 Elon 64
#7 Georgia Southern 62, #2 Chattanooga 55
#3 Wofford 68, #11 The Citadel 51

Notes: See below for future tournament information. All games at Asheville, NC.

Summit Tournament

#2 IPFW 85, #7 IUPUI 47

Notes: IPFW plays winner of #3 South Dakota State/#6 Western Illinois on March 10. All games at Sioux Falls, SD.

West Coast Tournament

#3 San Francisco 69, #6 San Diego 60
#2 BYU 85, #10 Loyola Marymount 74
#1 Gonzaga 77, #9 Santa Clara 75
#4 Saint Mary's 80, #5 Pepperdine 69

Notes: Gonzaga plays Saint Mary's and BYU plays San Francisco on March 10. All games at Las Vegas, NV.



It's hard to say who might be the most desperate major conference team playing on Sunday. Florida State could nearly lock itself into the bracket by beating Syracuse, and Minnesota and Nebraska need wins to get to the edge so that they can possibly lose late in the Big Ten tournament. Nebraska might have the most to gain, with a surging Wisconsin coming into town. That and three more bids get sewn up in conference tournament championships.

#2 Virginia at Maryland
#3 Syracuse at (LFI) #12 Florida State
#6 Saint Louis at #7 Massachusetts
La Salle at #10 Saint Joseph's
#4 Michigan State at #7 Ohio State
Penn State at (NFO) Minnesota
#2 Wisconsin at (NFO) Nebraska

Atlantic Sun Tournament Championship

#2 Mercer at #1 Florida Gulf Coast

Notes: Winner gets NCAA tournament automatic berth.

Big South Tournament Championship

#4S Winthrop vs. #1S Coastal Carolina

Notes: Winner gets NCAA tournament automatic berth. Game at Conway, SC.

Missouri Valley Tournament Championship

#1 Wichita State vs. #2 Indiana State

Notes: Winner gets NCAA tournament automatic berth. Game at Saint Louis, MO.

America East Tournament

#1 Vermont vs. #4 Albany
#2 Stony Brook vs. #3 Hartford

Notes: Winners play for America East tournament championship on March 15 at highest remaining seed. Semifinal games at Albany, NY.

Colonial Tournament

#1 Delaware vs. #5 Northeastern
#2 Towson vs. #3 William & Mary

Notes: Winners play for Colonial Athletic Association tournament championship on March 10. All games at Baltimore, MD.

MAAC Tournament

#1 Iona vs. #4 Canisius
#2 Manhattan vs. #3 Quinnipiac

Notes: Winners play for MAAC tournament championship on March 10. All games at Springfield, MA.

Southern Tournament

#1 Davidson vs. #5 Western Carolina
#3 Wofford vs. #7 Georgia Southern

Notes: Winners play for Southern Conference tournament championship on March 10. All games at Asheville, NC.

Summit Tournament

#4 Denver vs. #5 South Dakota
#3 South Dakota State vs. #6 Western Illinois

Notes: Denver/South Dakota plays #1 North Dakota State and South Dakota State/Western Illinois plays #2 IPFW on March 10. All games at Sioux Falls, SD.

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