February 17, 2023: My picks to win each of the 45 D-III WBB conference tournaments
It wasn't easy and these are by no means perfect, but thought it'd be a fun way to enter into the postseason
With conference tournament action starting TODAY (with the NAC) I thought it’d be fun to go through and try to pick the winner of each of the 45 conference tournaments. It wasn’t easy, and required a bit more research than anticipated, but good to get a look at a few of the lesser-known conferences and some of the potential AQs out of those leagues. Here goes…(and feel free to drop your picks below!) I didn’t put much detail into these for the sake of time (and the length of this article), but it’s a general idea of my thoughts on some of these tournaments and teams.
AMCC: Feb 21, 24-25: Let’s go with La Roche, at 13-0 in AMCC play, to start us off.
ARC: Feb 21-25: It’ll be a battle between Loras and Wartburg, though both will make the NCAA Tournament (One by Pool A, the other by Pool C). I like Loras in this tournament, though I don’t see the title game being decided by more than six points if Loras-Wartburg does indeed end up being the ARC Championship Game matchup.
ASC: Feb 21, 24-25: It’s been a while since the tournament host in the ASC actually won the whole thing, but Hardin-Simmons hasn’t skipped a beat through conference play. 17-0 right now with 1 game left…I’ll take the Cowgirls to win, but it won’t come easily.
AEC: Feb 20-25: Taking Marymount, the tournament’s top seed, to prevail in the AEC.
Centennial: Feb 21-25: Tight battle between Johns Hopkins and Gettysburg here. Gettysburg hasn’t lost in the month of February, and has already beaten JHU once. Let’s go with the Bullets of Gettysburg to win the Centennial.
CUNYAC: Feb 18-21: Brooklyn has given me no reason to doubt their ability to claim the AQ out of the CUNYAC.
C2C: Feb 23-25: UC Santa Cruz. If the Banana Slugs can reach the championship game vs CNU, on a neutral floor, after watching this matchup a couple weeks ago, I like UCSC’s chances. Then again, CNU is the #1 team in the nation, and the favorite here. I won’t be surprised to see either end up with the win. Note that if UCSC does win the whole thing, CNU becomes a “bid stealer” which could change the Pool C outlook for a few teams.
CCIW: Feb 21, 24-25: Millikin all the way in this one.
CCS: Feb 20, 22, 24-25: Berea seems to be the obvious favorite here. Don’t count out LaGrange though.
CSAC: Feb 20, 22, 25: Notre Dame (MD) has a cool story. From 2008-09 to 2017-18, they never finished above .500 in league play. Since 2018-19, they’ve raised their winning percentage every season, and have 20 wins for the first time in a long time. Kalin Wynn has done an incredible job as head coach since 2019, and should lead the Gators into the national tournament here in 2023.
CCC: Feb 21, 23, 25: Roger Williams, undefeated in conference play, will punch its ticket to the national tournament here.
MAC Commonwealth: Feb 20, 22, 25: Messiah is my pick here, no surprise.
MAC Freedom: Feb. 20, 22-25: Will we get another battle between DeSales and Stevens? I’m hoping so. DeSales is my pick here, but could totally see Stevens pulling off the tournament win as well.
E8: Feb 20, 21-25: I won’t count Nazareth out here, but St. John Fisher is the favorite, and my pick to win it.
GNAC: Feb 21, 23, 25: Fun tournament here. 3 main contenders. Let’s go with Emmanuel winning it out of the north division.
HCAC: Feb. 19-25 Hanover could challenge Transylvania for the championship, but the Pioneers should control this tournament once again.
Landmark: Feb. 22-25: It’s awfully tough to have to beat a team three times in a season, but Scranton has what it takes. Plus, the Lady Royals will be at home.
Liberty: Feb 21, 24, 26: Ithaca. The Bombers should roll right through this tournament.
Little East: Feb 21-25: Eastern CT and Rhode Island College are neck-and-neck atop this league. Eastern CT is on a 12-game win streak right now, but my pick is RIC out of the LEC.
MSCAC: Feb 21, 23, 25: Lots of parity atop this league. I’m taking Framingham State to win it as the #2 seed.
NESCAC: Feb 18, 25, 26 Tough one here…but Trinity (CT) will be refocused and ready for revenge at Tufts…let’s take the Bantams in a tight rematch against the Jumbos
NEWMAC: Feb. 22-26: This will be a great tournament to watch…Babson, Springfield, and Smith are all in contention. But I think Smith will roll to a conference championship win in the end.
NECC: Feb, 23-25: No AQ here, as the league has just four institutions. But I’ll go with Mitchell to win the four-team tournament.
MIAA: Feb 21, 24, 25 There are at least four teams that I’d consider “having a chance”, but Hope is my pick in the MIAA. They’ve had their hiccups, but seem to be playing at peak form right now.
MWC: Feb 24-25 Four-team tournament here. Ripon should add two more wins to its resume and take home the title.
OAC: Feb 21, 23, 25: I’m not going to take Baldwin Wallace or Ohio Northern here. Let’s go with Marietta riding its rebounding dominance to an OAC title in upset fashion.
NJAC: Feb 18-25: NJCU had a really rough start to the year, but has risen back to the top of the NJAC. As long as Damaris Rodriguez is scoring, NJCU should come away with the three-peat.
NAC: Feb. 17-25: Husson rides a 6-game win streak into this tournament…I’m taking them to win the title.
NCAC: Feb. 21-25: I feel like going with an upset pick here, so give me Ohio Wesleyan. OWU has been a team I’ve followed for a while now, and can certainly compete with the best in this league, despite its young roster. DePauw is the “favorite” in this tournament, though.
NAAC: Feb 21-25: St. Norbert. They’ve dominated in the league this season, and show no signs of slowing down
NWC: Feb 24-25: I’ve had Puget Sound higher than a lot of voters in my ballot each week, and though some of their recent results have me a little less confident, I’m taking the Loggers to win the Pool A here.
ODAC: Feb. 20-26: Give me Washington & Lee here, though Randolph Macon is certainly on my radar too.
PAC: Feb. 20-25: Washington & Jefferson has been sharp for the majority of the league schedule and will punch its ticket for a return trip to the NCAA Tournament on Feb. 25.
Skyline: Feb. 21-25: Such a tough league…and a one-bid league on top of that. Let’s go with Merchant Marine here, though I’m not too sure about this one.
SAA: Feb. 19-26: No clear favorite here, but I think the direction Millsaps has been headed lately. They’ll likely be the #3 seed, but are certainly in the conversation.
SCIAC: Feb. 23-25: La Verne is my pick here. They might have a weak SOS, but they’ve certainly performed at a high level in league play.
SCAC: Feb. 24-26: Is there really a question here? Trinity TX, all the way.
SLIAC: Feb. 21-25: Webster is on track for a return trip to the tournament, but will probably need to beat Greenville, who beat them once this year, for the title. Once again, an incredible winning percentage for the Gorloks, at 22-2.
SUNYAC: Feb. 21-25: Cortland and New Paltz are on a collision course here. I like New Paltz in this tournament, but it’ll be close.
UEC: Feb. 24-25: St. Mary’s (MD) is the favorite here and my pick. Haven’t watched much of this league this season, but the standings indicate there is more than one contender entering the conference tournament.
UMAC: Feb. 22-25: Another four-team tournament here. Less chance of the #1 seed being upset before the championship round. Regardless, Northwestern has looked very good throughout the regular season and should be the Pool A representing the UMAC in the national tournament.
USA South: Greensboro is a perfect 17-0 in league play. I don’t see them going down in the conference tournament, though N.C. Wesleyan and Southern VA could spring the upset.
WIAC: Do I have to pick someone here? I really don’t want to. I can see a scenario for each of the six teams in this tournament to win the whole thing. There just isn’t a clear favorite by any means. Stout will win it if they play lock-down defense and use their guard play well. LaCrosse could make a run, but they’ll need to utilize their post players at a high level. Oshkosh has competed with the best in the league this season and won a number of those meetings. Platteville rises to the occasion when everything is on the line and seems to perform best when the odds are stacked against them. Whitewater and Eau Claire have more than shown they can dominate on a good day. Let’s just see how this one plays out. If I was forced to pick a champ, I’d go with Stout. They do not have the best resume in the WIAC…Oshkosh, Whitewater, and Eau Claire look much stronger from an NCAA Tournament resume standpoint. But Stout matches up well with a number of teams in this tournament, and needs to win just twice, rather than three times, to take home the title. I really have no idea who will prevail here.
That’s it! Reminder that the UAA does not have a conference tourney, but will factor into the 44 AQs. As mentioned, the NECC (and the CCS) do not factor into the AQs because the NECC has too few teams, and the CCS is a recently formed league. Also a reminder that not all records and seeds mentioned in here are not final. Some teams still have a game left on the schedule that can affect seeding and records. If I missed something somewhere in here, please let me know. There’s always mistakes that can happen in the span of picking the winners of 45 different tournaments from across the country!
As for tonight’s action, I’m tuning into NYU vs Emory right now. The UAA should give us some great action tonight. Looking forward to seeing how this weekend plays out! More to come very soon. Have a great evening!