2010 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Tournament Preview

NCAA Basketball Betting Lines

03/08/2010 - Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 39th annual Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Tournament will begin on Tuesday, and the Morgan State Bears will look to claim their second straight tournament title. Morgan State, which defeated Norfolk State (83-69) in last season's title game, continued its dominance over league opponents by posting a 15-1 ledger in conference action this year. The Bears have participated in the last two tournament title games, but fell to Coppin State in 2008.

Along with Morgan State, Delaware State, South Carolina State, Norfolk State and Hampton will each enjoy a bye through the opening round of action. Delaware State edged out South Carolina State for the second seed, as the Hornets finished with an 11-5 mark, while the Bulldogs posted a 10-6 ledger. As for Norfolk State, the team was just 11-18 over on the year, but still managed to collect a 9-7 record in league action. The Pirates of Hampton avoided opening round play thanks to the fifth-seed, which was collected with an 8-8 mark on the season. Surprisingly those four teams were the only schools to finish the regular season with winning records in league play. The remainder of the teams in the MEAC will collide on the hardwood in opening round competition.

Tuesday night starts the opening round when the 10th-seeded Florida A&M Rattlers take on seventh-seeded Bethune-Cookman. The Rattlers claimed the MEAC Tournament title back in 2007, but since then the team has combined for just 19 total victories over the past two seasons. Florida A&M finished with just five league wins, but was able to close the regular season with three wins in its last five games. The Wildcats earned the seventh seed in the tournament with a 7-9 ledger in league action. However, down the stretch the team struggled, losing six of its last eight matchups. These two schools closed out the regular season against each other on Florida A&M's homecourt. The Rattlers won the matchup, but earlier in the year, the Wildcats clawed their way past Florida A&M at home.

The second contest on Tuesday will have the ninth-seeded North Carolina A&T Aggies square off against the eighth-seeded Howard Bison. The Aggies have the most MEAC titles amongst the team's currently in the league with 15, but have not claimed the tournament's top prize since 1995. This year the Aggies finished 6-10 in conference action, but closed the regular season with four consecutive losses. As for the Bison, they also finished 6-10 in league play, and finished with just seven victories overall. Howard has claimed this title on three different occasions, but the last time occurred back in 1992. These two schools collided twice on the hardwood, with both matchups favoring Howard, including a 59-49 victory at home back in February.

The third and final opening round game will be played on Wednesday when the 11th-seeded Coppin State Eagles battle the sixth-seeded Maryland-Eastern Shore Hawks. The Eagles did not soar high this season, collecting just eight total wins, while finishing with a meager 3-13 ledger in conference action. Coppin State closed its year with five losses in its last six contests. In 2008 the Eagles grabbed the conference title, making it the team's fourth in the MEAC, but grabbing a fifth will be an uphill battle. As for the Hawks, they finished with an 8-8 mark in MEAC action, but dropped two of the last three regular season matchups. UMES has not enjoyed much success in this tournament, posting a meager 11-34 ledger. The season series between the two schools was dominated by the Hawks, who won both meetings in convincing fashion.

Over the past couple of seasons the Bears have been an elite team in this conference, and this year was no different, as Morgan State claimed the top seed by finishing the season with an amazing 15-1 league mark. Last year Morgan State posted a 13-3 league ledger and went on to win the tournament title a year after falling short in the championship contest. Morgan State only lost twice in its last 18 matchups, and enters this tournament as the team to beat. For Morgan State to claim its third MEAC Tournament title the team will need to continue to play at a high level offensively, as the Bears come into this event averaging an impressive 76.9 ppg.

The second seed belongs to Delaware State, which finished the regular season with an 11-5 mark against league foes. The Hornets won five of their last seven games heading into this event with a strong chance to grab their second MEAC Tournament title. The only other time Delaware State reigned supreme in this event was in 2005, but overall the team is a meager 18-37 in tournament play. The Hornets will be successful in this event if they can enforce their style of play on their opponent, as Delaware State clearly feels comfortable playing at a slower pace. The Hornets are only posting 58.3 ppg, but at the same time the team is limiting the opposition to just 58.0 ppg.

The Bulldogs of South Carolina State stumbled down the stretch this season, losing five of their last eight games, but even with the late struggles the team still finished 10-6 in conference action, which was good enough for the third seed. South Carolina State was not overwhelming at either end of the floor this season, averaging just 70.1 ppg, while allowing 70.3 ppg. The Bulldogs have won this event on five different occasions, but the last title came in 2003.

The fourth seed was claimed by Norfolk State, which is only 7-10 all-time in this tournament. The Spartans finished the regular season with a 9-7 conference mark, but it was the team's success down the stretch that vaulted Norfolk State into the quarterfinals. The Spartans won six of their last seven contests, and eight of their last 10, and that run placed the team in the fourth seed. What will likely hurt the Spartans in this event is their play defensively, as Norfolk State is surrendering 75.4 ppg.

The fifth-seeded Hampton Pirates are no stranger to raising the MEAC Tournament trophy, as the team has accomplished the feat three times in the school's history. The last time Hampton was crowned tournament champion was back in 2006. This season was a struggle for the Pirates as the team finished with 17 overall losses. However, the squad picked up its play down the stretch, winning its last five matchups, four of which were league games that pushed Hampton into the fifth slot with an 8-8 mark.

Pacific-10 Conference odds

Teams that should be in: Stanford

Oregon and USC get their tickets punched after taking care of business this weekend. Yes, the Trojans' computer numbers aren't great, but there's no way the third-place team in this league is getting nixed. Grudgingly, I added Arizona after consultation with our Bracketologist. I don't know that Arizona will lose its last three (including a Pac-10 quarterfinal game), and even if the Cats do, I still can't see how they'd be left out, given the overall profile. That said, it bears watching, as three more L's would leave them at 18-12 (9-9) and on a 6-11 skid entering the Dance. It would be nice to see the Wildcats get at least one W in the Bay Area next week, as Cincinnati (albeit without Armein Kirkland and with a worse profile) was axed after a similar slide last season. I just couldn't rationalize having some of the other teams as locks and not having Arizona in that category -- there just aren't enough good teams behind the Cats to threaten their spot, it seems. Stanford has its fate in its own hands with the Arizona schools coming to the Farm to close out the regular season next weekend.

Should be in:

Stanford [17-10 (9-7), RPI: 40, SOS: 21] No shame in not getting a win in L.A., but that makes the home game against Arizona State a must-win ahead of what could be an intriguing meeting with Arizona should the Cats lose at Cal. Getting to 11 Pac-10 wins would make Selection Sunday much more comfortable, but 10's probably more than enough this season. The Cardinal have nonconference wins over Texas Tech and at Virginia to lean on, although they also lost badly to Air Force and Santa Clara at home.

Southeastern Conference odds

Work left to do: Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, Mississippi State It looks more and more possible that no one from the SEC West will make the NCAAs. How weird is that? Tennessee and Vandy move into the locks category after more good work this weekend. Kentucky stays there, although it would be smart for the Cats to handle Georgia at home Wednesday ahead of a trip to the Swamp. Could a disaster scenario (two more L's and a first-round SEC tourney exit) somehow dislodge the Cats despite their incredible computer numbers? Still unlikely, but not worth chancing it. Work left to do: Alabama [19-9 (6-8), RPI: 43, SOS: 47] The tough L at Tennessee was understandable, and even created some hope. Unfortunately, that hope was dashed by a home loss to Auburn, which leaves the Tide in some real trouble. There's still no signature win on the profile (no, Kentucky doesn't count), and the computer profile is weakening rapidly. The Tide conceivably could beat Ole Miss and win at Miss. State to get to 8-8 and clinch at least a share of the West crown, but that's probably not enough right now. The Tide will need to do some work in the SEC tourney. Georgia [16-10 (8-6), RPI: 52, SOS: 23] This is the team with the best chance to make it from this section right now. The Bulldogs rebounded from a terrible performance at Ole Miss to beat down Miss. State. Now they are at Kentucky (king of the RPI 51-100 win) and home to Tennessee. That would be worth a lot of computer points to get both (which is doable), as both teams are in the top 11 in RPI. Finishing at least 9-7 is an absolute must, and I would feel much better about the Dawgs' chances if they got both to get to 10 SEC wins. They also beat Gonzaga, but lost to ACC bubblers Georgia Tech and Clemson. Mississippi [18-10 (7-7), RPI: 63, SOS: 79] Like everyone else in this division, Ole Miss gacked up a chance to stake a claim, losing by double figures at South Carolina. Even 9-7 likely is not nearly enough with a nonconference profile devoid of anything notable. Mississippi State [16-11 (7-7), RPI: 66, SOS: 37] With a chance to get in the mix, these Bulldogs were leashed by their Georgia counterparts. Could they get to 9-7? I guess -- although winning at Arkansas, then beating Alabama is no lock -- but would that mean all that much for a team with this overall profile? Probably not. There's nothing of note (on the good side) in the nonconference profile.

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