Conference Tournament Predictions

Brad
Big 10: Michigan (Bonus Points)
Big 12: Kansas
ACC: UNC
SEC: Tennessee 
PAC 12: Utah
Big East: Villanova 
Mid Major: Bradley

Jeff
ACC: UVA
SEC: Florida
Big 12: Kansas 
PAC 12: Arizona
Big East: Villanova 

Ryan
Big 12: WVU
ACC: UNC
SEC: Tennessee 
PAC 12: Utah
Big East: Villanova 

By: Joe Smeltzer 
Correction: UCLA is the four seed in the PAC 12, not the three seed as originally written.

The madness is here. It's conference tournament week (except for the Big 10, who had to have theirs a week early), and here are our predictions for who will be cutting down the nets right before the Big Dance.

Joe

ACC: Duke over UVA

Marvin Bagley might be the best player in the land, and Duke could be the best team (Photo creds to usatoday.com)

Coach K's team is, without question, the most talented in the country. But the Blue Devils haven't quite hit their stride yet, and I think Saturday's dominant second half against North Carolina is a sign that it is happening.

I expect the Dukies to avenge that Feb. 26 loss to Virginia Tech in the quarterfinals, before winning a hard-fought rubber match over Carolina in the semis. In the championship game, Duke will take advantage of top-seeded Virginia's inability to score, and its superior athletes will do enough against the pack line defense. Duke is legit, and its time the nation learns that.

Duke 64, Virginia 51


MVP: Marvin Bagley 


SEC: Tennessee over Auburn

Grant Williams is arguably the best player in the SEC, and he'll have to play like it for the Vols to make a run in March (Photo creds to zagsblog.com)

The Vols dispatched Mississippi State in Starkville not too long ago, so I wouldn't expect a much different result in the quarterfinal. The semis will be a little more tricky, with Florida being the likely opponent, but if the Vols can hold the Gators to 35 percent shooting like they did Feb. 21, they'll be in good shape. The likely championship game would be a tossup, but Auburn hasn't been playing consistent basketball over the past few weeks, and I think if Big Orange gets a monster performance from Grant Williams, they can take advantage of the undersized Tigers. Rick Barnes and UT are legit, and they'll get some solid momentum heading into the big dance.

Tennesse 75, Auburn 70

MVP: Grant Williams

Big 12: Kansas 

A player of the year canadidate, Devonte' Graham is the heart and soul of the Jayhawks.  (Photo creds to ljworld.com)

The Big 12 is a funny conference. Although the league could get eight of its 10 teams in the NCAA tournament, there isn't  a squad that stands out above the rest, so the conference tournament is anybody's ball game. With that said, Kansas is the cream of the crop, so when in doubt, Rock Chalk.

Kansas 73, West Virginia 62 


Tournament MVP: Devonte' Graham

PAC 12: UCLA
Correction

Like his brothers before him, Aaron Holliday can run the point (Photo creds to dailybruin.com)

Like the Big 12, the PAC 12 doesn't have anybody that has great chance to win a national title. Yes,
the Bruins are undermanned, and even more so if freshman guard Jaylen Hands is still on the shelf this week. But I feel that UCLA has something to prove.

The Bruins are a bubble team, and obviously, that gives them an incentive to win out, and they have the personnel to do just that. UCLA has one of the best point guards in the country in Aaron Holliday, who proved in Saturday's win at USC that he can take over a game. Kris Wilkes is a solid shooter, and Thomas Welch averages a double-double. The Bruins are just behind conference leaders Arizona State in scoring, averaging 82 points per game.

UCLA is the No. 4 in the PAC 12. Ahead of the Bruins are  USC, who they beat on the road this past Saturday, and Arizona, who needed a historic performance from DeAndre Ayton to beat lowly Cal at home that same day. As they showed Saturday, the Bruins can beat anybody in their conference. It's time for Holliday to shine.

UCLA 81, USC 78


Tournament MVP: Aaron Holliday

Big East: Creighton
It's what my gut tells me. Sometimes you have to go with your gut.

Creighton 78, Villanova 73


Tournament MVP: Marcus Foster

American Athletic Conference: Wichita State 
After losing the regular season conference title to Cincinnati this past Sunday, the Shockers look to avenge that by winning the conference tournament. Wichita State to me is the mid-major version of Duke in that they haven't yet come together, and I think Greg Marshall's team will start to do that at the right time. An upset of the top-seeded Bearcats will get Tulsa in the title game, and the Shockers will end that Cinderella story with a double-digit win.

Witchia State 77, Tulsa 57


Tournament MVP: Landry Shamet