Conference Tournament Previews: Part Two

METRO ATLANTIC ATHLETIC

For the past three years, Siena has been rolling through the MAAC like a warm knife through hot butter. The Saints once again coasted to the regular season title with a 17-1 record.

They have shown vulnerabilities though. Not all of the Saints' wins have been dominant, and some have been downright close. Fairfield has a legitimate shot at pulling off the upset, but I don’t see it. The Saints seem to be extremely focused in their last two games and playing on their home floor will be a huge advantage. I expect Siena to go dancing again.

SOUTHERN

This will be one of the more competitive conference tournaments in the country. The SoCon has wins over schools from the Big East, ACC, SEC and Atlantic 10 this season. Those wins came from Appalachian St., Western Carolina, College of Charleston and Wofford. Throw in Davidson and there will be some high-quality hoops in Charlotte this weekend. In the end, you have to go with the team that’s lost only one game this calendar year. I expect Wofford to make its first trip to the Big Dance.

WEST COAST

Once again, Gonzaga has proven to be the class of this league. It’s amazing to see the Bulldogs have the success they’ve had given the losses they sustained in the off-season. Despite that, Gonzaga has proven to be beatable this season and over its record 11-year run in the WCC tournament. Saint Mary’s and Portland are extremely capable of winning this tournament. There is a high probability of the two meeting in the semifinals, a game in which Portland will win on their way to the WCC tournament title.

AMERICA EAST

The top four teams in the America East are separated by two games. Stony Brook, Vermont, Maine and Boston University are all capable of going dancing. However, there’s one team who clearly has the number of the other three. In its six meetings with Vermont, Maine and BU, Stony Brook has a 5-1 record.

They’ve won 10 out of 11 and are looking very strong. The loss to New Hampshire is a bit alarming, but it was the last game of the season, and Stony Brook had nothing left to play for. The Seawolves do now, and they’ll be going dancing.