Conference USA Tournament 2017: Bracket, Schedule and Championship Odds

Middle Tennessee burned nearly every bracket in the nation last year as the No. 15-seeded Blue Raiders defeated the No. 2-seeded Michigan State Spartans, who were picked by many to win the national championship, in the first round by a score of 90-81.

This year, MTSU is firing on all cylinders, winning 27 of its 31 games and going 17-1 in conference play, with its lone league loss being a 57-54 defeat at UTEP. The Blue Raiders are projected to be a No. 11 seed in the NCAA tournament, per ESPN bracketologist Joe Lunardi's latest projections.

The Blue Raiders are heavy favorites to win the Conference USA title and return to the NCAA tournament, but can any team take them down in the league championship?

Here's a look at the Conference USA bracket, the schedule, the latest odds and a quick tournament preview.

Bracket

Schedule

Date	Time (ET)	Game	Round	Matchup	Television
Wednesday, March 8	12:30 p.m.	1	First	No. 8 WKU vs. No. 9 UTSA	Campus Insiders
Wednesday, March 8	3 p.m.	2	First	No. 12 Southern Miss vs. No. 5 Rice	Campus Insiders
Wednesday, March 8	6:30 p.m.	3	First	No. 10 Charlotte vs. No. 7 UAB	Campus Insiders
Wednesday, March 8	9 p.m.	4	First	No. 11 FAU vs. No. 6 Marshall	Campus Insiders
Thursday, March 9	12:30 p.m.	5	Quarterfinals	Game 1 winner vs. No. 1 MTSU	ASN
Thursday, March 9	3 p.m.	6	Quarterfinals	Game 2 winner vs. No. 4 UTEP	ASN
Thursday, March 9	6:30 p.m.	7	Quarterfinals	Game 3 winner vs. No. 2 Louisiana Tech	ASN
Thursday, March 9	9 p.m.	8	Quarterfinals	Game 4 winner vs. No. 3 Old Dominion	ASN
Friday, March 10	12:30 p.m.	9	Semifinals	Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner	CBS Sports Network
Friday, March 10	3 p.m.	10	Semifinals	Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 winner	CBS Sports Network
Saturday, March 11	8:30 p.m.	11	Final	Semifinal winner vs. Semifinal winner	CBS Sports Network

Information via conferenceusa.com. All games will be played in Birmingham, Alabama, at the Legacy Arena at the Birmingham Jefferson Civic Center.

Championship Odds

Team	Odds
MTSU	-130
Louisiana Tech	+360
Old Dominion	+550
UAB	+625
Rice	+950
Marshall	+1400
UTEP	+2000
Western Kentucky	+3000
Charlotte	+15000
Florida Atlantic	+20000
UTSA	+35000
Southern Miss	+50000

Odds as of March 7 via OddsShark.

Preview

Middle Tennessee returned its two leading scorers from last season, junior guard Giddy Potts and senior forward Reggie Upshaw, but neither of them leads the team in scoring this year as transfer JaCorey Williams posts 17.5 points and 7.4 rebounds per game. Those three players account for 63.6 percent of the Blue Raiders' scoring.

The Blue Raiders play at a very slow pace (323rd in the nation, per the Ken Pomeroy college basketball ratings), which makes their 13.7-point average point differential in their 27 victories this season all the more impressive.

MTSU has extra motivation to win the Conference USA tournament because there is no guarantee that it will make the NCAA tournament as an at-large if it loses in Birmingham this week. Here's more on the Blue Raiders' chances, per Ed Miller of The Virginian-Pilot:

"

With an RPI of 37, the Blue Raiders are squarely on the NCAA at-large bubble. Should they reach the final and lose, they’d be 29-5, a record that certainly passes the eye test. Working against them is that they have just two RPI top-50 wins, plus a loss to No. 241 UTEP and a home loss to No. 165 Tennessee State.

The bottom line is that the Blue Raiders can’t really risk leaving their fate to the selection committee. That motivation should make them an even tougher out this week.

"

Ultimately, it's really hard seeing any team taking Middle Tennessee out, especially with its need to secure an NCAA tourney berth. No other team in Conference USA ranks in the top 100 of the Sagarin ratings; MTSU is No. 45. No team in Conference USA ranks in the top 100 in offensive and defensive efficiency in the Pomeroy rankings; MTSU is No. 63 in offense and No. 41 in defense.

Louisiana Tech might have the best shot, however. The Bulldogs have won eight of their last nine games and finished the season with a 22-9 record (14-4 in conference play). When the Bulldogs played Middle Tennessee this season, they were tied with five-and-a-half minutes remaining before the Blue Raiders pulled away and won 71-61.

It's also possible that Alabama-Birmingham, who is playing in its home city, does better in front of some partial crowds that don't have to go far to see them play. That being said, they have a tough draw as a No. 7 seed and would have to face a tough Louisiana Tech team early in the quarterfinal round.

Ultimately, the Blue Raiders are too tough and, after last year's March Madness win, too experienced on the big stage to fall this week. Expect Middle Tennessee to win the league title and secure an automatic bid into March Madness.