Chronological Conference Tournament Schedule

Yesterday’s schedule was kind of meh, thanks to the presence of a mere five bubble games. But all of those turned out to be important, and plenty more are on tap today, starting in Indianapolis and Greensboro.

ACC Quarterfinals

Game 8: No. 8 Syracuse (16-8, 9-7) vs. No. 1 Virginia (17-6, 13-4) 12 p.m. (ESPN2)
The Cavaliers won the pair’s lone meeting (at home).
Game 9: No. 13 Miami (Fla.) (10-16, 4-15) vs. No. 4 Georgia Tech (15-8, 11-6), approx. 2:30 p.m. (ESPN2)
The Yellow Jackets won the pair’s lone meeting (at Miami).
Game 10: No. 10 Duke (13-11, 9-9) vs. No. 2 Florida State (15-5, 11-4), 6:30 p.m. (ESPN)
The teams have not met this season.
Game 11: No. 6 North Carolina (17-9, 10-6) vs. No. 3 Virginia Tech (15-5, 9-4), 8:30 p.m. (ESPN)
The teams have not met this season.

Syracuse and Duke were among the few bubble winners on Wednesday, with the combination of the Orange’s win over NC State and Xavier’s OT loss to Butler putting ‘Cuse in the field for now. The Blue Devils’ impressive victory over Louisville had moved them into the First Four Out group (knocking the Cardinals down to the First Four, where they’re joined by Syracuse). But now Duke’s season is over thanks to a positive CoVID test. So, Syracuse is left needing to defeat Virginia today to solidify its place.

North Carolina, who blew out Notre Dame in Wednesday’s nightcap, can give itself more breathing room by knocking off a Virginia Tech team that last played on February 27th. Note that the two evening session quarterfinals are both first-time meetings due to CoVID pauses. That will be a theme today.

Big 12 Quarterfinals

ESPN or ESPN2 will air all four games.

Game 3: No. 5 Oklahoma State (18-7, 11-7) vs. No. 4 West Virginia (18-8, 11-6), 11:30 a.m. (ESPN)
The season series was a 1-1 road split.
Game 4: No. 9 Kansas State (9-19, 4-14) vs. No. 1 Baylor (21-1, 13-1), 2:30 p.m. (ESPN)
The Bears won the pair’s lone meeting (at home).
Game 5: No. 7 Oklahoma (15-9, 9-8) vs. No. 2 Kansas (19-8, 12-6), 6:30 p.m. (ESPN2)
The season series was a 1-1 home split.
Game 6: No. 6 Texas Tech (17-9, 9-8) vs. No. 3 Texas (17-7, 11-6), 9:30 p.m. (ESPN2)
The Red Raiders won both meetings (home-and-home).

While K-State had no trouble with TCU in the first game of Wednesday’s doubleheader, Iowa State pushed Oklahoma all the way to the end in a valiant effort to record a first Big 12 win of the season. That could have repercussions for the Sooners when they meet Kansas tonight, though the Jayhawks will be shorthanded due to CoVID isolation requirements.

With all seven projected Big 12 teams locks, seeding is the only thing at play here (barring a miraculous run to the title by Kansas State). To that end, the first game of the day between national three seed WVU and four seed Oklahoma State and the Texas Tech-Texas nightcap are the most intriguing. A win over KU would do wonders for Oklahoma, which has seen its seed fade after four straight losses to close the regular season.

Big East Quarterfinals

FS1 will air all four games.

Game 4: No. 8 Georgetown (10-12, 7-9) vs. No. 1 Villanova (16-5, 11-4), 12 p.m.
The Wildcats won both meetings (home-and-home).
Game 5: No. 5 Seton Hall (13-12, 10-9) vs. No. 4 St. John’s (16-10, 10-9), 3 p.m.
The season series was a 1-1 home split.
Game 6: No. 10 Butler (10-14, 8-12) vs. No. 2 Creighton (18-7, 14-6), 6 p.m.
The season series was a 1-1 home split.
Game 7: No. 11 DePaul (5-13, 2-13) vs. No. 3 UConn (14-6, 11-6), 9 p.m.
The Huskies won both meetings (home-and-home).

Xavier was the night’s biggest bubble loser, after blowing a double-digit lead to lose to Butler after overtime. St. John’s and Seton Hall is one of today’s most intriguing bubble matchups. In theory, the victor should get a shot at Villanova in Friday’s semifinals. But considering the Wildcats’ injury issues, a win over Georgetown isn’t a given for them. With the bottom two seeds still alive, there’s the potential for mayhem that could affect the bubble.

Big Sky Quarterfinals

Pluto.tv will stream all four games.

Game 4: No. 8 Northern Colorado (11-10, 6-8) vs. No. 1 Southern Utah (19-3, 12-2), 1 p.m.
The teams have not met this season.
Game 5: No. 5 Montana State (11-9, 8-6) vs. No. 4 Idaho State (13-10, 8-6), 4 p.m.
The teams have not met this season.
Game 6: No. 10 Northern Arizona (6-15, 4-10) vs. No. 2 Eastern Washington (13-7, 12-3), 7 p.m.
The teams have not met this season.
Game 7: No. 6 Montana (14-12, 7-9) vs. No. 3 Weber State (17-5, 12-3), 10 p.m.
The season series was a 1-1 split (at Montana).

Just one of today’s four quarterfinals in Boise will feature a matchup that actually happened in the regular season, as traditional Big Sky rivals Montana and Weber State meet in the final game of the night. Top-seeded Southern Utah is attempting to win the league’s automatic bid in its second-to-last attempt before decamping for the WAC in July 2022.

Big West Quarterfinals

ESPN3 will stream all four games.

Game 8: No. 9 Long Beach State (6-11, 4-8) vs. No. 1 UC Santa Barbara (19-4, 13-3), 2 p.m.
The teams have not met this season.
Game 9: No. 5 Cal State Bakersfield (15-10, 9-7) vs. No. 4 UC Davis (9-7, 6-4), 5 p.m.
The teams have not met this season.
Game 10: No. 10 Cal Poly (4-19, 1-15) vs. No. 2 UC Irvine (16-8, 10-4), 8 p.m.
The Anteaters won the season series 2-0 (at home).
Game 11: No. 6 Hawai’i (11-9, 9-9) vs. No. 3 UC Riverside (13-7, 8-4), 11 p.m.
The season series was a 1-1 split (at UCR).

Even though the Big West is a California-based conference, even it was unable to completely get through its schedule. That affects top-seeded UCSB, who will meet Long Beach State for the first time this season, and the conference’s lone Northern California squad, UC Davis, which was unable to meet Cal State Bakersfield, a team that’s relatively close to it, during league play.

C-USA Quarterfinals

Stadium will stream all four games.

Game 6: West No. 4 UTSA (15-10, 9-7) vs. East No. 1 Western Kentucky (18-6, 11-3) (Court A), 6:30 p.m.
The teams have not met this season.
Game 7: West No. 6 Rice (15-12, 6-10) vs. West No. 2 UAB (21-6, 13-5) (Court B), 7 p.m.
The Blazers won the season series 2-0 (at home).
Game 8: East No. 4 Florida Atlantic (13-9, 7-5) vs. West No. 1 Louisiana Tech (20-6, 12-4) (Court A), 9:30 p.m.
The teams have not met this season.
Game 9: West No. 3 North Texas (14-9, 9-5) vs. East No. 2 Old Dominion (15-7, 11-5) (Court B), 10 p.m.
The teams have not met this season.

In Conference USA’s case, divisional scheduling is responsible for today’s first-time meetings, as only the second quarterfinal is a rematch. That’s thanks to Rice’s wins over divisional rival Southern Miss. and East three seed Marshall. C-USA is always a league that seems to have a wild tournament, so keep an eye on these four games tonight. Any one of the top two seeds from each division and West three seed UNT could win it (which probably means it will end up being one of the other three quarterfinalists).

MAAC Quarterfinals (Night Two)

ESPN+ ($) will stream both games.

Game 6: No. 11 Rider (6-16, 5-13) vs. No. 3 Saint Peter’s (13-10, 10-8), 5 p.m.
The season series was a 1-1 split (at SPC).
Game 7: No. 5 Niagara (8-10, 7-9) vs. No. 4 Marist (12-8, 10-8), approx. 7:30 p.m.
The season series was a 1-1 split (at Marist).

Saint Peter’s is the MAAC’s entrant in today’s bracket, as both top-seeded Siena and second-seeded Monmouth fell in radically different games on Wednesday. The Saints lost a rockfight to ninth-seeded Iona, while Fairfield blew out the Hawks. The Gaels and Stags await tonight’s winners in Friday’s semifinals.

MAC Quarterfinals

ESPN+ ($) will stream all four games.

Game 1: No. 8 Ball State (10-12, 8-9) vs. No. 1 Toledo (20-7, 15-4), 11 a.m.
The season series was a 1-1 road split.
Game 2: No. 5 Ohio (13-7, 9-5) vs. No. 4 Kent State (15-7, 12-6), approx. 1:30 p.m.
The Golden Flashes won the pair’s lone meeting (on the road).
Game 3: No. 7 Miami (Ohio) (12-10, 9-8) vs. No. 2 Buffalo (14-7, 12-5), approx. 4 p.m.
The Bulls won both meetings (home-and-home).
Game 4: No. 6 Akron (14-7, 12-6) vs. No. 3 Bowling Green (14-10, 10-8), approx. 6:30 p.m.
The season series was a 1-1 road split.

Three of the MAC’s top four seeds (Bowling Green is the exception) are in the NET Top 100, meaning the conference has again had a quietly good season, though it yet again will not place an at-large team in the field. Top-seeded Toledo will have its hands full against a Ball State squad it split with during the regular season, though the Rockets did beat the Cardinals by 19 to end the regular season.

MEAC Quarterfinals

FloHoops.com ($) will stream both games. Game numbering includes the women’s tournament.

Game 3: North No. 3 Morgan State (12-7, 7-5) vs. South No. 2 Florida A&M (8-11, 7-5), 6 p.m.
The teams have not met this season.
Game 4: South No. 3 North Carolina Central (5-8, 3-5) vs. North No. 2 Norfolk State (14-7, 8-4), approx. 8:30 p.m.
The teams have not met this season.

Few conferences were hit harder by CoVID this season than the MEAC, which saw two teams skip the season entirely (including Bethune-Cookman, who is heading to the SWAC along with Florida Classic rival FAMU) and two others end things early. So, just six teams will participate in Norfolk. Tonight’s winners meet North top seed Norfolk State and South No. 1 North Carolina A&T State in Friday’s semifinal doubleheader.

MW Quarterfinals

CBSSN will air all four games.

Game 4: No. 8 Wyoming (14-10, 7-9) vs. No. 1, San Diego State (20-4, 14-3) 3 p.m.
The Aztecs won both meetings (at home).
Game 5: No. 5 Nevada (15-9, 10-7) vs. No. 4 Boise State (18-7, 14-6), approx. 5:30 p.m.
The Wolf Pack won both meetings (at home).
Game 6: No. 7 UNLV (12-14, 8-10) vs. No. 2 Utah State (18-7, 15-4), 9 p.m.
The season series was a 1-1 split (at UNLV).
Game 7: No. 6 Fresno State (12-11, 9-11) vs. No. 3 Colorado State (17-5, 14-4), approx. 11:30 p.m.
The Rams won both meetings (at home).

If you want bubble drama, Las Vegas and CBSSN is where you need to be today, as the final three games should provide it in bunches. First, Boise State, one of the last four teams in today’s field, will attempt to beat Nevada for the first time this season. If the Broncos fail, they’ll be in real trouble. Utah State, the second team out, must beat UNLV in its own building to stay alive. Finally, Colorado State, now one of the last four bye teams, can keep its head above water by defeating Fresno State for a third time.

Pac-12 Quarterfinals

Game 4: No. 8 Arizona State (11-13, 7-10) vs. No. 1 Oregon (19-5, 14-4), 2:30 p.m. (Pac-12 Networks)
The Ducks won the pair’s lone meeting (at ASU).
Game 5: No. 5 Oregon State (14-12, 10-10) vs. No. 4 UCLA (17-8, 13-6), 5:30 p.m. (Pac-12 Networks)
The Bruins won the pair’s lone meeting (at home).
Game 6: No. 7 Utah (12-12, 8-11) vs. No. 2 USC (21-6, 15-5), 8:30 p.m. (Pac-12 Networks)
The season series was a 1-1 home split.
Game 7: No. 11 California (9-19, 3-17) vs. No. 3 Colorado (20-7, 14-6), 11:30 p.m. (ESPN)
The season series was a 1-1 home split.

Even though Stanford got Oscar da Silva back for Wednesday’s Pac-12 opener with archrival Cal, Ziaire Williams missed the game due to a family funeral. The Cardinal ended up falling to the Golden Bears for a second straight year, which burst their bubble. With the top four seeds safely in the field at this point, the only hope for a fifth Pac-12 bid lies in one of the four lower seeds winning the title in Las Vegas.

Southland Quarterfinals

ESPN+ ($) will stream both games.

Game 5: No. 5 New Orleans (10-14, 8-7) vs. No. 4 Northwestern State (10-17, 9-7), 6 p.m.
The season series was a 1-1 home split.
Game 6: No. 6 Lamar (9-17, 7-10) vs. No. 3 Sam Houston (19-8, 13-3), 9 p.m.
The Bearkats won both meetings (home-and-home).

Tonight’s second game features two teams who are headed to the WAC in July. The winner will meet another in Friday’s second semifinal, No. 2 seed Abilene Christian.

SWAC Quarterfinals (Day Two)

ESPN3 will stream both games.

Game 3: No. 6 Alcorn State (6-12, 6-7) vs. No. 3 Texas Southern (13-8, 10-3), 3 p.m.
The Tigers won the pair’s lone meeting (at home).
Game 4: No. 5 Southern (8-10, 8-6) vs. No. 4 Grambling State (11-11, 9-6), 9:30 p.m.
The Jaguars won the pair’s lone meeting (on the road).

Unlike the MAAC, the top two seeds in the SWAC had no trouble advancing to Friday’s semifinals in Wednesday’s first quarterfinal doubleheader. Second-seeded Jackson State took down Arkansas-Pine Bluff by 12, while top-seeded Prairie View A&M routed Mississippi Valley State by 27.

WAC Quarterfinals

ESPN+ ($) will stream both games.

Game 1: No. 5 Seattle (11-10, 4-5) vs. No. 4 Cal Baptist (13-9, 6-6), 8 p.m.
The season series was a 1-1 split (at CBU).
Game 2: No. 6 UT Rio Grande Valley (9-9, 2-5) vs. No. 3 New Mexico State (10-7, 7-6), 11 p.m.
The Aggies won the pair’s lone meeting (in El Paso).

The WAC field includes a Cal Baptist team that’s reclassifying to Division I and is therefore not eligible for the postseason. Tonight’s lineup includes perennial conference champ NMSU, who had to play most of its season away from Las Cruces due to state health rules. Tonight’s victors will go on to meet top-seeded Grand Canyon and second-seeded Utah Valley on Friday.

Big Ten Second Round

B1G Network will air all four games.

Game 3: No. 9 Michigan State (15-11, 9-11) vs. No. 8 Maryland (15-12, 9-11), 11:30 a.m.
The Terrapins won the pair’s lone meeting (at home).
Game 4: No. 13 Minnesota (14-14, 6-14) vs. No. 5 Ohio State (18-8, 12-8), approx. 2 p.m.
The Golden Gophers won the pair’s lone meeting (at home).
Game 5: No. 10 Indiana (12-14, 7-12) vs. No. 7 Rutgers (14-10, 10-10), 6:30 p.m.
The Scarlet Knights won both meetings (home-and-home).
Game 6: No. 11 Penn State (11-13, 7-12) vs. No. 6 Wisconsin (16-11, 10-10), approx. 9 p.m.
The season series was a 1-1 home split.

With Indiana, Minnesota, and Penn State all needing to make runs through the tournament to earn a bid, the first game of the day in Indianapolis will provide the bubble drama. Maryland has dropped closer to the cut line after consecutive losses to Northwestern and Penn State. Michigan State, on the other hand, has entered the field after winning five of its last seven. If the Terps fall to 15-13 today, they will be sweating the next four days out.

Keep an eye on Ohio State’s matchup with Minnesota from a seeding perspective. If the Buckeyes lose to the Golden Gophers, they’ll have a difficult time sticking on the two line.

SEC Second Round

SEC Network will air all four games.

Game 2: No. 9 Mississippi State (14-13, 8-10) vs. No. 8 Kentucky (9-15, 8-9), 12 p.m.
The Wildcats won the pair’s lone meeting (on the road).
Game 3: No. 12 Vanderbilt (9-15, 3-13) vs. No. 5 Florida (13-8, 9-7), approx. 2:30 p.m.
The Gators won both meetings (home-and-home).
Game 4: No. 10 Georgia (14-11, 7-11) vs. No. 7 Missouri (15-8, 8-8), 7 p.m.
The Bulldogs won the pair’s lone meeting (at home).
Game 5: No. 11 South Carolina (6-14, 4-12) vs. No. 6 Ole Miss (15-10, 10-8), approx. 9:30 p.m.
The Rebels won the pair’s lone meeting (on the road).

While Florida and Missouri are playing for seeding, Kentucky needs to win four games in four days to reach the field, and Ole Miss, one of the first four teams out today must beat South Carolina to stay in the hunt.

American Athletic First Round

ESPNU will air all three games.

Game 1: No. 9 Temple (5-10, 4-10) vs. No. 8 USF (8-12, 4-10), 12 p.m.
The season series was a home split.
Game 2: No. 10 Tulane (9-12, 4-12) vs. No. 7 Tulsa (11-11, 7-9), 3 p.m.
The Green Wave won the pair’s lone meeting (on the road).
Game 3: No. 11 East Carolina (8-10, 2-10) vs. No. 6 UCF (10-11, 8-10), 7 p.m.
The Knights won both meetings (home-and-home).

It’s been a down year for the American, now without UConn, and that’s evident in these matchups. Today’s winners move on to Friday’s quarterfinals where the top three seeds, Wichita State, Houston, and Memphis, await.