Updated Championship Week Predictions: "I Wanna Be a Cowboy"

Today's song is Boys Don't Cy's 1985 new wave hit "I Wanna Be a Cowboy," in honor of the McNeese Cowboys' third straight Southland Conference Tournament championship.  Look out for the Cowboys in the NCAA Tournament.  Yesterday, various bubble teams that really needed a win didn't get one, including my beloved Hoosiers, who have unfathomably lost seven in a row to Northwestern, which is one of the more embarrassing things I've ever written.  Good thing we're a football school now.  Several 1-seeds lost.

Following up on my comment from a couple days ago, this year's Championship Week continues to be far more unpredictable than last year, where all but five conference tournaments were won by 1-seeds or 2-seeds (17 1-seeds and 9 2-seeds won) -- while only three schools seeded four or lower won.  By contrast, of the 15 conference tournaments that have already finished, six teams seed four or lower have won.  Here are the number of each seeds that have won:

• Seven 1-seeds (Gonzaga, WCC; High Point, Big South; LIU, NEC; North Dakota State, Summit; Tennessee State, OVC; Troy, Sun Belt; Wright State, Horizon)
• Two 2-seeds (Lehigh, Patriot; McNeese, Southland)
• Three 3-seeds (Hofstra, CAA; Queens, A-Sun; Siena, MAAC)
• Two 6-seeds (Furman, SoCon; Northern Iowa, MVC)
• One 7-seed (Idaho, Big Sky)

And in the other conference tournaments that are already underway where the 1-seed and 2-seed have played, two 1-seeds (Bethune-Cookman, SWAC; Liberty, C-USA) and a 2-seeds (Morgan State, MEAC) lost yesterday (in the quarterfinals at that!).

The following 1-seeds and 2-seeds have not yet played:

• 1-seeds:  Arizona (Big 12), Duke (ACC), Florida (SEC), Howard (MEAC), Miami (OH) (MAC), Michigan (Big Ten), South Florida (AAC), St. John's (Big East), St. Louis (A-10), UC Irvine (Big West), Utah State (Mountain West), Utah Valley (WAC), Yale (Ivy)
• 2-seeds:  Akron (MAC), Alabama (SEC), Cal Baptist (WAC), Harvard (Ivy), Hawaii (Big West), Houston (Big 12), Nebraska (Big Ten), San Diego State (Mountain West), UConn (Big East), VCU (A-10), Virginia (ACC), Wichita State (AAC)

And today, from tip off of the Miami (OH)/UMass game in the first round of the MAC Tournament at 11:00 a.m. ET to the end of the WAC quarterfinal game between Utah Tech and Abilene Christian, the Mountain West quarterfinal between New Mexico and San Jose State, and the Big West quarterfinal between Cal State Fullerton and UC Davis, which  are all scheduled to tip at 11:30 p.m. ET, we have 44 conference tournament games over about 15 hours.

Here's what happened yesterday and what we have to look forward to today:

• In the Big Sky championship, 7-seed Idaho topped 4-seed Montana, 77-66, meaning the Vandals will be making their 5th trip to the MCAA Tournament and first since 1990.
• In the Patriot League title game, 2-seed Lehigh dominated 4-seed Boston, 74-60.  The Mountain Hawks will be going to their 6th NCAA Tournament and first since 2012, when they upset Duke as a 15-seed.
• In the Southland championship game, 2-seed McNeese didn't show any ill effects from that triple-overtime win Tuesday night against Texas A&M Corpus Christi, as the Cowboys rolled 1-seed Stephen F. Austin, 76-59, to clinch their NCAA Tournament berth and third in a row.
• In the first half of the Conference USA quarters, 9-seed Missouri State upset 1-seed Liberty -- which won the C-USA regular season title by four games, mind you -- 77-69, and 2-seed Sam Houston State avoided the same fate with a 69-61 win over 10-seed New Mexico State, to advance to Friday's semifinals.
• In the first half of the MEAC quarterfinals, 7-seed Delaware State upset 2-seed Morgan State, 75-70 in OT, to advance to Friday's semifinals.  Note:  Coppin State is ineligible for the MEAC Tournament, so only seven teams are in the tournament.  Hence, only one quarterfinal game yesterday (and two today), and 1-seed Howard has a bye into the semfinals.
• In the first half of the SWAC quarterfinals, 8-seed Prairie View A&M upset 1-seed Bethune-Cookman, and 2-seed Florida A&M took care of 7-seed Jackson State, 70-60, to advance to Friday's semifinals.
• In the Second Round of the ACC, 5-seed Clemson topped 13-seed Wake Forest, 71-62, 6-seed Louisville eked by 11-seed SMU, 62-58, 7-seed NC State beat 15-seed Pittsburgh, 98-88, and 8-seed Florida State topped 9-seed California, 95-89, to advance to today's quarterfinals.
• In the Second Round of the Big 12, 5-seed Iowa State stomped 12-seed Arizona State, 91-42, 6-seed TCU outlasted 14-seed Oklahoma State, 95-88, 8-seed UCF beat 9-seed Cincinnati in OT, 66-65, and 10-seed BYU destroyed 7-seed West Virginia, 68-48, to advance to today's quarterfinals.
• In the Second Round of the Big Ten, 9-seed Iowa beat 17-seed Maryland, 75-64, 15-seed Northwestern upset my 10-seed Hoosiers, 74-61 (ruining my Big Ten Tournament bracket in the process), 14-seed Rutgers took out 11-seed Minnesota, 72-67, 12-seed Washington needed OT to top 13-seed USC, 83-79, to advance to today's third round.
• In the First Round of the AAC, 7-seed FAU fended off 10-seed Temple, 63-59, and 9-seed Tulane downed 8-seed Memphis, 81-69, to advance to today's second round.
• In the First Round of the A-10, 14-seed Loyola (IL) dropped 11-seed Richmond, 75-67, in the first post-season game for the Ramblers since the beloved Sister Jean died, and 13-seed St. Bonaventure crushed 12-seed LaSalle, 99-80, to advance to today's second round.
• In the First Round of the Big East, all three lower-seeded teams won, as 11-seed Georgetown upset 6-seed DePaul, 63-56, 10-seed Xavier upended 7-seed Marquette, 89-87, and 9-seed Providence ousted 8-seed Butler, 91-81, to advance to today's quarterfinals.
• In the First Round of the Big West, 5-seed UC San Diego eked out a 72-69 win over 8-seed Cal Poly, and 6-seed UC Davis beat 7-seed UC Santa Barbara, 79-73, to advance to today's quarterfinals.
• In the First Round of the Mountain West, 5-seed Nevada bombed 12-seed Air Force, 80-45, 11-seed San Jose State upset 6-seed Boise State, 84-74, 7-seed Colorado State beat 10-seed Fresno State, 67-63, and 8-seed UNLV bounced 9-seed Wyoming, 73-70, to advance to today's quarterfinals.
• In the First Round of the SEC, 9-seed Kentucky Kentucky squeezed by 16-seed LSU, 87-82, 15-seed Mississippi upset 10-seed Texas, 76-66, 11-seed Oklahoma pulled away from 14-seed South Carolina for an 86-74 win, and 12-seed Auburn made easy work of 13-seed Mississippi State, 79-61, to advance to today's second round.
• In the First Round of the wiggity-wiggity-wiggity-wiggity-wiggity-wiggity-WAC, 6-seed Abilene Christian beat 7-seed Tarleton, 84-78, to advance to today's quarterfinals.
• One conference tournament starts today, and 14 conference tournaments have games today.
• 10 conference tournaments have quarterfinals today (ACC, Big 12, Big East, Big West, C-USA, MAC, MEAC, Mountain West, SWAC, WAC), no conference tournaments have semifinals today, and no conference tournaments have championship games until Saturday.
• Here are the teams that have never been to the NCAA Tournament (not including teams who are ineligible for this year's NCAA Tournament) that are still alive:
• MEAC:  6-seed Maryland Eastern Shore
• WAC:  1-seed Utah Valley, 2-seed Cal Baptist, 3-seed Utah Tech
• Bubble teams that won yesterday (in conference tournaments):  Auburn, Iowa, NC State, Oklahoma, TCU, UCF
• Bubble teams that lost yesterday (in conference tournaments):  Boise State, California, Cincinnati, Indiana, SMU, Texas
• Bubble teams that have not yet started conference tournaments (any team projected as a 9-seed or lower that's not expected to be its conference's automatic qualifier or would be a bubble team if it doesn't win its conference tournament):  Miami (OH), Missouri, New Mexico, Ohio State, San Diego State, Seton Hall, South Florida, St. Louis, Texas A&M, UCLA, VCU

Here are the tournaments starting today, the tournaments with games today, bids up for grab today, who has already clinched an automatic berth, and my predictions for the remaining conference tournaments.

Tournaments starting today

-MAC

Tournaments with games today

-AAC

-ACC

-Atlantic 10

-Big 12

-Big East

-Big Ten

-Big West

-Conference USA

-MAC

-MEAC

-Mountain West

-SEC

-SWAC

-WAC

Bids up for grabs today (all times Eastern)

-None

Already clinched automatic berths (I will add in parentheses the NCAA tournament appearances for each school, including the bid just clinched and last NCAA Tournament appearance where applicable, and for conferences whose tournaments have not yet ended, I'll list the date of the championship game)

-AAC (March 15)

-ACC (March 14)

-America East (March 14)

-Atlantic 10 (March 15)

-Atlantic Sun:  Queens (1)

-Big 12 (March 14)

-Big East (March 14)

-Big Sky:  Idaho (5; 1990)

-Big South:  High Point (2; 2025)

-Big Ten (March 15)

-Big West (March 14)

-Coastal:  Hofstra (5; 2001)

-Conference USA (March 14)

-Horizon:  Wright State (5; 2022)

-Ivy League (March 15)

-MAAC:  Siena (7; 2010)

-MAC (March 14)

-MEAC (March 14)

-Missouri Valley:  Northern Iowa (9; 2016)

-Mountain West (March 14)

-Northeast Conference:  LIU (8; 2018)

-Ohio Valley:  Tennessee State (3; 1994)

-Patriot League:  Lehigh (6; 2012)

-SEC (March 15)

-Southern Conference:  Furman (8; 2023)

-Southland:  McNeese (5; 2025)

-Summit:  North Dakota State (5; 2019)

-Sun Belt:  Troy (4; 2025)

-SWAC (March 14)

-WAC (March 14)

-West Coast:  Gonzaga (28; 2025)

Remaining Tournaments (all times are Eastern)

AAC (March 11-15; Birmingham)

3/12 – Second Round

7 p.m. (ESPNU) (5) Charlotte vs. (9) Tulane.  Predicted winner:  Tulane

9:30 p.m. (ESPNU) (6) North Texas vs. (7) FAU.  Predicted winner:  North Texas

3/13 – Quarterfinals

1 p.m. (ESPN2) (4) UAB vs. (9) Tulane.  Predicted winner:  UAB

9 p.m. (ESPN2) (3) Tulsa vs. (6) North Texas.  Predicted winner:  Tulsa

3/14 – Semifinals

3 p.m. (ESPN2) (1) South Florida vs. (4) UAB.  Predicted winner:  South Florida

5:30 p.m. (ESPN2) (2) Wichita State vs. (3) Tulsa.  Predicted winner:  Wichita State

3/15 – Finals

3:15 p.m. (ESPN) (1) South Florida vs. (2) Wichita State.  Predicted winner:  Wichita State

ACC (March 10-14; Charlotte)

3/12 – Quarterfinals

12 p.m. (ESPN/ESPN2) (2) Virginia vs. (7) NC State.  Predicted winner:  Virginia

2:30 p.m. (ESPN/ESPN2) (3) Miami (FL) vs. (6) Louisville.  Predicted winner:  Louisville

7 p.m. (ESPN/ESPN2) (1) Duke vs. (8) Florida State.  Predicted winner:  Duke

9:30 p.m. (ESPN/ESPN2) (4) North Carolina vs. (5) Clemson.  Predicted winner:  North Carolina

3/13 – Semifinals

7 p.m. (ESPN/ESPN2) (2) Virginia vs. (6) Louisville.  Predicted winner:  Louisville

9:30 p.m. (ESPN/ESPN2) (1) Duke vs. (4) North Carolina.  Predicted winner:  Duke

3/14 – Finals

8:30 p.m. (ESPN) (1) Duke vs. (6) Louisville.  Predicted winner:  Duke

America East (March 7, 10, 14; campus of higher seed)

3/14 – Finals

11 a.m. (ESPN2) (2) Vermont at (1) UMBC.  Predicted winner:  Vermont

Atlantic 10 (March 11-15; Pittsburgh)

3/12 – Second Round

11:30 a.m. (USA) (8) Fordham vs. (9) George Washington.  Predicted winner:  Fordham

2 p.m. (USA) (5) George Mason vs. (13) St. Bonaventure.  Predicted winner:  George Mason

5 p.m. (USA) (7) Duquesne vs. (10) Rhode Island.  Predicted winner:  Duquesne

7:30 p.m. (USA) (6) Davidson vs. (14) Loyola (IL).  Predicted winner:  Davidson

3/13 – Quarterfinals

11:30 a.m. (USA) (1) St. Louis vs. (8) Fordham.  Predicted winner:  St. Louis

2 p.m. (USA) (4) Dayton vs. (5) George Mason.  Predicted winner:  George Mason

5 p.m. (USA) (2) VCU vs. (7) Duquesne.  Predicted winner:  VCU

7:30 p.m. (CNBC) (3) St. Joseph's vs. (6) Davidson.  Predicted winner:  St. Joseph's

3/14 – Semifinals

1 p.m. (CBSSN) (1) St. Louis vs. (5) George Mason.  Predicted winner:  St. Louis

3:30 p.m. (CBSSN) (2) VCU vs. (3) St. Joseph's.  Predicted winner:  VCU

3/15 – Finals

1 p.m. (CBS) (1) St. Louis vs. (2) VCU.  Predicted winner:  St. Louis

Big 12 (March 10-14; Kansas City)

3/12 – Quarterfinals

12:30 p.m. (ESPN2) (4) Texas Tech vs. (5) Iowa State.  Predicted winner:  Iowa State

3 p.m. (ESPN2) (1) Arizona vs. (9) Cincinnati.  Predicted winner:  Arizona

7 p.m. (ESPN) (2) Houston vs. (10) BYU.  Predicted winner:  Houston

9:30 p.m. (ESPN) (3) Kansas vs. (6) TCU.  Predicted winner:  Kansas

3/13 – Semifinals

7 p.m. (ESPN2) (1) Arizona vs. (5) Iowa State.  Predicted winner:  Iowa State

9:30 p.m. (ESPN2) (2) Houston vs. (3) Kansas.  Predicted winner:  Houston

3/14 – Finals

6 p.m. (ESPN) (2) Houston vs. (5) Iowa State.  Predicted winner:  Houston

Big East (March 11-14; New York)

3/12 – Quarterfinals

12 p.m. (Peacock/NCBSN) (1) St. John's vs. (9) Providence.  Predicted winner:  St. John's

2:30 p.m. (Peacock/NCBSN) (4) Seton Hall vs. (5) Creighton.  Predicted winner:  Seton Hall

7 p.m. (FS1) (2) UConn vs. (10) Xavier.  Predicted winner:  UConn

9:30 p.m. (FS1) (3) Villanova vs. (11) Georgetown.  Predicted winner:  Villanova

3/13 – Semifinals

5:30 p.m. (Fox) (1) St. John's vs. (4) Seton Hall.  Predicted winner:  St. John's

8 p.m. (FS1) (2) UConn vs. (3) Villanova.  Predicted winner:  UConn

3/14 – Finals

6:30 p.m. (Fox) (1) St. John's v. (2) UConn.  Predicted winner:  UConn

Big Ten (March 10-15; Chicago)

3/12 -Third Round

12 p.m. (BTN) (8) Ohio State vs. (9) Iowa.  Predicted winner:  Iowa

2:30 p.m. (BTN) (5) Wisconsin vs. (12) Washington.  Predicted winner:  Wisconsin

6:30 p.m. (BTN) (7) Purdue vs. (15) Northwestern.  Predicted winner:  Purdue

9 p.m. (BTN) (6) UCLA vs. (14) Rutgers.  Predicted winner:  UCLA

3/13 – Quarterfinals

12 p.m. (BTN) (1) Michigan vs. (9) Iowa.  Predicted winner:  Michigan

2:30 p.m. (BTN) (4) Illinois vs. (5) Wisconsin.  Predicted winner:  Illinois

6:30 p.m. (BTN) (2) Nebraska vs. (7) Purdue.  Predicted winner:  Nebraska

9 p.m. (BTN) (3) Michigan State vs. (6) UCLA.  Predicted winner:  Michigan State

3/14 – Semifinals

1 p.m. (CBS) (1) Michigan vs. (4) Illinois.  Predicted winner:  Illinois

3:30 p.m. (CBS) (2) Nebraska vs. (3) Michigan State.  Predicted winner:  Michigan State

3/15 – Finals

3:30 p.m. (CBS) (3) Michigan State vs. (4) Illinois.  Predicted winner:  Michigan State

Big West (March 11-14; Henderson, NV)

3/11 - First Round

11:30 p.m. (ESPN+) (6) UC Davis vs. (7) UC Santa Barbara.  Predicted winner:  UC Santa Barbara

3/12 – Quarterfinals

9 p.m. (ESPN+) (3) Cal State Fullerton vs. (6) UC Davis.  Predicted winner:  Cal State Fullerton

11:30 p.m. (ESPN+) (4) Cal State Northridge vs. (5) UC San Diego.  Predicted winner:  UC San Diego

3/13 – Semifinals

9 p.m. (ESPNU) (1) UC Irvine vs. (5) UC San Diego.  Predicted winner:  UC Irvine

11:30 p.m. (ESPN2) (2) Hawaii vs. (3) Cal State Fullerton.  Predicted winner:  Hawaii

3/14 – Finals

10 p.m. (ESPN2) (1) UC Irvine vs. (2) Hawaii.  Predicted winner:  UC Irvine

Conference USA (March 10-14; Huntsville, AL)

Quarterfinals

3/12

6:30 p.m. (ESPN+) (4) Louisiana Tech vs. (5) Middle Tennessee State.  Predicted winner:  Louisiana Tech

9 p.m. (ESPN+) (3) Western Kentucky vs. (6) Kennesaw State.  Predicted winner:  Western Kentucky

3/13 – Semifinals

12:30 p.m. (CBSSN) (4) Louisiana Tech vs. (9) Missouri State.  Predicted winner:  Louisiana Tech

3 p.m. (CBSSN) (2) Sam Houston vs. (3) Western Kentucky.  Predicted winner:  Western Kentucky

3/14 – Finals

8:30 p.m. (CBSSN) (3) Western Kentucky vs. (4) Louisiana Tech.  Predicted winner:  Western Kentucky

Ivy League (March 14-15; Ithaca, NY)

3/14 - Semifinals

11 a.m. (ESPNU) (1) Yale vs. (4) Cornell.  Predicted winner:  Yale

2 p.m. (ESPNews) (2) Harvard vs. (3) Penn.  Predicted winner:  Harvard

3/15 - Finals

12 p.m. (ESPN2) (1) Yale vs. (2) Harvard.  Predicted winner:  Yale

MAC (March 12-14; Cleveland)

3/12 – Quarterfinals

11 a.m. (ESPN+) (1) Miami (OH) vs. (8) UMass.  Predicted winner:  Miami (OH)

1:30 p.m. (ESPN+) (4) Toledo vs. (5) Bowling Green.  Predicted winner:  Toledo

4:30 p.m. (ESPN+) (2) Akron vs. (7) Buffalo.  Predicted winner:  Akron

6:30 p.m. (ESPN+) (3) Kent State vs. (6) Ohio.  Predicted winner:  Kent State

3/13 – Semifinals

5 p.m. (CBSSN) (1) Miami (OH) vs. (4) Toledo.  Predicted winner:  Miami (OH)

7:30 p.m. (CBSSN) (2) Akron vs. (3) Kent State.  Predicted winner:  Akron

3/14 – Finals

8 p.m. (ESPN2) (1) Miami (OH) vs. (2) Akron.  Predicted winner:  Miami (OH)

MEAC (March 11-14; Norfolk, VA)

Quarterfinals

3/12

6 p.m. (ESPN+) (4) Norfolk State vs. (5) South Carolina State.  Predicted winner:  Norfolk State

8 p.m. (ESPN+) (3) North Carolina Central vs. (6) Maryland Eastern Shore.  Predicted winner:  North Carolina Central

3/13 – Semifinals

6 p.m. (ESPN+) (1) Howard vs. (4) Norfolk State.  Predicted winner:  Howard

8 p.m. (ESPN+) (3) North Carolina Central vs. (7) Delaware State.  Predicted winner:  North Carolina Central

3/14 – Final

1:00 p.m. (TBD) (1) Howard vs. (3) North Carolina Central.  Predicted winner:  Howard

Mountain West (March 11-14; Paradise, NV)

3/12 – Quarterfinals

3 p.m. (CBSSN) (1) Utah State vs. (8) UNLV.  Predicted winner:  Utah State

5:30 p.m. (CBSSN) (4) Grand Canyon vs. (5) Nevada.  Predicted winner:  Nevada

9 p.m. (CBSSN) (2) San Diego State vs. (7) Colorado State.  Predicted winner:  San Diego State

11:30 p.m. (CBSSN) (3) New Mexico vs. (11) San Jose State.  Predicted winner:  New Mexico

3/13 – Semifinals

9:30 p.m. (CBSSN) (1) Utah State vs. (5) Nevada.  Predicted winner:  Utah State

11:59 p.m. (CBSSN) (2) San Diego State vs. (3) New Mexico.  Predicted winner:  San Diego State

3/14 – Finals

6 p.m. (CBS) (1) Utah State vs. (2) San Diego State.  Predicted winner:  Utah State

SEC (March 11-15; Nashville)

3/12 – Second Round

1 p.m. (SEC Network) (8) Missouri vs. (9) Kentucky.  Predicted winner:  Kentucky

3:30 p.m. (SEC Network) (5) Tennessee vs. (12) Auburn.  Predicted winner:  Tennessee

7 p.m. (SEC Network) (7) Georgia vs. (15) Mississippi.  Predicted winner:  Texas

9:30 p.m. (SEC Network) (6) Texas A&M vs. (11) Oklahoma.  Predicted winner:  Texas A&M

3/13 – Quarterfinals

1 p.m. (ESPN) (1) Florida vs. (9) Kentucky.  Predicted winner:  Florida

3:30 p.m. (ESPN) (4) Vanderbilt vs. (5) Tennessee.  Predicted winner:  Tennessee

7 p.m. (SEC Network) (2) Alabama vs. (10) Texas.  Predicted winner:  Alabama

9:30 p.m. (SEC Network) (3) Arkansas vs. (6) Texas A&M.  Predicted winner:  Arkansas

3/14 – Semifinals

1 p.m. (ESPN) (1) Florida vs. (5) Tennessee.  Predicted winner:  Tennessee

3:30 p.m. (ESPN) (2) Alabama vs. (3) Arkansas.  Predicted winner:  Alabama

3/15 – Finals

1 p.m. (ESPN) (2) Alabama vs. (5) Tennessee.  Predicted winner:  Alabama

SWAC (March 9-14; Atlanta)

Quarterfinals

3/12

2 p.m. (ESPN+) (4) Texas Southern vs. (5) Alabama A&M.  Predicted winner:  Texas Southern

8:30 p.m. (ESPN+) (3) Southern vs. (6) Arkansas-Pine Bluff.  Predicted winner:  Southern

3/13 – Semifinals

2 p.m. (ESPN+) (4) Texas Southern vs. (8) Prairie View A&M.  Predicted winner:  Texas Southern

8:30 p.m. (ESPN+) (2) Florida A&M vs. (3) Southern.  Predicted winner:  Florida A&M

3/14 – Finals

7:30 p.m. (TBD) (2) Florida A&M vs. (4) Texas Southern.  Predicted winner:  Texas Southern

WAC (March 11-14; Paradise, NV)

3/12 - Quarterfinals

9 p.m. (ESPN+) (4) UT Arlington vs. (5) Southern Utah.  Predicted winner:  UT Arlington

11:30 p.m. (ESPN+) (3) Utah Tech vs. (6) Abilene Christian.  Predicted winner:  Utah Tech

3/13 – Semifinals

9 p.m. (ESPN+) (1) Utah Valley vs. (4) UT Arlington.  Predicted winner:  Utah Valley

11:30 p.m. (ESPN2/ESPNU) (2) Cal Baptist vs. (3) Utah Tech.  Predicted winner:  Cal Baptist

3/14 – Finals

11:59 p.m. (ESPN2) (1) Utah Valley vs. (2) Cal Baptist.  Predicted winner:  Utah Valley