Big 12 Tournament 2016: Semifinals Schedule, Live Stream, Bracket Predictions

The Big 12 tournament is down to four teams and has gone chalk, except for a minor upset by the No. 5 Baylor Bears over the No. 4 Texas Longhorns in the quarterfinals on Thursday.

Leading the pack is the regular-season champion and No. 1 seed Kansas Jayhawks. While they have won at least a share of the conference title 12 years in a row, they have not won the conference tournament since 2013.

The Iowa State Cyclones have won it the past two years, but the Oklahoma Sooners ended their bid for a third straight title with a 79-76 victory in the quarterfinals on Thursday. 

A possible third matchup between Kansas and Oklahoma—who have both been ranked No. 1 at some point this season—looms if they can win their respective semifinal games.

Here's a look at the schedule for the semifinal round as well as predictions for the rest of the tournament.

What: Big 12 tournament semifinals

When: March 11

Where: Kansas City, Missouri (Sprint Center)

Live Stream: WatchESPN

Friday, March 11	Semifinals
Saturday, March 12	Finals
Matchups	Time (ET)	TV	Projected Winner
No. 5 Baylor vs. No. 1 Kansas	7 p.m.	ESPN2	Kansas
No. 3 Oklahoma vs. No. 2 West Virginia	9 p.m.	ESPN2	Oklahoma
Matchups	Time (ET)	TV	Projected Winner
No. 3 Oklahoma vs. No. 1 Kansas	6 p.m.	ESPN	Kansas

The Big 12 is college basketball's best conference top to bottom, but make no mistake, the tournament is Kansas' to lose.

Ranked No. 1 in the country and riding a 12-game win streak, the Jayhawks are playing better than anyone in the country. Also, their record against possible opponents in the Big 12 tournament this year is a gaudy 5-1.

In their quarterfinal win against the Kansas State Wildcats on Thursday, the Jayhawks were about as efficient as any team can be, especially from inside the three-point range, per ESPN Stats & Info:

Kansas is led by senior forward Perry Ellis, who was named to the USA Today All-America second team prior to scoring 21 points and grabbing six rebounds against Kansas State.

But it's strong guard play, especially at the point, that makes Kansas tick. Head coach Bill Self sometimes plays a two-point guard lineup with junior Frank Mason III and sophomore Devonte' Graham. The duo combined for 27 points, 15 assists and just three turnovers in the quarterfinal win.  

They also have leading rebounder Landen Lucas, junior shooting guard Wayne Selden Jr. (13.4 ppg) and backup wing Svi Mykhailiuk, who, despite playing just 13 minutes per game, could be the Jayhawks' best NBA prospect.

Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com noted how the Jayhawks come at teams from every angle:

That being said, Kansas was the No. 1 seed the past two years and lost in the quarterfinals in 2014 and the semifinals in 2015. Iowa State doesn't stand in its way this year, but talented Baylor, who KU beat in last year's semifinals, does on Friday.

In addition to Oklahoma, the West Virginia Mountaineers have a chance to take down Kansas and are the only team left in the tournament that did so during the regular season.

It won't be easy to topple Kansas, but it also will be tough for the Jayhawks to win two games in a row against teams who have a shot at making a deep run in the NCAA tournament.

No matter what happens, the Big 12 shows year in and year out it's one of the more exciting postseason competitions, and 2016 should be no different.