Conference tournaments are where Cinderella stories begin.
Lives will be changed forever depending on whether or not their team can secure an automatic bid and go dancing into the NCAA Tournament.
The 68-team field for the NCAA Tournament includes 32 teams that will receive auto-bids into March Madness after winning their respective conference tournaments.
As we lead into Selection Sunday, we will continue to update this story to show which teams have secured their spot in the Big Dance.
| American East | |
|---|---|
| American Athletic | |
| Atlantic 10 | |
| ACC | |
| ASUN | Jacksonville State |
| Big 12 | |
| Big East | |
| Big Sky | |
| Big South | Longwood |
| Big Ten | |
| Big West | |
| CAA | Delaware |
| Conference USA | |
| Horizon League | Wright State |
| Ivy League | |
| MAAC | |
| MAC | |
| MEAC | |
| Missouri Valley | Loyola Chicago |
| Mountain West | |
| Northeast | Bryant |
| Ohio Valley | Murray State |
| Pac-12 | |
| Patriot League | Colgate |
| SEC | |
| Southern | UT-Chattanooga |
| Southland | |
| SWAC | |
| Summit League | South Dakota State |
| Sun Belt | Georgia State |
| West Coast | Gonzaga |
| WAC |
Atlantic Sun
Conference Winner: Bellarmine
Well, this is awkward. Bellarmine won the conference tournament, defeating Jacksonville in the championship. But Bellarmine is not eligible for the NCAA Tournament as they are only in the second year of a four-year waiting period after moving from Division II to Division I. Jacksonville State will take the automatic bid after winning the ASUN regular season title.
Big South
Conference Winner: Longwood
Longwood secured its bid to the 2022 NCAA Tournament with a decisive 79-58 victory over Winthrop in the Big South Championship. The Lancers were close to perfect through conference portion of their season with a 15-1 record. They rank sixth in the nation in 3-point percentage (38.6%), which can be an important part of the recipe of pulling off an upset in the Big Dance.
Colonial
Conference Winner: Delaware
The Blue Hens entered the tournament as the No. 4 seed in the CAA. They went on to beat three of top five teams on their way to winning the conference tournament and securing a bid to the Big Dance. This might make you feel old: Delaware's top scorer is Jameer Nelson Jr. Yes, that Jameer Nelson.
Horizon
Conference Winner: Wright State
The Raiders are heading back to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2018. Wright State finished with the No. 4 seed in the Horizon League entering the tournament. But they were the highest-ranked team according to KenPom in the Horizon and had the highest-odds to win it.
Missouri Valley
Conference Winner: Loyola-Chicago
Sister Jean is back in the tournament at 102 years young! Loyola-Chicago had been the best team in the conference, according to KenPom, throughout the season. But this was a loaded conference that could have possibly gotten multiple bids had Loyola-Chicago not won the tournament. But it appears that they will be a one-bid conference once again.
Northeast
Conference Winner: Bryant
The Bulldogs entered the NEC tournament as the No. 1 seed and showed why with a thrashing over Wagner in the championship. Bryant will enter as one of the hottest teams in the NCAA Tournament after finishing their season by winning 16 of their last 17 games. It will be the school's first appearance in the Division I NCAA Tournament.
Ohio Valley
Conference Winner: Murray State
Murray State was the first school to secure a bid to the NCAA Tournament and rightfully so. The Racers have been one of the best mid-major teams of the season, putting together a 30-2 record. They'll be the only team in the tournament with two or fewer losses. This is also a program that would have likely received an automatic bid had it not won its conference tournament.
Patriot
Conference Winner: Colgate
Matt Langel's Colgate squad is running like a well-oiled machine. The Raiders blasted Navy to take the Patriot League regular season and conference tournament championships. Colgate's shooting damn-near 40% from beyond the arc this season, ranking fourth nationally.
Southern
Conference Winner: Chattanooga
It wasn't pretty but the Mocs got it done in the end with a buzzer-beater in overtime to beat Furman and advance to the NCAA Tournament. Chattanooga had been the best team in the Southern Conference throughout the season with a 14-4 conference record and 27-7 overall.
Summit
Conference Winner: South Dakota State
The Jackrabbits were a perfect 18-0 through conference play and got the job done in the Summit League tournament. They are the second-highest scoring team in the nation behind Gonzaga (87.1 PPG). They are No. 1 in the nation in three-point percentage at 44.3%.
Sun Belt
Conference Winner: Georgia State
The Panthers are one of the hottest teams in the country heading into the NCAA Tournament. They won three games to take home the Sun Belt crown and finished their season by winning seven games in a row. They'll head into the tournament with an 18-10 record.
West Coast
Conference Winner: Gonzaga
Saint Mary's gave the Bulldogs a fight in the WCC Championship game. But, in the end, the Zags were just too much to handle. Gonzaga has been ranked in the top five in the country throughout the entire season and has spent a good portion of that at No. 1. They've also been the odds-on favorite to win the NCAA Tournament throughout the season.
