A whopping 17 conferences tournaments dot the college basketball landscape on Wednesday as the postseason hits full throttle with teams jockeying for bragging rights and spots in the NCAA Tournament following the grind of regular season play. The sheer volume of games will give hoops fans plenty to digest as some of the top conferences ramp up with their preliminary rounds.
Among those in action will be the ACC, Big 12, Big East, Big Ten, Pac-12 and SEC, just to name a few. By week’s end 32 automatic bids will be secured, and several of them were clinched on Tuesday night.
Northern Kentucky edged Cleveland State 63-61 in the Horizon League final as the Norse made 16 of 18 free throws, including 4 of 4 from Marques Warrick in the final 25 seconds. Warrick led NKU with 18 points while Sam Vinson added 16 as the program secured its first NCAA Tournament trip under fourth-year coach Darrin Horn.Charleston’s magical season continued as the No. 2 seed Cougars edged No. 4 seed UNC-Wilmington 63-58 in the CAA Tournament title game to secure the league’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. UNCW led 53-45 with 6:13 remaining, but Charleston closed the game on an 18-5 run capped by a pair of clutch free throws from Reyne Smith in the final seconds.In the NEC, No. 1 seed Merrimack edged No. 2 seed Fairleigh Dickinson 67-66 for the conference tournament title. But Merrimack won’t be heading to the Big Dance as it completes its four-year transition period to Division I. Instead, FDU will go to the NCAA Tournament to cap off a remarkable turnaround under first-year coach Tobin Anderson following a 4-22 season for the program last season.
In the Summit League title game, No. 1 seed Oral Roberts continued its sheer domination of conference foes by dismantling No. 3 seed North Dakota State 92-58 to secure the program’s second NCAA Tournament bid in the past three seasons.
Finally, in the WCC Tournament final, No. 2 seed Gonzaga settled the season series with No. 1 seed Saint Mary’s by blasting the Gaels 77-51 as star forward Drew Timme scored 18 points and became the Bulldogs’ all-time leading scorer. It marks Gonzaga’s 19th WCC Tournament title under 24th-year coach Mark Few.
Wednesday’s conference championships
Big Sky: No. 9 Northern Arizona vs. No. 2 Montana State
11:30 p.m. | ESPN2
Patriot League: No. 6 Lafayette at No. 1 Colgate
Final, 7:30 p.m. | CBS Sports Network
Southland:No. 2 Northwestern State vs. No. 1 Texas A&M Corpus Christi
5 p.m. | ESPN2
Other conference tournaments in action Wednesday
2023 conference tournament schedules, champions
| Conference | Tournament site | Dates (Final TV) | 2023 Champion |
| AAC | Fort Worth, Texas | March 9-12 (ESPN) | |
| ACC | Greensboro, N.C. | March 7-11 (ESPN) | |
| America East | Campus sites | March 4, 7 & 11 (ESPN2) | |
| Atlantic 10 | Brooklyn, NY | March 7-9, 11-12 (CBSSN) | |
| ASUN | Campus sites | Feb. 27-28, March 2, 5 (ESPN2) | Kennesaw State |
| Big East | New York | March 8-11 (Fox) | |
| Big Sky | Boise, Idaho | March 4-8 (ESPN2) | |
| Big South | Charlotte, N.C. | March 1, 3-5 (ESPN2) | UNC-Asheville |
| Big Ten | Chicago | March 8-12 (CBS) | |
| Big 12 | Kansas City | March 8-11 (ESPN) | |
| Big West | Henderson, Nev. | March 7, 9-11 (ESPN2) | |
| Colonial | Washington D.C. | March 3-7 (CBSSN) | Charleston |
| Conference USA | Frisco, Texas | March 8-11 (CBSSN) | |
| Horizon League | Indianapolis | Feb. 28, March 2, 6-7 (ESPN) | Northern Kentucky |
| Ivy League | Princeton, N.J. | March 11-12 (ESPN2) | |
| MAAC | Atlantic City, N.J. | March 7-11 (ESPNU) | |
| MAC | Cleveland | March 9-11 (ESPN2) | |
| MEAC | Norfolk, Va. | March 8-11 (ESPN2) | |
| Missouri Valley | St. Louis | March 2-5 (CBSSN) | Drake |
| Mountain West | Las Vegas | March 8-11 (CBS) | |
| Northeast | Campus sites | March 1, 4 & 7 (ESPN2) | Fairleigh Dickinson-x |
| Ohio Valley | Evansville, Ind. | March 1-4 (ESPN2) | Southeast Missouri |
| Pac-12 | Las Vegas | March 8-11 (ESPN) | |
| Patriot | Campus sites | Feb. 28, March 2,5 & 8 (CBSSN) | |
| SEC | Nashville | March 8-12 (ESPN) | |
| Southern | Asheville, N.C | March 3-6 (ESPN) | Furman |
| Southland | Lake Charles, La. | March 5-8 (ESPN2) | |
| Summit | Sioux Falls, S.D. | March 3-7 (ESPN2) | Oral Roberts |
| Sun Belt | Pensacola, Fla. | Feb. 28, March 2, 4 & 6 (ESPN2) | Louisiana |
| SWAC | Birmingham, Ala. | March 8-11 (ESPNU) | |
| WAC | Las Vegas | March 7, 9-11 (ESPN2) | |
| West Coast | Las Vegas | March 2-4 & 6-7 (ESPN) | Gonzaga |
x – Merrimack won the NEC Tournament but isn’t illegible for the NCAA Tournament so Fairleigh Dickinson is awarded the league’s automatic bid.
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