The Ohio Valley is more capable of winning in the NCAA Tournament than your average low major conference, although they have had some lean years of late. The Ohio Valley representative won at least one game in every tournament from 2009 to 2012, with Murray State reaching a 6 seed in the 2012 tournament. In the five years since though, no Ohio Valley team has won a tournament game. Last year's representative was Austin Peay and was bounced in the first round as a #16 seed.
This year, Belmont won the conference by a staggering five games. Despite this, most bracket projections have them pegged as a 14 seed in the upcoming tournament, should they win the Ohio Valley Tournament.
The top 8 teams in the conference advanced to the tournament. The Ohio Valley is split up into two divisions, with the two division winners (Belmont, UT Martin) received a bye to the semifinals. The third and fourth seeds, Morehead State and Jacksonville State, received a bye to the quarterfinals, and the fifth through eighth seeds will play in the first round. The tournament will take place from March 1st to March 4th at Nashville Municipal Auditorium in Nashville, Tennessee.
First Round-Wednesday, March 1st
#8 Tennessee State vs. #5 Southeast Missouri State
#7 Murray State vs. #6 Tennessee State
Quaterfinals-Thursday, March 2nd
#5 Southeast Missouri State vs. #4 Jacksonville State
#7 Murray State vs. #3 Morehead State
Semifinals-Friday, March 3rd
#4 Jacksonville State vs. #1 Belmont
#7 Murray State vs. #2 UT Martin
Championship-Saturday, March 4th
Matchups are key when it comes to tournament time, and Murray State has what it takes to get to the finals. With the exception of Belmont, the Ohio Valley conference was tight, with the two through eight seeds finishing within two games of each other. However, there was that massive gulf between Belmont and the rest of the conference. Belmont mostly ran roughshod over the conference, including a convincing double digit win at Murray State. Having played two less games than the Racers, Belmont should punch its ticket to the NCAA Tournament handily.
Murray State 65, Belmont 76
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