The stage is set for a wild Saturday in college basketball, as 15 of the 32 conferences will crown their tournament champions with the countdown to Selection Sunday on CBS dwindling to just one more day. While brand-name conferences such as the ACC, Big 12, Big East and Pac-12 are among those whose tournaments will be decided, the day will also belong to some of the sport’s lesser-known leagues.
Of the 15 leagues with tournament title games Saturday, most are likely to be one-bid conferences for the NCAA Tournament. That means it will be do-or-die for the hopes of many teams in action. One game that could be particularly captivating on Saturday is a Conference USA Tournament title showdown between Louisiana Tech and UAB at 8:30 p.m. ET on CBS Sports Network.
Neither is likely to receive an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament, but whichever team gets there can be a threat. UAB (26-7) has won six straight under third-year coach Andy Kennedy, while Louisiana Tech (24-9) appears to have found its stride this week after a rough ending to its regular season.
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Whoever wins it will join the parade of teams securing automatic bids to the Big Dance. Here is the full rundown of those who have punched their tickets so far.
With Selection Sunday rapidly approaching, here’s the full rundown of all those who have secured their spots in the 2022 NCAA Tournament.
Saturday’s conference championship games
America East
UMBC at Vermont, 11 a.m. (ESPN) — GameTracker
MEAC
Norfolk State vs. Coppin State, 1 p.m. (ESPN2)
MAAC
Monmouth vs. Saint Peter’s, 4 p.m. (ESPNU)
Mountain West
Boise State vs. San Diego State, 6 p.m. (CBS)
Big 12
Kansas vs. Texas Tech, 6 p.m. (ESPN)
SWAC
Alcorn State vs. Texas Southern, 6 p.m. (ESPNU)
Big East
Villanova vs. Creighton, 6:30 p.m. (Fox)
MAC
Akron vs. Kent State, 7:30 p.m. (ESPN2)
Big Sky
Montana State vs. Northern Colorado, 8 p.m. (ESPNU)
ACC
Duke vs. Virginia Tech, 8:30 p.m. (ESPN)
Conference USA
Louisiana Tech vs. UAB, 8:30 p.m. (CBS Sports Network)
Pac-12
Arizona vs. UCLA, 9 p.m. (Fox)
Southland
Texas A&M-Corpus Christi vs. Southeastern Louisiana, 9:30 p.m. (ESPN2)
WAC
New Mexico State vs. Abilene Christian, 10 p.m. (ESPNU)
Big West
Long Beach State vs. Cal-State Fullerton, 11:30 p.m. (ESPN2)
Saturday’s other conference tournaments in action
2022 conference tournament schedules, champions
Conference | Tournament site | Dates (Final TV) | 2022 Champion |
AAC | Fort Worth, Texas | March 10-13 (ESPN) | |
ACC | Brooklyn, N.Y. | March 8-12 (ESPN) | |
America East | Campus sites | March 6, 9 & 12 (ESPN2) | |
Atlantic 10 | Washington D.C. | March 9-13 (CBSSN) | |
ASUN | Campus sites | March 1, 3, 5 & 8 (ESPN) | Bellarmine (20-13) – x |
Big East | New York | March 9-12 (Fox) | |
Big Sky | Boise, Idaho | March 9-12 (ESPNU) | |
Big South | Charlotte, N.C. | March 2, 4-6 (ESPN2) | Longwood (26-6) |
Big Ten | Indianapolis | March 9-13 (CBS) | |
Big 12 | Kansas City | March 9-12 (ESPN) | |
Big West | Henderson, Nev. | March 8, 10-12 (ESPN2) | |
Colonial | Washington D.C. | March 5-8 (CBSSN) | Delaware (22-12) |
Conference USA | Frisco, Texas | March 8-12 (CBSSN) | |
Horizon League | Indianapolis | March 1, 3, 7 & 8 (ESPN) | Wright State (21-13) |
Ivy League | Cambridge, Mass. | March 12-13 (ESPN2) | |
MAAC | Atlantic City, N.J. | March 8-12 (ESPNU) | |
MAC | Cleveland, Ohio | March 10-12 (ESPN2) | |
MEAC | Norfolk, Va. | March 9-12 (ESPN2) | |
Missouri Valley | St. Louis | March 3-6 (CBS) | Loyola-Chicago (25-7) |
Mountain West | Las Vegas | March 9-12 (CBS) | |
Northeast | Campus sites | Feb. 28, March 2, 5 & 8 (ESPN) | Bryant (22-9) |
Ohio Valley | Evansville, Ind. | March 2-5 (ESPN2) | Murray State (30-2) |
Pac-12 | Las Vegas | March 9-12 (Fox) | |
Patriot | Campus sites | March 1, 3, 6 & 9 (CBSSN) | Colgate (23-11) |
SEC | Tampa | March 9-13 (ESPN) | |
Southern | Asheville, N.C | March 4-7 (ESPN) | Chattanooga (27-7) |
Southland | Katy, Texas | March 9-12 (ESPN2) | |
Summit | Sioux Falls, S.D. | March 5-8 (ESPN2) | S. Dakota State (30–4) |
Sun Belt | Pensacola, Fla. | March 3, 5-7 (ESPN2) | Georgia State (18-10) |
SWAC | Birmingham, Ala. | March 9-12 (ESPNU) | |
WAC | Las Vegas | March 8-12 (ESPNU) | |
West Coast | Las Vegas | March 3-5 & 7-8 (ESPN) | Gonzaga (26-3) |
x – Bellarmine is ineligible for the NCAA Tournament so ASUN regular season champion Jacksonville State is awarded the conference’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.