The last group of non-power conference tournaments may offer the most compelling storylines of Championship Week. There is an unbeaten team that isn’t the favorite in its own tournament, multiple bid thieves lurking, and a No. 1 seed that may not be allowed to play.
Between that and the history of these leagues producing shocking upsets, the following conference tournaments demand your attention.
American
Dates: March 11-15
TV: ESPN+, ESPNU, ESPN2, ESPN
Notable: Rice, East Carolina and UTSA failed to qualify for the American Tournament
South Florida (23-8, 15-3) is the No. 1 seed and clear favorite, led by its top-10 scoring offense (88.4 points per game), with all five starters averaging in double figures. Wichita State (21-10, 13-5) is a threat, led by 5-foot-11 senior guard Kenyon Giles, who is second in the league in scoring with 19.4 points per game. Tulsa (25-6, 13-5) has been one of the biggest surprises in the American and is riding a five-game win streak into the tournament.
The rest of the teams in the field all have between eight and 11 wins, including teams such as Florida Atlantic (17-14, 9-9), Temple (16-15, 8-10) and Memphis (13-18, 8-10), each of whom has shown the potential to make a run.
Atlantic 10
Dates: March 11-15
TV: USA Network, CNBC, CBSSN, CBS
Notable: Saint Louis will get at least an at-large bid to the NCAAT, VCU firmly on the bubble
Thanks to a blowout loss to end the regular season, Saint Louis (27-4, 15-3) shared the title with VCU (24-7, 15-3), but the Rams are in the tougher spot, with only Quad 3 matchups between them and the finals while being on the bubble. George Mason (23-8, 11-7) is hoping its 29-point win over Saint Louis to end the regular season has put them back on the radar.
Dayton (21-10, 12-6) is a team with plenty of potential that suffered a random losing skid. St. Joseph’s (21-10, 13-5) is the surprise No. 3 seed under interim head coach Steve Donahue, while Duquesne (17-14, 9-9) is the host of the tournament and has a recent Cinderella run in the A-10 Tournament, winning as a No. 6 seed a couple of years ago.
WAC
Dates: March 11-14
TV: ESPN+, ESPN2
Notable: Status of No. 1 seed Utah Valley is uncertain amidst ongoing disputes with the WAC
The participation of Utah Valley (24-7, 14-4) in the WAC Tournament remains in jeopardy. If the Wolverines get the opportunity, they are big favorites to earn the automatic bid. The next-closest threat is Cal Baptist (23-8, 13-5), which won 13 of its last 15 games to take the No. 2 seed and has one of the top scorers in the nation in 5-foot-10 senior guard Dominique Daniels (22.6 points per game).
The other top scorer in the WAC is Dior Johnson, a 6-foot-3 junior guard averaging 23.8 points per game for Tarleton State (14-17, 5-13). While the team isn’t much of a threat, he could lead them to an upset or two if he goes off.
MAC
Dates: March 12-14
TV: ESPN+, CBSSN, ESPN2
Notable: Ball State, Central Michigan, Western Michigan, Northern Illinois and Eastern Michigan failed to qualify, with four of them having already fired their head coaches
All eyes are on Miami (OH) after the RedHawks finished the regular season with a perfect 31-0 record. That should get them safely into the NCAA Tournament, creating a bid thief scenario. The team most likely to steal a spot is Akron (26-5, 17-1), which lost a close road game at Miami and didn’t get a chance to play them at home. In fact, most metrics have the Zips as the clear better team and the favorite to win the MAC Tournament.
Other teams with a chance to prevent those two from meeting up in the final include Kent State (23-8, 14-4), led by 6-foot-8 senior forward Delrecco Gillespie (18.1 points and 11.2 rebounds per game). No. 4 seed Toledo (17-14, 11-7) has historically been a team to watch in this tournament and nearly beat Miami a week ago. The Rockets are led by a pair of 6-foot-1 guards in Sonny Wilson and Leroy Blyden, who each average at least 16 points and 4.5 assists per game.
Ivy League
Dates: March 14-15
TV: ESPNU, ESPNews, ESPN2
Notable: Columbia, Dartmouth, Princeton and Brown failed to qualify for the four-team tournament
From start to finish, No. 1 seed Yale (23-5, 11-3) has been on top of the Ivy League standings, led by 6-foot-7 senior forward Nick Townsend (16.5 points, 7.5 rebounds, 4.1 assists per game). The Bulldogs’ biggest opposition is perennial Ivy power Harvard (17-11, 10-4), which split the regular-season meetings, both of which went down to the wire.
After winning just eight games a year ago, first-year coach Fran McCaffery has led Penn (16-11, 9-5) back into the top four, led by the dynamic duo of 6-foot-9 junior forward TJ Power (15.8 points and 7.5 rebounds per game) and 6-foot-5 senior guard Ethan Roberts (16.9 points per game). Cornell (15-12, 8-6) is a threat due to its top-10 scoring offense, combined with the fact that they’re the hosts this year, which could spell trouble for Yale in the semis.
Meet your guide
