The Western Athletic Conference tends to be the conference that most people forget about on the West Coast.
With the resurgence of the Mountain West and the dominance of the West Coast Conference, the WAC gets put on the backburner.
But New Mexico State has been a traditional mid-major power and Grand Canyon is quickly becoming a mid-major power after earning their first NCAA Tournament appearance in 2021.
Abilene Christian competed in the conference for the first time this season after picking up an NCAA Tournament win over Texas last year.
The WAC Tournament tips off on March 8. New Mexico State has earned the No. 1 seed once again. Seattle will also get three byes in the tournament as the No. 2 seed.
Stephen F. Austin and Grand Canyon earned two byes in the tournament as the No. 3 and 4 seeds. Sam Houston and Abilene Christian got first-round byes as seeds No. 5 and 6.
2022 WAC Tournament Bracket
2022 WAC Tournament Schedule
The first round gets underway on March 8 but only four teams will be in action. The WAC is following the WCC's model of rewarding teams for regular season play.
The championship will take place on Saturday, March 12 at 10 p.m.
All times ET
| Game | Time |
|---|---|
| 8. California Baptist vs. 9. UT Rio Grande Valley | Tues., 9 p.m. |
| 10. Chicago State vs. 7. Utah Valley | Tues., 11:30 p.m. |
| 5. Sam Houston vs. G1 Winner | Wed., 9 p.m. |
| 6. Abilene Christian vs. G2 Winner | Wed., 11:30 p.m. |
| 4. Grand Canyon vs. G3 Winner | Thurs., 9 p.m. |
| 3. Stephen F. Austin vs. G4 Winner | Thurs., 11:30 p.m. |
| 1. New Mexico State vs. G5 Winner | Fri., 9 p.m. |
| 2. Seattle vs. G6 Winner | Fri., 11:30 p.m. |
| Championship | Sat., 10 p.m. |
Pre-Tournament Odds
Odds courtesy of FanDuel
| Team | Odds |
|---|---|
| New Mexico State | +140 |
| Grand Canyon | +310 |
| Seattle | +440 |
| Stephen F. Austin | +650 |
| Utah Valley | +1700 |
| Sam Houston State | +3600 |
| California Baptist | +10000 |
| Chicago State | +50000 |
Past Winners
| Year | Winner |
|---|---|
| 2002 | Hawaii |
| 2003 | Tulsa |
| 2004 | Nevada |
| 2005 | UTEP |
| 2006 | Nevada |
| 2007 | New Mexico State |
| 2008 | Boise State |
| 2009 | Utah State |
| 2010 | New Mexico State |
| 2011 | Utah State |
| 2012 | New Mexico State |
| 2013 | New Mexico State |
| 2014 | New Mexico State |
| 2015 | New Mexico State |
| 2016 | Cal State Bakersfield |
| 2017 | New Mexico State |
| 2018 | New Mexico State |
| 2019 | New Mexico State |
| 2020 | N/A |
| 2020 | Grand Canyon |
