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The NCAA Tournament is a few weeks away, which means it’s conference tournament time to set the table for March Madness. We’ll be taking a look at some of the best teams in each conference, and providing picks and predictions each conference tournament. Plenty of favorites will win, but we’ve got some sleepers to consider that might be able to pull off a big upset on the way to the NCAA Tournament.
Here’s the bracket for the Horizon League Tournament with TV listings, dates and times.
The Horizon League has two teams in Wright State and Northern Kentucky that will be expected to meet in the final. Everyone else will be coming from way back in both the standings and power rankings in an attempt to sneak in and steal the bid.
Favorite: Wright State
24-6 overall, but only one win against a team not ranked in the bottom half of Division I. They beat the No. 2 seed in this tournament Northern Kentucky by 32 at home, and will be the big chalk to win it all. Big man Loudon Love is their go-to on the post offensively and defensively, and Bill Wampler has 68 made three-pointers this year at a 42.2% clip.
Sleeper: Illinois-Chicago
The Flames have beaten both Wright State and Northern Kentucky (by 25 on the road!), and defend pretty well against the three-ball (20th in adjusted three-point defense). But where they struggle is turnovers: they give it up without a shot on 23% of possessions. They also lean heavily on their starters, which can wear down especially with the double-bye format of the H-League tournament.
Dark Horse: Youngstown State
Only lost to West Virginia by 11 at home, and has an 18-point win over Wright State on February 20th. Darius Quisenberry is one of the best players in the league, and they’ll need him to be excellent to even reach the Indianapolis portion of the tournament. The Penguins are the sixth-best offensive rebounding team in the NCAA this season.