Preview Roundups
March 10, 2017
Michigan at Purdue 12:00 PM ET
Top-seeded Purdue begins its quest for its first Big Ten tournament title in seven years when it faces No. 8 seed Michigan in the quarterfinals Friday in Washington D.C. The Boilermakers won eight of their last nine games down the stretch to earn their first outright regular-season title since 1996, and hope to continue their winning ways by advancing to the semifinals of the conference tournament for the third consecutive year.
East Carolina at Southern Methodist 12:00 PM ET
Top-seeded SMU will attempt to build on the momentum of its 13-game winning streak when it begins postseason play against ninth-seeded East Carolina in the American Athletic Conference tournament quarterfinals on Friday.  The regular-season AAC champions.have won by an average of 18.2 points during their winning streak and swept their two games against the Pirates in dominant fashion, winning by 31 and 40 points, while East Carolina is coming off an 80-69 victory over eighth-seeded Temple o
Texas-El Paso at Middle Tennessee St. 12:30 PM ET
Red-hot Middle Tennessee seeks its eighth straight victory and 18th in the last 19 games when it meets UTEP in the semifinals of the Conference USA tournament on Friday in Birmingham, Ala. The No. 25 Blue Raiders celebrated their first national ranking with an 86-70 rout of Texas-San Antonio on Thursday in the quarterfinals to match a school record with their 28th victory of the season and earn an opportunity to avenge a 57-54 loss to the Miners on Feb. 4.
Georgia at Kentucky 1:00 PM ET

Anything short of winning the SEC Tournament probably won’t be enough to get Georgia into the NCAA Tournament field, but the Bulldogs would like to make their resume a little more appealing to the selection committee. The eighth-seeded Bulldogs, who held on for a 59-57 win over Tennessee on Thursday, can do so with an upset of top-seeded Kentucky in the SEC Tournament quarterfinals Friday in Nashville. 

Michigan St at Minnesota 2:00 PM ET
Fourth-seeded Minnesota looks to build on its best regular season since 1996-97 when it faces No. 5 seed Michigan State in the quarterfinals of the Big Ten tournament Friday. The Golden Gophers won eight of their last nine games to finish with 11 conference victories for the first time in 18 years and hope to parlay their regular-season success into their first Big Ten Tournament title.
Memphis at Central Florida 2:00 PM ET
Two teams heading in opposite directions meet in the American Athletic Conference tournament quarterfinals when fourth-seeded Central Florida faces fifth seed Memphis on Friday in Hartford, Conn. UCF comes in with five-game winning streak to reach 20 victories for the first time since 2012-13 while the Tigers have dropped five of six after being routed by SMU 103-62 on Saturday.
Alabama at South Carolina 3:30 PM ET

With last year’s NCAA Tournament snub lingering in their memories, South Carolina fans have to be concerned about how the Gamecocks’ late-season swoon might play with the selection committee. A win over Alabama in Friday’s SEC Tournament quarterfinals would help ease their minds.

Indiana at Wisconsin 6:30 PM ET
Indiana defied its own history in the Big Ten Tournament on Thursday when it knocked off a higher-seeded team for only the fourth time in the 20-year history of the event. The 10th-seeded Hoosiers attempt to pull off another seemingly improbable task one day later when they square off against No. 2 seed Wisconsin in the quarterfinals Friday in Washington, D.C.
Seton Hall at Villanova 6:30 PM ET
No. 2 Villanova used its Big East tournament opener to make a serious statement, but now its mission is revenge. The top-seeded Wildcats put up 108 points on St. John's and now will take aim at No. 5 seed Seton Hall when the teams square off Friday at Madison Square Garden.
Duke at North Carolina 7:00 PM ET
Just six days after they closed out the regular season against one another, Duke and North Carolina will meet for the 245th time in their storied rivalry Friday in the semifinals of the ACC tournament in Brooklyn, N.Y. The fifth-seeded Blue Devils held on to top Louisville 80-77 in the quarterfinals Thursday afternoon, their second win in the tourney after finishing the ACC slate with a 90-83 loss at North Carolina.
Texas Christian at Iowa St. 7:00 PM ET
After fourth-seeded Iowa State defeated Oklahoma State, 92-83, in Thursday's opening quarterfinal of the Big 12 Tournament, it looked like the stage was set for a dream semifinal matchup between the two teams -- No. 1 Kansas and the 24th-ranked Cyclones -- that had combined to win the last four Big 12 Tournaments, . But someone forgot to tell that TCU which used a game-ending 9-2 run to rally and stun the top-seeded Jayhawks 85-82.
Vanderbilt at Florida 7:00 PM ET
Vanderbilt has defeated No. 13 Florida twice this season and might need to do it a third time to solidify a berth in the NCAA Tournament. The seventh-seeded Commodores are on the bubble and will be in must-win mode when they square off against the second-seeded Gators in the quarterfinals of the SEC tournament at Nashville, Tenn. on Friday.
Tulsa at Cincinnati 7:00 PM ET

Cincinnati is seeking its first conference title since 2004, and the 18th-ranked and second-seeded Bearcats begin that quest Friday night against seventh-seeded Tulsa in the American Athletic Tournament quarterfinals in Hartford, Conn. While Cincinnati had a first-round bye, the Golden Hurricane advanced Thursday by holding off 10th-see

Northwestern at Maryland 8:55 PM ET
Northwestern may be the sentimental favorite for many in the Big Ten tournament as it inches closer to its first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance, but it almost certainly will not gain any benefit from that in its next game. Third-seeded Maryland makes the 15-minute drive from its College Park campus to the Verizon Center in Washington D.C. to meet the sixth-seeded Wildcats  in the quarterfinals of the conference event on Friday.
Notre Dame at Florida St. 9:00 PM ET
Second seed Florida State will be looking to return to the ACC tournament title game for the first time since it won the event in 2012 when it meets No. 3 seed Notre Dame in the semifinals Friday night in Brooklyn, N.Y. A 10-0 second-half run propelled the Seminoles to a 74-68 win over No. 7 seed Virginia Tech on Thursday, as sophomore standout Dwayne Bacon overcame a sluggish first half to lead three players in double figures with 17 points.
Xavier at Creighton 9:00 PM ET
Xavier and Creighton have persevered despite less-than-ideal circumstances over the last two months. One of the teams will advance to the final of the Big East tournament when the rivals clash Friday in the semifinals at Madison Square Garden.
Kansas St. at West Virginia 9:00 PM ET
West Virginia's path for its first Big 12 Tournament title appeared to get a whole lot easier Thursday when top seed and No. 1 ranked Kansas was upset by TCU and third seed and No. 10 ranked Baylor fell to Kansas State in quarterfinals. The 11th-ranked Mountaineers, who managed to avoid the upset bug with a methodical 63-53 victory over Texas, now face sixth-seeded Kansas State in Friday night's semifinals at the Sprint Center in Kansas City, Mo.
Connecticut at Houston 9:00 PM ET

After a first-round bye, third-seeded Houston tips off for the first time in the American Athletic Conference tournament in Hartford on Friday with a quarterfinal contest against local favorite Connecticut. The sixth-seeded Huskies advanced after holding off a second-half rally by South Florida on Thursday to post a 77-66 victory.

California at Oregon 9:00 PM ET
After struggling in California’s final three regular-season games, Bears senior Jabari Bird has rediscovered his shot in the Pac-12 tournament. The 6-6 wing looks to continue his strong play in Friday’s semifinals as the fifth-seeded Bears take on No. 1 seed Oregon at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Mississippi at Arkansas 9:00 PM ET
Arkansas finished the regular season strong and looks to carry its success into the postseason when it opens SEC Tournament play against Mississippi in Friday's quarterfinals at Nashville, Tenn. The third-seeded Razorbacks won six of their last seven games and appear to be a lock to qualify for the NCAA Tournament, while the sixth-seeded Rebels likely need to win the SEC tourney to crack the field.
UCLA at Arizona 11:30 PM ET
Arizona center Lauri Markkanen has rediscovered his 3-point shot just in time for the Wildcats, who face No. 3 seed UCLA on Friday in the semifinals of the Pac-12 tournament in Las Vegas. After going 0-for-11 from long range over his previous four games, the 7-foot center made four 3-pointers and finished with 20 points to lead the second-seeded Wildcats past Colorado on Thursday.