The Atlantic Sun tournament tips off Thursday night in Orlando.
That can mean only one thing: It’s time to start looking ahead to the biggest Sunday of the college basketball season, when the NCAA announces its men’s tournament field.
There are 65 slots available, but 31 will go to automatic qualifiers and another 20 or so have already been claimed by at-large contenders. That leaves as few as 12 bids to be sorted out in the next 10 days, though that is hardly a strict accounting.
“This time of year you hear a lot of `Oh, they’re definitely in,'” West Coast Conference Commissioner Michael Gilleran said. “Sometimes it sounds like there are going to be 80 teams in the tournament.”
Here’s a conference-by-conference look at who’s in and who’s hoping to be, with projected number of bids in parentheses.
America East (1)
In: Tourney champion. Vermont and Boston University tied for the regular-season title, but the Catamounts swept their two games so they would play host if the teams meet in the tourney final. Vermont has never played in the NCAAs, so coach Tom Brennan isn’t worried about opening the tourney as a 16th seed against, say, Cincinnati. “I don’t care if we have to play the Lakers in the Staples Center,” Brennan told the Boston Globe. Tourney: Saturday-Sunday in Boston. Final is March 9 at home of highest remaining seed.
Atlantic Coast (5)
In: Maryland, Duke, Wake Forest, North Carolina State. Hoping: Virginia: Once a virtual lock, the Cavaliers have gone into a free fall, losing seven of their last nine with Duke looming Thursday and Maryland Sunday. Tourney: March 7-10 at Charlotte.
Atlantic Sun (1)
In: Tourney champion. Favorite is top-seeded Georgia State, coached by wily ol’ Lefty Driesell. Tourney: Thursday-Saturday in Orlando.
Atlantic 10 (2)
In: Xavier. Hoping: St. Joseph’s: The Hawks are playing better down the stretch but probably need to win the A-10 tourney. Temple: Given up for dead at 6-12, the Owls have rebounded nicely and could surprise in the league tourney, and their great schedule strength could give them an edge over fellow A-10 hopefuls Dayton and St. Bonaventure. Temple visits Dayton in a critical game Wednesday night. Tourney: March 6-9 in Philadelphia.
Big East (5)
In: Pittsburgh, Miami, Connecticut, Syracuse, Notre Dame. Hoping: St. John’s: The embarrassing 97-55 loss to Duke couldn’t have helped the Red Storm’s image with selectors. Boston College: The Eagles sustained a big blow when they were routed by Connecticut at home Monday night. Rutgers: Currently have 18 wins. Tourney: March 6-9 in New York.
Big Sky (1)
In: Tourney champion. Montana State, the regular-season champ, plays host to the tourney. Tourney: March 7-9 at Missoula, Mont.
Big South (1)
In: Tourney champion. Winthrop (16-11) is the only team with a winning overall record. Tourney: Thursday-Saturday in Roanoke, Va.
Big Ten (5-6)
In: Ohio State, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, Michigan State. Hoping: Minnesota, Northwestern. The Big Ten is so weak it’s not out of the realm of possibility for the mediocre Golden Gophers or Wildcats to win the conference tournament. Remember that Iowa went 7-9 in the regular season a year ago but claimed the tourney title in Chicago. “What if Iowa wins the tournament again?” Ohio State athletic director Andy Geiger said. “All of a sudden, you’ve got six teams out of a league that’s not supposed to be any good.” Tourney: March 7-10 in Indianapolis.
Big 12 (5-6)
In: Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, Oklahoma State. Hoping: Texas Tech: The selectors probably will do anything they can to find a spot for Bob Knight, and they won’t hold his pile of non-conference creampuff victories against him. Missouri: The underachieving Tigers overcame a 10-point deficit to earn a much-needed 72-69 victory over No. 12 Oklahoma State Monday night in Columbia, Mo., and they can virtually lock up a berth by upsetting Kansas in the regular-season finale Sunday. “I believe we’re good enough,” Tigers senior Clarence Gilbert told the Kansas City Star. Tourney: March 7-10 in Kansas City, Mo.
Big West (1-2)
In: Tourney champion. Hoping: Utah State, which is ranked 45th in the RPI, probably will snare an at-large berth if it doesn’t win the tournament. Tourney: March 7-9 in Anaheim.
Colonial (1)
In: Tourney champion. UNC-Wilmington finished first in the regular-season standings. Tourney: Friday-Monday in Richmond, Va.
Conference USA (3-4)
In: Cincinnati and Marquette. Hoping: Memphis: The Tigers are marginal at best; they haven’t beaten a team ranked in the Top 50 of the RPI all year. A victory at Cincinnati Sunday might make the difference. Charlotte: The 49ers are 30th in the RPI, but they haven’t done much since beating Marquette Jan. 5. South Florida: The Bulls romped past Houston Tuesday night and need to close out the regular season with a win over Southern Miss, and it wouldn’t hurt to add a victory in the conference tourney. Tourney: March 6-9 in Cincinnati.
Horizon (1-2)
In: Tourney champion. Hoping: Butler. The Bulldogs beat Ball State and Indiana, so they ought to be in good shape even if they are upset in the conference tourney. But they’re not a lock. Tourney: Friday-Tuesday in Cleveland.
Ivy (1)
In: Conference champion. Pennsylvania, Yale and Princeton are in a race for first place. Yale was swept at Penn and Princeton last weekend. Title could come down to Princeton at Penn in Tuesday’s regular-season finale. Tourney: None.
Metro Atlantic (1)
In: Tourney champion. Marist and Rider shared the regular-season title. Tourney: Friday-Monday in Albany, N.Y.
Mid-American (1-2)
In: Tourney champion. Hoping: Kent State: The Golden Flashes (23-5, 16-1) have won 14 straight games heading into the regular-season finale Saturday at Miami of Ohio and they look as if they’re going to draw an NCAA berth even if they don’t win the league tourney. Ball State (18-9, 11-5) and Bowling Green (21-6, 11-5) probably won’t be as fortunate. Tourney: March 7-9 in Cleveland.
Mid-Continent (1)
In: Tourney champion. Valparaiso is gunning for its sixth trip to the NCAAs in seven years. Tourney: Sunday-Tuesday in Ft. Wayne, Ind.
Mid-Eastern Athletic (1)
In: Tourney champion. Hampton (22-8, 16-1) has run away with the regular-season title, but the Pirates still will be denied an NCAA berth if they don’t win the tourney. Tourney: Monday-March 9 in Richmond, Va.
Missouri Valley (1)
In: Tourney champion. Creighton and Southern Illinois tied for first in the regular season. Hoping: Southern Illinois. The Salukis have 24 victories, including one over Indiana. They might scoop up an at-large berth if they make the Valley final. Tourney: Friday-Monday in St. Louis.
Mountain West (1-2)
In: Utah. Hoping: Wyoming: the Cowboys took a huge hit Monday night in a 74-65 loss to New Mexico. Brigham Young: Beating Stanford was a coup, but the Cougars have slumped in conference play (7-5). Tourney: March 7-9 in Las Vegas.
Northeast (1)
In: Tourney champion. Central Connecticut State is the top seed. Tourney: Friday and Saturday in Staten Island, N.Y., with March 6 final at home of highest remaining seed.
Ohio Valley (1)
In: Tourney champion. Tennessee Tech, coached by Dean Smith disciple Jeff Lebo, won the regular-season title. Tourney: Opened Tuesday night at campus sites. Semifinals and finals Friday and Saturday in Louisville.
Pac-10 (6-7)
In: Arizona, Southern Cal, Stanford, Oregon, UCLA, California. Hoping: Arizona State: Sun Devils have beaten Arizona, Oregon and UCLA, but with a losing conference record they’ll have to win the tourney to draw a berth. Tourney: March 7-9 in Los Angeles.
Patriot (1)
In: Tourney champion. American University is the top seed. Tourney: Saturday and Sunday in Upper Marlboro, Md., with March 8 final at home of highest remaining seed.
Southeastern (6-7)
In: Alabama, Kentucky, Georgia, Florida, Mississippi, Mississippi State. Hoping: South Carolina: The Gamecocks have 16 victories, so they may need to win the SEC tourney to draw a berth. Tourney: March 7-10 in Atlanta.
Southern (1)
In: Tourney champion. Wildly unpredictable league, with Davidson, East Tennessee State and UNC Greensboro sharing the North Division title and College of Charleston, Georgia Southern and UT Chattanooga sharing the South Division title. Tourney: Thursday-Sunday in Charleston, S.C.
Southland (1)
In: Tourney champion. McNeese State will finish first in the regular season. Tourney: Monday-March 9 at campus sites.
Southwestern Athletic (1)
In: Tourney champion. Alcorn State led the way in the regular season. Tourney: Tuesday-March 9 in Birmingham, Ala.
Sun Belt (1-2)
In: Western Kentucky. The Hilltoppers defeated Kentucky in Lexington and enter the postseason on a 15-game winning streak. Hoping: An upset tourney winner, possibly Louisiana-Lafayette or Lou Henson’s New Mexico State squad. Tourney: Friday-Monday in New Orleans.
West Coast (1-2)
In: Gonzaga. Hoping: Pepperdine. The Waves have beaten USC and UCLA on the road and have no-shame losses to Arizona, Utah, Oregon and Gonzaga. Tourney: Saturday-Monday in San Diego.
Western Athletic (1-2)
In: Tourney champion. Hawaii leads Tulsa by one-half game for first place heading into the final week of the regular season. The tourney will be played on Tulsa’s home floor. Hoping: Tulsa and Hawaii have each won 23 games. Tourney: Tuesday-March 9 in Tulsa.
STATS & STUFF
BY THE NUMBERS
20.6
Turnovers per game committed by Liberty, most in Division I.
8.7
Assists per game by Texas’ T.J. Ford, best in Division I. Notre Dame’s Chris Thomas ranks fifth with 7.6.
THE LIST
The top 10 three-point shooting teams in Division I, through Monday.
TEAM PERCENT
Oregon 43.9
Tulsa 42.3
Marshall 42.1
Kansas 42.1
Wright State 41.4
Portland State 41.3
Bowling Green 41.2
Illinois-Chicago 41.1
Utah 41.0
SW Missouri St. 40.9
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TIME OUT WITH . . . . . .
Cincinnati coach Bob Huggins, whose 26-2 Bearcats are angling for a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament.
“This is certainly not one of our more talented teams. This is just a bunch of good guys that play very well together.”
GAMES TO WATCH
Stanford at Arizona
9:30 p.m. Thursday
In recent years this game has been for a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tourney. This year the Cardinal and the Wildcats are part of the six-team crunch contending for the top slot in the Pac-10.
Oregon at Southern Cal
9:30 p.m. Thursday
A Trojan win would lift them into a first-place tie in the Pac-10 with the Ducks. Oregon won a thriller in the first meeting.
Florida at Kentucky
11 a.m. Saturday
The troubled Wildcats are trying to find consistency heading into the postseason. A win could be a huge confidence booster.
Cincinnati at Memphis
Noon Sunday
A big-time showdown in Conference USA. The Bearcats are playing for a No. 1 NCAA tourney seed, and Memphis may be playing to get into the tourney.
Virginia at Maryland
7 p.m. Sunday
It’s the final game in historic Cole Field House, one of the grand old college hoops venues. It was the site of perhaps the most significant game in NCAA history, when Texas Western used five black starters to defeat an all-white Kentucky team 72-65 for the national title on March 19, 1966.
Alabama at Mississippi
1 p.m. Sunday
If the Crimson Tide’s dream of a No. 1 seed is going to come through, they have to bring back a win from Oxford.
–Andrew Bagnato.
