English
EspañolThe chase for the NCAA tournament's automatic bids begins on Monday.
As power conference teams are still playing their final regular-season games, 15 conference tournaments tip off during the first week of March. Here's what you need to know ahead of the unofficial start of March Madness, as the Ohio Valley Conference is the first league to crown a tournament champion on March 7.
Horizon League
Begins: March 2
Championship game: 7 p.m. ET, March 10
How it works
With 11 teams in the league, the bottom two teams kick off the tournament. The winner advances to a 10-team bracket and then the five winners are re-seeded from there. The top three remaining seeds get byes to the semifinals, where the lowest two remaining teams play a quarterfinal game for the final spot in the semis.
The favorites
Wright State has the top seed in the conference tournament, though Robert Morris (No. 145) is seven spots higher in KenPom.com’s rankings. Robert Morris went 21-10 overall, while Wright State was 20-11 and won the regular season conference title by two games. Don’t count out Oakland, either. The No. 4 seed Grizzlies are just 16-15, but played Michigan, Purdue, Houston, UCF and Michigan State in conference play. Oakland lost by four at UCF and by nine to Michigan State.
Patriot League
Begins: March 3
Championship game: 7 p.m. ET, March 11
How it works
The 10-team league has a very straightforward setup, though there are multi-day breaks during the event. The bottom four teams play two first-round games on Tuesday before the winner of Bucknell and Army plays No. 1 seed Navy and the winner of No. 7 Lafayette and No. 10 Holy Cross plays Lehigh. From there, it’s an eight-team tournament before the winner is decided on March 11, three days after the semifinals.
The favorites
Navy is not only the top seed, but it’s the overwhelming favorite to make the NCAA tournament. The Midshipmen are led by guard Austin Benigni, who averages 18 points per game and shoots 46% from behind the 3-point line. Navy won the league by six games over Lehigh and Colgate, while Boston University was the only other team in the league to have a conference record above .500.
Sun Belt
Begins: March 3
Championship game: 7 p.m. ET, March 9
How it works
The Sun Belt has done the most of any conference to attempt to ensure that the top two teams from the regular season are in the title game. The 14-team league has a seven-round conference tournament with no more than two games per round.
Let’s explain. The first round includes No. 12 Louisiana vs. No. 13 Georgia State and No. 11 Old Dominion vs. No. 14 Louisiana-Monroe. The winners then face No. 9 James Madison and No. 10 Georgia Southern. In the next round, No. 7 Arkansas State and No. 6 Southern Miss join the party.
Troy and Marshall, the league’s top two seeds, have byes all the way into the semifinals. They only have to win two games to get the league’s automatic berth into March Madness, while No. 5 Texas State, for example, would have to win four games to make the NCAA tournament.
The favorites
Tiebreakers really came into play this year in the Sun Belt. It’s an incredibly even conference — and one that would be ripe for a winner from outside the top four or five in a “normal” bracket.
Troy won the conference title by a game over Texas State, Marshall, South Alabama, Arkansas State, Coastal Carolina and App State. Yes, that’s six teams. Arkansas State — the Sun Belt team ranked highest in KenPom’s rankings — is on the wrong end of those tiebreakers. The Red Wolves are the No. 7 seed and have to win five games in five days. JMU and Southern Miss finished just three games back of Troy and they have to win six games.
Atlantic Sun
Begins: March 4
Championship game: 7 p.m. ET, March 10
How it works
After the relative chaos of the Sun Belt, the Atlantic Sun is very easy to explain. It’s a 12-team tournament with the top four teams getting byes to the second round with no teams being re-seeded throughout the event.
The favorites
Central Arkansas and Austin Peay tied for the regular season conference title at 15-3. But the Bears got the top seed thanks to a win over Austin Peay late in the season. UCA won 12 straight conference games after a 1-2 start to conference play. Queens finished the season on a 6-3 run to get the No. 3 seed in the conference while Lipscomb easily got the final bye as no other team had a better conference record than 8-10.
Big South
Begins: March 4
Championship game: Noon ET, March 8
How it works
The nine-team conference has one first-round game before the winner of USC Upstate and Gardner-Webb plays No. 1 seed High Point. From there, it’s a basic eight-team bracket.
The favorites
The Panthers won the league by two games over Winthrop and the Eagles were the only other team who sniffed the regular-season title. No. 3 seed Radford was six games back of High Point. Winthrop could end up being the favorite, however. The Eagles beat High Point 92-75 early in the season before losing the return game by just two points. High Point averages over 90 points per game while Winthrop averages 84.
NEC
Begins: March 4
Championship game: 7 p.m. ET, March 10
How it works
Higher-seeded teams host games in this eight-team tournament, meaning No. 1 seed Long Island could play three home games on the way to the NCAA tournament. The four winning teams from the first round are reseeded, meaning if there’s an upset on the other side of the bracket and Long Island wins in the first round, LIU will host the lowest-seeded team remaining.
The favorites
The Sharks won the league by three games over Central Connecticut and five games over Le Moyne and Mercyhurst. LIU went 11-1 at home this season and that only loss came in a non-conference game against Winthrop. Guard Jamal Fuller averages nearly 17 points per game and shoots over 53% from the field.
Ohio Valley
Begins: March 4
Championship game: 8 p.m. ET, March 7
How it works
The eight-team league gives double byes to its top two seeds. After seeds Nos. 5 through 8 play in two first-round games, the winners of those games play No. 3 Southeast Missouri and No. 4 UT Martin in the quarterfinals. No. 1 Tennessee State and No. 2 Morehead State don’t join the party until the semifinals, when they play the quarterfinal winners.
The favorites
Tennessee State and Morehead State had identical 15-5 records in conference play while SEMO was 14-6 and UT Martin was 13-7. SIU Edwardsville finished just three games back of the lead in conference play and ended up having to play in the first round.
Tennessee State and Morehead State split their season series too. TSU won 105-100 at home before Morehead State won 94-86 on its home court.
Summit League
Begins: March 4
Championship game: 9 p.m. ET, March 8
How it works
There are nine teams in the Summit League, so Oral Roberts and Kansas City play the lone first-round game as the bottom two teams in the conference. The winner then plays No. 1 North Dakota State in the quarterfinals. It’s a straight-up bracket with no reseeding. Presuming NDSU wins its quarterfinal game, the Bison will play either South Dakota or Nebraska-Omaha.
The favorites
NDSU won the league by two games over St. Thomas and four games over North Dakota. St. Thomas blew out the Bison by 22 on their home court just two games ago before NDSU rebounded with a 33-point win over North Dakota to end the regular season.
Metro Atlantic
Begins: March 5
Championship game: 9 p.m. ET, March 10
How it works
Just 10 of the 13 teams in the MAAC make the conference tournament. The seasons are over for Niagara, Canisius, and Rider.
From there, the top six teams get byes to the quarterfinals, leaving teams Nos. 7-10 to play across two first-round games.
The favorites
Merrimack is the top seed in the tournament after winning the league by three games over former NCAA tournament darlings Saint Peter’s. The Peaccocks finished a game ahead of Siena and two games ahead of Marist and Quinnipiac. Merrimack has been at the top level of college basketball for just seven seasons and has never made an NCAA tournament appearance.
Missouri Valley
Begins: March 5
Championship game: Noon ET, March 8
How it works
The bottom six teams in the 11-team league play in the three first-round games as the top five teams get byes to the quarterfinals. There is no reseeding in the neutral-site tournament held in St. Louis.
The favorites
Belmont earned the top seed in the MVC tournament by going 16-4 in conference play and winning the league by three games over Bradley. The gap between the Bruins and Braves is the same size as the gap between Bradley in second and Southern Illinois in eighth. Don’t be surprised if a team from the middle of the conference makes a run.
West Coast
Begins: March 5
Championship game: 9 p.m. ET, March 10
How it works
The WCC and Sun Belt tournaments have a lot of similarities. The 12-team league gives its top two seeds byes all the way to the semifinals while the bottom four teams in the league have to win six games to earn the league’s automatic berth. There are no more than two games in each of the tournament’s six rounds; the teams that finished No. 3 and No. 4 in league play don’t begin their tournaments until the quarterfinals.
The favorites
Saint Mary’s took down Gonzaga 70-59 on Saturday to earn a share of the WCC regular-season title, but the Bulldogs still nabbed the conference tournament’s top seed. Each team just has to win on March 9 for a rubber match. It’d also be their final game as WCC opponents with the Bulldogs moving to the Pac-12 in 2026-2027.
Santa Clara finished a game behind both Gonzaga and St. Mary’s and is more than capable of spoiling the party. Oregon State got the No. 4 seed despite finishing seven games back.
Coastal Athletic Association
Begins: March 6
Championship game: 7 p.m. ET, March 10
How it works
All 13 teams from the CAA qualify for the conference tournament. No. 12 North Carolina A&T and No. 13 Northeastern play the lone first-round game. The top four teams in the league earn byes to the quarterfinals.
The favorites
League play doesn’t officially end in the CAA until Tuesday, but we know that UNC Wilmington can win the conference title outright with a victory over Elon. The Phoenix are 11th out of 13 teams in the conference. Charleston is a half game behind the Seahawks — the Cougars’ regular season is over thanks to the odd number of teams in the CAA — while Hofstra is a game ahead of Drexel and Monmouth for the No. 3 seed.
Southern
Begins: March 6
Championship game: 7 p.m. ET, March 9
How it works
The 10-team bracket includes two first-round games to qualify for the quarterfinals. From there, it’s a basic eight-team tournament with the top six teams getting byes into the quarterfinals.
The favorites
East Tennessee State won the league by two games at 13-5 in conference play. From there, it was a logjam. Mercer, Wofford and Samford all tied for second at 11-7, while Western Carolina and Furman finished 10-8. Is Mercer ripe for an upset? The Bears were 14-1 at home but just 5-11 on the road.
America East
Begins: March 7
Championship game: 11 a.m. ET, March 14
How it works
Eight of the league’s nine teams qualify for the conference tournament. Sorry, Binghamton. Higher-seeded teams host throughout the tournament, meaning UMBC has home court advantage all the way through.
The favorites
You probably remember UMBC for becoming the first No. 16 seed to beat a No. 1 seed when the Retrievers beat Virginia 74-54 in the first round of the 2018 NCAA tournament. The Retrievers are the highest-ranked America East team in KenPom’s rankings by a significant margin. UMBC is over 20 spots ahead of Vermont and almost 100 spots ahead of Albany. It’ll be a shock if neither UMBC or Vermont makes the NCAA tournament.
Big Sky
Begins: March 7
Championship game: 11:30 p.m. ET, March 11
How it works
The Big Sky tournament has the best name. The Boise-based event is called Starch Madness in a nod to the state’s potato growing. The logistics are easy, too. The 10-team tournament features byes to the quarterfinals for the top six seeds.
The favorites
You can make a strong case for half the conference to get to the NCAA tournament. There’s very little separating Portland State, Montana State, Eastern Washington, Montana and Weber State. Eastern Washington is the hottest team in the league, too. The Eagles have won eight straight heading into their regular-season finale against Idaho.