The Ohio Valley Conference Tournament will begin on Wednesday night when No. 5 seed Tennessee State takes on No. 8 seed SIU Edwardsville at 6:30 p.m. ET.
The second game of the tournament between No. 6 seed Austin Peay and No. 7 seed Tennessee Tech will tipoff at 9 p.m. ET.
Both games will air on ESPN+.
Meanwhile, overall conference tournament odds have been posted on BetMGM.
Murray State is far and away the favorite to win it all at -185. It's ranked No. 22 in the country by traditional metrics and No. 25 in the country, according to KenPom.
The Racers are undefeated in conference play.
Their closest competitor, Belmont, is ranked No. 78 in the country according to the advanced metrics. Their odds are at +250 to win the tournament at BetMGM.
Ohio Valley Conference Tournament Odds
Lines are according to BetMGM as of Wednesday afternoon.
| Team | Odds |
|---|---|
| Murray State | -185 |
| Belmont | +250 |
| Morehead State | +800 |
| Southeast Missouri State | +1500 |
| Tennessee State | +5000 |
| Austin Peay | +3000 |
| Tennessee Tech | +5000 |
| SIU Edwardsville | +20000 |
These futures odds have remained unchanged since opening.
Murray State has faced off against Belmont twice this season, with the Racers winning each contest in a blowout. Murray State won by 33 points at home in late February and by 22 points in mid-January.
The Racers have lost only twice all season, each in nonconference play. One of those losses was to No. 5 Auburn, while their second loss came in mid-November against East Tennessee State.
Meanwhile, Belmont has lost three in conference play. Along with its losses to Murray State, the Bruins fell to Morehead State in late January.
Belmont has also tacked on losses to Ohio, LSU and Dayton.
Murray State and Belmont each automatically qualified for the semifinals, which are set to tipoff on Friday night. Either team would have to win only two games to win the tournament and qualify for March Madness.
It's likely that even with a loss, Murray State would qualify for the Big Dance with an at-large bid.
