A whopping 12 teams will secure automatic bids to the NCAA Tournament on Saturday as championship week in college basketball is winding to a close. The drama figures to be elite, especially in the numerous one-bid leagues that will be crowning champions.
South Carolina State suffered a brutal beat Saturday in the finals of the MEAC Tournament as top-seeded Norfolk State escaped with a 66-65 win under bizarre circumstances. South Carolina State got a game-tying bucket from Caleb McCarty with 10 seconds left, but apparently he remained under the impression that his team was trailing.
McCarty quickly fouled Norfolk State’s Christian Ings, who went to the free-throw line and put Norfolk State ahead by a point, which proved to be the difference. South Carolina State got one last attempt at a potential game-winning shot. But it missed, which allowed Norfolk State to secure a bid to the Big Dance.
Three of the five high-major conferences will also have champions decided during one of the most high-stakes days of March. Among them could be No. 1 seed Houston from the Big 12, No. 1 seed St. John’s from the Big East and No. 1 seed Duke from the ACC. While the Cougars and Blue Devils are already in great position to be No. 1 seeds in the NCAA Tournament, conference tournament titles would only add to their already accomplished résumés. The Red Storm don’t have much of a case to be considered for a No. 1 seed but could add another feather in their cap by capturing a conference tournament crown inside their home confines of Madison Square Garden.
Friday’s conference tournament action brought a recent March Madness hero one step closer to another NCAA Tournament opportunity as No. 4 seed Iona and head coach Tobin Anderson edged No. 1 seed Quinnipiac 81-73 in the semifinals of the MAAC Tournament. The Gaels will play No. 6 seed Mount St. Mary’s on Saturday for a spot in the Big Dance.
Anderson famously guided No. 16 seed FDU to a historic upset of No. 1 seed Purdue in the 2023 NCAA Tournament before succeeding Rick Pitino at Iona. His team will enter Saturday’s title game on a five-game winning streak and profiling as a likely No. 16 seed if it were to reach the tournament. Other top seeds narrowly avoided the fate suffered by Quinnipiac on Friday.
Two prime examples were top-seeded Liberty, which survived for an 81-79 win over No. 4 seed Kennesaw State in the Conference USA semifinals. Memphis was another of the day’s survivors. The top-seeded Tigers evaded an upset bid from No. 8 seed Wichita State in the AAC Tournament quarterfinals. Bubble teams everywhere breathed a sigh of relief when Memphis hung on. Why? Because the AAC will be a one-bid league if Memphis wins it. But if any other team takes the title, it will put the pinch on bubble teams as the Tigers are headed to the Big Dance no matter what.
SportsLine conference tournament odds, picks: Proven experts share best bets for every tourney
Saturday’s conference tournament scores
2025 conference tournaments/champions
| ACC | Charlotte, North Carolina | March 11-15 | Sat., Mar. 15, 8:30 p.m. | ESPN |
| America East | Campus sites | March 8,11,15 | Bryant (23-11) |
| American | Fort Worth, Texas | March 12-16 | Sun., Mar. 16, 3:15 p.m. | ESPN |
| ASUN | Campus sites | March 2,3,6,9 | Lipscomb (25-9) |
| Atlantic 10 | Washington D.C. | March 12-16 | Sun., Mar. 16, 1 p.m. | CBS |
| Big 12 | Kansas City | March 11-15 | Sat., Mar. 15, 6 p.m. | ESPN |
| Big East | New York City | March 12-15 | Sat., Mar. 15, 6:30 p.m. | Fox |
| Big Sky | Boise, Idaho | March 8-12 | Montana (25-9) |
| Big South | Johnson City, Tennessee | March 5,7-9 | High Point (29-5) |
| Big Ten | Indianapolis | March 12-16 | Sun., Mar. 16, 3:30 p.m. | CBS |
| Big West | Henderson, Nevada | March 12-15 | Sat., Mar. 15, 9:40 p.m. | ESPN2 |
| Coastal Athletic | Washington D.C. | March 7-11 | UNCW (27-7) |
| Conference USA | Huntsville, Alabama | March 11-15 | Sat., Mar. 15, 8:30 p.m. | CBSSN |
| Horizon League | Campus sites | March 4,6,10,11 | Robert Morris (25-8) |
| Ivy | Providence, Rhode Island | March 15-16 | Sun., Mar. 16, 12 p.m. | ESPN2 |
| MAAC | Atlantic City, New Jersey | March 11-15 | Sat., Mar. 15, 7:30 p.m. | ESPNU |
| MAC | Cleveland | March 13-15 | Sat., Mar. 15, 7:40 p.m. | ESPN2 |
| MEAC | Norfolk, Virginia | March 12-15 | Norfolk State (24-10) |
| Missouri Valley | St. Louis | March 6-9 | Drake (30-3) |
| Mountain West | Las Vegas | March 12-15 | Sat., Mar. 15, 6 p.m. | CBS |
| Northeast | Campus sites | March 5,8.11 | Saint Francis (15-17) |
| Ohio Valley | Evansville, Indiana | March 5-8 | SIUE (22-11) |
| Patriot | Campus sites | March 4,6,9,12 | American (22-12) |
| SEC | Nashville | March 12-16 | Sun., Mar. 16, 1 p.m. | ESPN |
| Southern | Asheville, North Carolina | March 7-10 | Wofford (19-15) |
| Southland | Lake Charles, Louisiana | March 9-12 | McNeese (27-6) |
| Summit | Sioux Falls, South Dakota | March 5-9 | Omaha (22-12) |
| Sun Belt | Pensacola, Florida | March 4-10 | Troy (23-10) |
| SWAC | Atlanta | March 11-15 | Sat., Mar. 15, 9:30 p.m. | ESPNU |
| WAC | St. George, Utah / Las Vegas | March 11-15 | Sat., Mar. 15, 11:40 p.m. | ESPN2 |
| WCC | Las Vegas | March 6-11 | Gonzaga (25-8) |
