By Jonathan Lidskin
One of the best times of the college basketball season is upon us. Champ Week(s) gives us some of the most fun, wacky and exhilarating basketball of the season. We get teams playing for tournament bids, games super early in the day, games super late at night and so much more. There is an overstimulating amount of basketball across these two weeks that have already started and I know the ASun has already concluded their quarterfinals. Still, it is not too late to release my picks for the first wave of conference tournaments.
Atlantic Sun: Lipscomb
Lennie Acuff has a great offensive team and a really solid defensive group as well. The Bisons shoot it from deep and take care of the ball. They have two studs in stretch four Jacob Ognacevic and Will Pruitt who does such a great job picking his spots as an off-the-ball guard. Dylan Faulkner’s absence has not been as important as I thought it would be so I don’t see a reason to be concerned about it now.
Big Sky: Montana
Montana has been red hot down the stretch. Including the game last night, the Grizzlies have won 11 of 12 headed into Starch Madness and in that stretch, the only loss was on the road at Portland State in OT. What’s important to me is the Grizzlies have won games without Money Williams playing well. There’s no doubt he’ll need to play well for them to win it, but it’s good to know that they can survive an early-round game without his best.
Big South: High Point
High Point’s 11-game win streak has gotten up to the second-longest win streak in the country. The Panthers have absolutely lived up to the hype they got in the off-season with one of the most dangerous backcourts in all of mid-major basketball. High Point and UNC Asheville played two bangers in the regular season so let’s hope we get a third meeting in the title game.
CAA: Towson
The CAA always feels like one of the hardest leagues to pick and it does feel like there are some real upset potential games in the quarterfinals. With that being said, I went with the team that happens to be the hottest in the conference. Pat Skerry has had this team playing excellent basketball ever since Tyler Tejada and Christian May returned from injury. The Tigers don’t shoot the three well, but they make up for it with great possessions and offensive rebounding. On defense, Nendah Tarke is a name to know.
Horizon: Milwaukee
If you like madness and upsets, this might be the tournament for you. As always, the Horizon League is crazy balanced and it feels like a handful of teams can win it. I went with Milwaukee who has veteran guards and is super well-coached, but like I said, this league is a complete guessing game. If you want to chase points, this is the league to do it.
Missouri Valley: Bradley
This is a controversial one, but I watch the MVC more than any other mid-major league by far and to be honest, I feel like I’ve earned the trust with my MVC analysis in the last couple of seasons. Drake is a great team that I feel should make the tournament as long as they don’t take a horrible loss this week, but they also play a high-variance brand of basketball. Bradley is the best three-point shooting team in the nation and also have played good defense on the perimeter throughout the year. This feels like a team that could get scorching hot and get to the NCAA Tournament.
NEC: Central Connecticut
Sam will have a better analysis of this league than me, but what a season it has been for Patrick Sellers. His team owns the nation’s longest win streak and has separated from the pack in the NEC this year. With home court throughout the tournament, I would be truly shocked if someone besides the Blue Devils won it.
OVC: Southeast Missouri
The first league to crown a conference champion will be the OVC on Saturday night. Two seasons ago, Southeast Missouri won an epic OT game to get to the NCAA Tournament and I like this team again this year. Brad Korn has the best offensive team in the conference and a backcourt that takes care of the ball. Despite being only 5’10, Rob Martin can take over a game and Teddy Washington is a very versatile guard.
Patriot League: Colgate
One of the things that makes the Patriot League fun this year is the parity. Matt Langel and Colgate are the three seed, but I’d be a fool to bet against that coach and that program in a setting they’ve won in so many times.
SoCon: Samford
Bucky McMillan can coach and I’m sort of chasing some points here. The Bulldogs play fast, can shoot and turn teams over. I like that recipe in a conference tournament and Samford is also the #1 team in KenPom in this league despite being the four seed.
Southland: McNeese State
Will Wade. American Gangster. That’s all that needs to be said. In all seriousness though, we know McNeese is just way more talented and athletic than the rest of the league.
The Summit League: North Dakota State
Full disclosure, I made this pick before realizing Jacksen Moni might not play. Had I known that I would’ve gone with South Dakota State, but if Moni can go and is close to 100%, I think NDSU wins the tournament. NDSU just beat South Dakota without him, but I think it would be tough to win multiple games if Moni can’t go.
Sun Belt: Arkansas State
The Sun Belt’s top four all won a share of the league title. Due to tiebreakers, Arkansas State is the four seed, but I would’ve gone with them as the one seed anyway. Bryan Hodgson can really coach and the Red Wolves do so many things well. If the outside shots fall this week, they are athletic enough to overwhelm the field and win this thing.
WCC: Gonzaga
It is still weird to me that Saint Mary’s has won back-to-back league titles. The Gaels are the better team between them and the Zags, but it is also really hard to beat a team three times in a row. I would think the Zags are super motivated to get another crack at Saint Mary’s and for the most part, have handled the rest of the conference.