The Sun Belt has basically had its roster of schools overturned in the wake of conference realignment that rocked college basketball in the early years of this decade. The Sun Belt did not fold into insolvency, but instead picked up a number of teams from other conferences to replace those that were lost. Currently, there are twelve teams in the Sun Belt, which is a respectable number. The Sun Belt has fluctuated as far as its competitiveness in the NCAA Tournament as well. Sometimes, the conference fields a 16 seed, other years, the Sun Belt champion is as high as a 12, like Little Rock was in 2016 when they upset #5 seed Purdue. This year's champion, Louisiana, is projected to be around a 13 seed.
All 12 teams will participate in this tournament across four rounds. The top four teams received a bye to the quarterfinals. The entire tournament will take place at the Lake Front Arena in New Orleans, Louisiana.
First Round-Wednesday, March 7th
#9 Texas State vs. #8 Coastal Carolina
#12 Little Rock vs. #5 Appalachian State
#10 South Alabama vs. #7 Troy
#11 Arkansas State vs #6 Louisiana-Monroe
Quarterfinals-Friday, March 9th
#9 Texas State vs. #1 Louisiana
#5 Appalachian State vs. #4 Texas-Arlington
#7 Troy vs. #2 Georgia State
#11 Arkansas State vs. #3 Georgia Southern
Semifinals-Saturday, March 10th
#5 Appalachian State vs. #1 Louisiana
#7 Troy vs. #3 Georgia Southern
Final-Sunday, March 11th
Louisiana won this conference by four games this year and was never truly threatened on their way to the Sun Belt title. It stands to reason that they would continue this trend through this tournament and make them a dangerous team to play in the NCAA Tournament. The Ragin' Cajuns will win this tournament, then sit back and watch their name be called on the Selection Show hours later.
Georgia Southern 74, Louisiana 82
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