Host Cards C-USA favorite
Marquette, the No. 8 team in the nation, will be the No. 1 seed in the Conference USA Tournament starting March 12.
The Golden Eagles clinched the American Division title and have one game remaining against Memphis Saturday.
Marquette boasts an All-American candidate, Dwyane Wade, who averages 21.7 points per game.
The No. 2 seed in the tournament, Memphis (11-3 in C-USA), is riding a nine-game winning streak heading into its final matchup against UAB.
The Tigers are led by 6-foot-9 senior Chris Massie, who has 17.1 points per game and 11.2 rebounds per game and has helped lead Memphis to No. 27 in the country in blocked shots.
No. 15 Louisville looks to be the No. 3 seed with a 10-5 record.
The Cardinals have another potential All-American candidate in Reece Gaines, who averages 18.6 points per game.
Cincinnati has a final regular-season matchup with Marquette that could boost its current No. 4 seed.
The Bearcats have a chance to move into the No. 3 seed if they pull off a victory at Marquette. However, they should stay at No. 4.
After the top four teams, the field thickens, with the next six teams sporting an 8-7 or 7-8 record.
Saint Louis has a matchup with 3-12 East Carolina Saturday and should escape the weekend with a 9-7 record and the No. 5 seed.
UAB will fall prey to the nation’s sixth-longest winning streak against Memphis and fall from No. 6 to No. 8.
Playing in the No. 6 seed will be USF, which will break its road jinx by defeating TCU Saturday.
The Bulls’ leading scorer, Will McDonald, will continue to impress the scouts, and senior guard Reggie Kohn will prove his leadership and not go out easily.
Charlotte, C-USA’s leader in three-point field goals made (76), will enter the tournament in the No. 7 seed.
UAB and DePaul share the middle of the bracket at the No. 8 and No. 9 seeds, respectively.
Tulane, 70-62 losers to USF Wednesday, hosts Southern Miss and will improve on its record with a home win against the Golden Eagles.
Houston and Southern Miss fill out the bottom of the bracket in the No. 11 and No. 12 seeds.
With Marquette, Memphis, Louisville and Cincinnati receiving first-round byes, UAB and DePaul will meet in the first round.
The Blazers will move on before losing to Marquette in the second round.
St. Louis will make it out of the first round but have a short-lived glory, losing to the Bearcats.
The Bulls will make it past Houston before losing to host Louisville. Charlotte rounds out the first-round victories and falls to the Tigers.
In the semi-finals, Marquette will move on to the final.
The Cardinals will give the home crowd something to cheer about after defeating Memphis, in what could possibly be a classic affair, to pair itself with Marquette for the championship.
Louisville will earn its automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament by becoming the C-USA Tournament champions with a victory against Marquette.