Winners Club: Tourney Play Ramps Up Across Top 6 Conferences

The latest news around the sports world, plus picks, college basketball tournament schedules, results and analysis.

Some would say conference tournament week beats out the first round of the NCAA tournament. I don’t know if I’m one of those people, but I’m sure excited for a lot more good, high-intensity basketball over the next few days leading up to Selection Sunday.

There have already been some epic finishes in championship games (looking at you, Chattanooga!) and the win-and-in basketball continues tonight in the Patriot League final.

Conference Tournaments Underway

The first of the Power 6 tournaments began Tuesday when the ACC kicked things off. The remaining five begin today. Until some of the better teams take the court later in the week, these games are rather bleak (as anyone who watched the first three ACC tourney games can attest to), but there’s some tournament intrigue today, namely in the ACC and Big East.

Frank Franklin II/AP

ACC

Schedule | Preview

Game to Watch: Virginia Tech vs. Clemson

The Hokies are in SI’s next four out, so they’re in desperate need of a win against a Tigers team they lost to Saturday.

Big 12

Schedule | Preview

Game to Watch: West Virginia vs. Kansas State

This is the best Big 12 game by virtue of being the only Big 12 game—at least both teams have volume scorers to watch in this matchup.

Big East

Schedule | Preview

Game to Watch: Butler vs. Xavier

The Musketeers are on the bubble after a precipitous slide to end the season. Beating a Bulldogs team they defeated twice during the regular season would be a step toward the tournament for Xavier.

Big Ten

Schedule | Preview

Game to Watch: Minnesota vs. Penn State

This is one of two Big Ten games going on, and unless you’re a Nebraska or Northwestern fan (and even then), watching the Golden Gophers and Nittany Lions is probably preferable.

Pac-12

Schedule | Preview

Game to Watch: Utah vs. Washington

The Huskies swept the season series against the Utes and enter the Pac-12 tourney with some momentum and the leading scorer in the conference, Terrell Brown Jr.

SEC

Schedule | Preview

Game to Watch: Ole Miss vs. Missouri

This game figures to be less one-sided than the Georgia-Vanderbilt game taking place later in the evening. The Tigers swept the season series and are favorites in this one as well.

Tickets, Please

Which teams have already punched their tickets to the NCAA tournament?

Here’s a running list of the teams that you’re guaranteed to see when you fill out your bracket.

Charles Krupa/AP

Atlantic Sun: Jacksonville State

Big South: Longwood

Colonial: Delaware

Horizon: Wright State

Missouri Valley: Loyola Chicago

Northeast: Bryant

Ohio Valley Conference: Murray State

Southern: Chattanooga

Summit: South Dakota State

Sun Belt: Georgia State

West Coast: Gonzaga

The next championship game is tonight’s Patriot League final between Colgate and Navy and then no champions will be crowned until Saturday and Sunday.

What to Watch For

There’s dozens of games taking place today, so I asked my colleague Kevin Sweeney what he’ll be keeping an eye on.

“The most important game of the day from an NCAA tournament perspective is a first-round Big East tournament game between Xavier and Butler. Xavier has lost seven of nine to inch dangerously close to the cut line with just four days until Selection Sunday. A Q3 loss to Butler would be catastrophic and could knock the Musketeers out of the Big Dance. For a program that had made the NCAA tournament in 12 of the prior 13 years before Travis Steele took over, the pressure is on to get into the field.

The only other game with bubble implications is Wake Forest vs. Boston College. The Demon Deacons can ill afford a loss here to a 12-19 BC team. Most other high-major teams in action would need to win their respective conference tournaments to keep their seasons alive.

Rick Pitino and Iona get their MAAC tournament journey started against Rider. The Gaels are heavy favorites to win the league and earn an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament, their only path to the Big Dance.”

You can read Kevin’s work here and subscribe to his Morning Madness newsletter here.

Underdogs On Top

March is the month of upsets and there were three upsets around the college hoops world Tuesday.

• Wright State beat Northern Kentucky, 72-71, in the Horizon League championship. The Raiders were 1-point underdogs and they’re now dancing for the first time since 2018.
• Southern Miss defeated UTSA, 67-64, in the first round of the Conference USA tournament. The Golden Eagles were 3.5-point underdogs and scored their seventh win of the season to keep their season going.
• Quinnipiac blew out Marist, 77-52, in the first round of the MAAC tournament. The Bobcats were 2.5-point underdogs in their third meeting of the season.

Darron Cummings/AP

Other odds and ends

Rodgers Staying in Green Bay: The reigning MVP will return to the Packers. Michael Fabiano breaks down what that means for fantasy football managers.

Green Bay’s Super Bowl Odds Move: The Packers odds to win it all in 2023 jumped with the news of them retaining Rodgers. Jen Piacenti breaks down the shift in the odds.

Russell Wilson is a Bronco: The longtime Seahawks’ quarterback is on his way to Denver for a trade package including multiple first-round picks and players. Fabiano addresses how the move will impact the Broncos and Seahawks’ skill position players.

The Path to a New CBA: As MLB’s lockout continues, Tom Verducci offers up a proposal for commissioner Rob Manfred: trade economics for quality of play.

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That’s everything for today. Thanks for reading Winners Club.