On March 3rd, the Sunbell Conference men's basketball tournament kicks off this week with all 14 teams in the mix, using a tough 7 game. Ladder format for the second straight year. Topsy Troy, who clinched the regular season title, only needs two wins on Sunday and Monday to grab the automatic NCAA bid. The event runs from Tuesday March 3rd through Monday March 9th at the Pensacola Bay Center in Pensacola Florida for the 6th year in a row.
With men's games in the evenings on ESPN+, ties messed up the seating big time, especially a 6-way deadlock for second place at 11 wins and 7 losses. That dropped strong teams like number 2 and net rankings, Arkansas State to the 7th seed, meaning they have to win 5 straight games, just 2. Reach the final. Marshall snagged the number 2 spot despite being 6th and net among those tied teams, while others like South Alabama and Texas State face for win.
Pass. Fans and insiders are grumbling about the setup in such a balanced league, where last year Coach Hands got pushed to early rounds. Athletic directors might want to scrap it all together, given how even the regular season is. Think four-way ties at the top before.
It's the last dance for Texas State, heading to the rebuilt Pac-12 next year, but Louisiana Tech joins to keep it at 14 teams. The first round Tuesday pits Georgia State against Louisiana at 6 PM, followed by U.L.M. and Old Dominion at 8.30. Quarterfinals hit Saturday, semi-Sunday, and the title game Monday at 7 PM on ESPN2, with plenty of upset history lower seeds have won big.
Before, like James Madison's recent NCAA run, expect chaos in this wide open field, where even top teams could stumble early and hand the bid to a surprise squad.