Back from Spring Break!
This is the best time of the college basketball season. Conference tournaments are getting in full swing, and then that is obviously followed by the awesomeness of the NCAA Tournament. Some of the major conference tournaments begin Wednesday, so here is just a breakdown of some of the key games that will be taking place.
Atlantic-10 Tournament
(8) Dayton vs. (9) St. Louis - With some of Dayton's non-conference wins (Louisville, Pitt), you have to figure they might still have a slim shot at an at-large if they can beat Xavier in the Quarterfinals of the A-10 Tournament. But the way that they've been playing lately, they can't afford to overlook St. Louis in round 1.
(6) Charlotte vs. (11) Rhode Island - Both of these teams have talent, and they can make a run in the A-10 Tourney if they get hot. Rhode Island has been in a freefall since their hot start. Meanwhile, Charlotte is led by streaky scorer Leemire Goldwire.
Big East Tournament
(8) Syracuse vs. (9) Villanova - The loser is essentially eliminated from at-large consideration, while the winner might even still need to beat Georgetown in the Quarterfinals to feel safe. Do-or-die game, and a great way to start off the Big East Tourney.
(5) West Virginia vs. (12) Providence - The Mountaineers have a good conference record, but they haven't really beaten a lot of quality opponents. A loss here might make them sweat a little, though they're probably safe either way.
Pac-10 Tournament
(7) Arizona vs. (10) Oregon St. - This is a must-win game for Arizona, though it shouldn't be a problem against 0-18 Oregon St. The Wildcats might need to win this game and a quarterfinal matchup with Stanford to be safe. If things are clicking, they have the potential to win 4 games in 4 days.
These are the games with the biggest bubble implications... on Thursday, the rest of the big tournaments start up, making that one of the best basketball days of the year! Which game are you most looking forward to seeing?