Every Single Damn Thing You Need To Know About Saturday's College Basketball's Conference Tournaments
And just like that we're back. A quick little nap overnight after Colorado State refused to cover at 3am and now we have championship Saturday. Sure part of me misses the nostalgia of the old days where you had the ACC semis leading into the Big East finals. Just a ridiculous setup back in the 90s and 2000s. Again, if you're in Illinois grab your ice cream, download the Barstool Sportsbook app and start sweating. Calories don't count when you're sweating.
I plan on doing this blog every day. Get a little recap, set the stage and talk about picks and shit for today. Let's get right into it.
Game-winners and highlights from yesterday
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Schedule
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Tournaments in action
America East, MEAC, Big East, Big 10, Big 12, Pac-12, SEC, AAC, ACC, MAAC, Mountain West, Southland, SWAC, Big Sky, C-USA, MAC, WAC, Big West
Conference Finals today
America East, MEAC, MAAC, MWC, Big 12, SWAC, Big East, MAC, Big Sky, ACC, C-USA, Southland, WAC, Pac-12, Big West
Updated major conference brackets
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10 best games today
Oklahoma State/Texas, Iowa/Illinois, Michigan/Iowa, Buffalo/Ohio, LSU/Arkansas, Utah State/San Diego State, Tennessee/Alabama, Georgia Tech/Florida State, Memphis/Houston, Georgetown/Creighton
5 Biggest storylines
1. Will bids get stolen
To me this is the biggest story today. We have two legit chances for someone to just get absolutely fucked that's on the bubble if Georgetown and/or Oregon State win. That's the beautiful thing about this time of the year. Nobody ever fucking though we'd have Oregon State in the NCAA Tournament, but they are 40 minutes away from getting there. I'll be honest, I'm cheering for Georgetown to win and Syracuse be the first team out. I want the hate from that rivalry to carry over here.
2. Ricky fucking Pitino
While the stolen bids are the biggest story, this is my favorite. Rick Pitino year 1 at Iona. They played 5 games from December 23 through the end of the regular season. They've been forced to shut down so many time with COVID pauses. They were the 9 seed in the MAAC Tournament. He's 40 minutes away from beating a No. 7 seed and sub-300 team Fairfield from making the NCAA Tournament. Not even just that, he's 40 minutes away from coaching a 16 seed in the NCAA Tournament. The image of scrappy Pitino coaching a 16 seed and 20+ point dog is just unreal. We need this.
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3. Isaiah Livers broken foot rumors
So rumors started swirling all over Twitter that Isaiah Livers has a broken foot. I have no idea how accurate this is but enough people are talking about it to make me think there's some sort of truth to it. Needless to say that would be massive. Yes, Michigan has the talent and depth to still win the Big 10 Tournament and even make the Final Four without him. But to win a title? I don't know about that Jiiiiiiimmmmm. The reason Michigan is so good is they can spread you out with Livers/Wagner/Smith/Brown/Brooks and like Dickinson cook in the post without any real help. Then they keep the size with Livers and Wagner defensively and can switch everything. They might have the best roster makeup of anyone in the country. You lose that with Livers - hot take I know, but you don't want to lose your 3rd best player who is an NBA prospect in March.
4. Oklahoma State, a legit 2 seed with a win
Oklahoma State is awesome. I'm adopting them as one of my own this March with no team affiliation to cheer for - thanks a lot, Kentucky. I just love the way Mike Boynton coaches. I love Cade's game. I love that they have a bit of shit talking swagger and will just dunk right in your face for no reason at the end of games. Oh, they also have a sick color scheme and the script Oklahoma State jerseys are fire. They are also one of the hottest teams in the country who have the 2nd most quad 1 wins in the country and are now legit fighting for a 2 seed. If they beat Texas they should be on that 2 line. Wild considering they started the year not even eligible for the NCAA Tournament. Texas also has a case for a 2 seed with a win. With the bracket pretty damn close to set in terms of teams in, I'm fascinated by the fight for seeding.
5. The Big 10 semis are absolutely ridiculous
Nice little treat for us here. Big 10 staying pretty much chalk gives us Michigan/Ohio State and Iowa/Illinois in the semis. Yes please. I'd like to not leave my recliner and watch that, especially with Raft on the call. Bullshit he's not on the Big East, but I will watch Raft call any game. Again, speaking of seeding that's what we're talking about here. Iowa and Ohio State fighting for 2 seeds. Illinois and Michigan potentially jumping around the 1 seed lines. It's all important, especially with Baylor losing. There's a chance that Michigan jumps Baylor to 2 overall if they win the Big 10 Tournament. There's a chance Illinois jumps Michigan if Illinois wins the Big 10 Tournament. Nerd shit, I know, but it's March. We're all bracket nerds.
Picks
179-180-3 overall, 69-72-2 on favorites, 76-61 on underdogs, 26-21-1 on the over, 8-16 on the under, 5-6 conference title games (picking all 31)
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I will update throughout the day if I add
UMass-Lowell +2
Norfolk State -2
Iona -8
Memphis +7
Texas Southern +2
Utah State +1.5
Georgetown +8.5
Ohio +2.5
Eastern Washington -7.5
WKU -1
Abilene Christian -6.5
Grand Canyon +2
Oregon State +9
UC Santa Barbra -2
FSU -4.5
Oklahoma State +2.5