Kentucky will be well represented in the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament, which begins tonight. Morehead State will host Eastern Kentucky in Morehead's Johnson Arena at 7:30 PM tonight. Murray State will be hosting Tennessee State at 8:30 PM tonight. The first round games will be hosted by the top four tournament seeds. The semifinals and finals will be held on Friday and Saturday at the Sommet Center in Nashville.
OVC Tournament Schedule:
Tuesday, March 3
(8) Tennessee Tech (12-17) at (1) Tennessee-Martin (21-8) 7:00
(5) Eastern Kentucky (18-12) at (4) Morehead State (16-15) 7:30
(6) Tennessee State (12-17) at (3) Murray State (18-11) 8:30
(7) Eastern Illinois (12-17) at (2) Austin Peay (17-12) 7:00
Friday, March 6
7:00 Semifinal #1 (ESPNU)
9:00 Semifinal #2 (ESPNU)
Saturday, March 7
8:00 Championship Game (ESPN2)
Tournament Information
OVC Tournament Bracket
My Thoughts on Each Team:
(1) UT-Martin: Led by Lester Hudson, one of the nation's most prolific scorers, UT-Martin has to be considered the tourney favorite. The Skyhawks have won 13 of their last 14 OVC games and 19 of their last 22 overall heading into the tournament.
(2) Austin Peay: The Governors appeared to be fading fast when they suffered a 3-game OVC losing streak to end January and begin February. They fought back to finish 5-1 in the conference and earn the #2 seed. Austin Peay assumes their usual position as one of the favorites to win the automatic bid.
(3) Murray State: The Racers are another team that has heated up at the right time. They have won 10 out of their last 11 OVC games. They will be hosting an equally hot Tennessee State team, which should make for a very interesting game.
(4) Morehead State: The Eagles were at or near the top of the league standings most of the season. They closed out by losing 3 consecutive league games, however, and slid to the 4-seed. They were 11-1 at Johnson Arena this season and playing rival EKU at home sets up the perfect recipe for the Eagles to find their way to Nashville. I expect great energy from Kenneth Faried and Leon Buchanan.
(5) Eastern Kentucky: The Colonels will be slight underdogs on the road at MSU, but their outlook is pretty simple - they will go as far as Mike Rose can take them. Rose is one of the most talented players in the OVC and the Eagles will certainly have to contain him if they hope to defeat EKU.
(6) Tennessee State: The Tigers lost 7 of 8 and fired their coach. Since the change, they have won 6 consecutive game and look like an entirely different team. They will have their work cut out for them on the road at Murray State, but the Tigers are certainly hot at the right time.
(7) Eastern Illinois: The Panthers were once sitting at 8-4 and looking solid in the OVC race. They followed that up with a 6-game OVC losing streak and found themselves hanging on to the 7-seed. EIU has a lot of work to do if they are to pick up a win at Austin Peay.
(8) Tennessee Tech: Tech had a disappointing season and finished up by losing 7 of their last 8 games. That 8th game, however, was a "play-in" game to the OVC tournament and they defeated Jacksonville State to claim the 8th and final spot. They have the difficult task of trying to stop Lester Hudson on his home floor. The Golden Eagles did play competitively at UT-Martin a few games back, but it would be a major upset if they were to win tonight.
OVC Tournament Schedule:
Tuesday, March 3
(8) Tennessee Tech (12-17) at (1) Tennessee-Martin (21-8) 7:00
(5) Eastern Kentucky (18-12) at (4) Morehead State (16-15) 7:30
(6) Tennessee State (12-17) at (3) Murray State (18-11) 8:30
(7) Eastern Illinois (12-17) at (2) Austin Peay (17-12) 7:00
Friday, March 6
7:00 Semifinal #1 (ESPNU)
9:00 Semifinal #2 (ESPNU)
Saturday, March 7
8:00 Championship Game (ESPN2)
Tournament Information
OVC Tournament Bracket
My Thoughts on Each Team:
(1) UT-Martin: Led by Lester Hudson, one of the nation's most prolific scorers, UT-Martin has to be considered the tourney favorite. The Skyhawks have won 13 of their last 14 OVC games and 19 of their last 22 overall heading into the tournament.
(2) Austin Peay: The Governors appeared to be fading fast when they suffered a 3-game OVC losing streak to end January and begin February. They fought back to finish 5-1 in the conference and earn the #2 seed. Austin Peay assumes their usual position as one of the favorites to win the automatic bid.
(3) Murray State: The Racers are another team that has heated up at the right time. They have won 10 out of their last 11 OVC games. They will be hosting an equally hot Tennessee State team, which should make for a very interesting game.
(4) Morehead State: The Eagles were at or near the top of the league standings most of the season. They closed out by losing 3 consecutive league games, however, and slid to the 4-seed. They were 11-1 at Johnson Arena this season and playing rival EKU at home sets up the perfect recipe for the Eagles to find their way to Nashville. I expect great energy from Kenneth Faried and Leon Buchanan.
(5) Eastern Kentucky: The Colonels will be slight underdogs on the road at MSU, but their outlook is pretty simple - they will go as far as Mike Rose can take them. Rose is one of the most talented players in the OVC and the Eagles will certainly have to contain him if they hope to defeat EKU.
(6) Tennessee State: The Tigers lost 7 of 8 and fired their coach. Since the change, they have won 6 consecutive game and look like an entirely different team. They will have their work cut out for them on the road at Murray State, but the Tigers are certainly hot at the right time.
(7) Eastern Illinois: The Panthers were once sitting at 8-4 and looking solid in the OVC race. They followed that up with a 6-game OVC losing streak and found themselves hanging on to the 7-seed. EIU has a lot of work to do if they are to pick up a win at Austin Peay.
(8) Tennessee Tech: Tech had a disappointing season and finished up by losing 7 of their last 8 games. That 8th game, however, was a "play-in" game to the OVC tournament and they defeated Jacksonville State to claim the 8th and final spot. They have the difficult task of trying to stop Lester Hudson on his home floor. The Golden Eagles did play competitively at UT-Martin a few games back, but it would be a major upset if they were to win tonight.
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