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2023 Ohio Valley Conference Men’s Basketball Tournament Basics

Dates

• Wednesday, March 1 (first round)
• Thursday, March 2 (quarterfinals)
• Friday, March 3 (semifinals)
• Saturday, March 4 (championship)

Format

Stepladder bracket—the top two seeds each only need to win a semifinal and final to qualify for the NCAAs.

Site

For the sixth consecutive year, the Ford Center in Evansville, Ind., home of the Missouri Valley’s Evansville Purple Aces, will host the Ohio Valley’s postseason event.

Participants

The OVC still has 10 teams, even after Belmont and Murray State left for the OVC and Austin Peay joined the ASUN. Former Sun Belt member Little Rock and a pair of DII call-ups, Southern Indiana and Lindenwood (Missouri), replaced them.

Of the 10, just the top eight in the standings will travel to Evansville. UT Martin (8-22, 4-14, 9th) and Eastern Illinois (5-26, 3-15, 10th) were the two squads left out. Add in the fact that USI and Lindenwood are ineligible for the NCAAs, and there’s the potential for a mess. If one reclassifying school reaches the final, its opponent will earn the auto bid. If the final is an all-reclassifying showdown, the top seed entering the tournament gets the bid.

Downloadable Bracket

Schedule

All times are p.m. Eastern.

First Round (Wed., March 1)

Game 1: (8) Lindenwood (11-21, 6-12) 65, (5) Southeast Missouri State 84
Game 2: (7) Southern Indiana (16-16, 9-9) 54, (6) SIU Edwardsville 68

Quarterfinals (Thurs., March 2)

Game 3: (5) Southeast Missouri State 91, (4) Tennessee State (18-14, 10-8) 83
Game 4:(6) SIU Edwardsville (19-14, 9-9) 75. (3) UT Martin 81

Semifinals (Fri., March 3)

Game 5: (5) Southeast Missouri State 65, (1) Morehead State (21-11, 14-4) 58
Game 6: (3) UT Martin (19-14, 10-8) 63, (2) Tennessee Tech 78

Championship (Sat., March 4)

Game 7: (5) SOUTHEAST MISSOURI STATE (19-16, 10-8) 89, (2) Tennessee Tech (16-17, 11-7) 82 (OT)

Mayhem Potential Since 2011

Data originally posted by Bob Vetrone Jr. on Twitter in 2020 with my own additions for the seasons beyond.

The OVC implemented a stepladder format in 2011, but between 2014 and 2017, the advantage given the No. 1 or 2 seeds didn’t mean much, as they were shut out after those seeds combined to win the first three titles. The top seeds got themselves right with Murray State’s victory in 2018, and top two teams have alternated wins since.

• 1 seed (5): 2012, 2013, 2018, 2020, 2022
• 2 seed (3): 2011, 2019, 2021
• 3 seed (2): 2014, 2015
• 4 seed (1): 2017
• 8 seed (1): 2016

NCAA Seeding Record Since 2011

Years with an NCAA win are in bold.

• 6 seed (1): 2012
• 7 seed (1): 2022
• 11 seed (2): 2013, 2019 (at-large)
• 12 seed (2): 2018, 2019 (automatic)
• 13 seed (1); 2011
• 14 seed (1): 2021
• 15 seed (3): 2014, 2015, 2017
• 16 seed (1): 2016

Could the OVC earn two bids for the second time in three NCAA Tournaments? For a time, it looked like both Belmont and Murray State could earn at-large bids, like the Bruins did in 2019 (when the Racers won the auto bid). Now, with the Racers completing a perfect conference season and ranking in the NET Top 30, they look like a shoo-in no matter what happens on Friday and Saturday.

Murray State could earn as high as a 7 seed, though I suspect they end up between an 8 and 10.

Last NCAA Tournament Appearances

Morehead State: 2021 (14 seed, 1st Round)
Southeast Missouri State: 2000 (13 seed, 1st Round)
Tennessee State: 1994 (14 seed, 1st Round)
Tennessee Tech: 1963 (1st Round)

Neither SIU Edwardsville nor UT Martin have ever qualified for the NCAA Tournament, while both Lindenwood and Southern Indiana must wait until 2027. The OVC’s other two NCAA/NIT-eligible teams, Little Rock (2016, 12 seed, 2nd Round) and Eastern Illinois (2001, 15 seed, 1st Round) are already eliminated for this season.

To put into perspective how much realignment has and will cost the OVC, 2016 NCAA rep Austin Peay, 2017 qualifier Jacksonville State, and 2014 OVC Tournament winner Eastern Kentucky are all in the ASUN now, while 2020 champ (and 2019 at-large) Belmont and 2018, 2019, and 2022 champ Murray State switched to the Missouri Valley.

At least Morehead State won the 2021 title, so all was not lost.