Written by Michael Beller at SI.com
Every day through Selection Sunday we’ll update our Bracket Watch, giving you an up-to-date field of 68 every single day. Each of those columns will begin with a look at the games that night relevant to seeding at the top and in the middle of the field. While the Bubble Watch covers the backend of the field, the Bracket Watch will focus on the teams that are safely in the dance, and what they stand to gain—or lose—every time they take the floor.
Monday’s seeding games (all times Eastern, locks are italicized):
Colonial Athletic Association Championship: UNC-Wilmington vs. Charleston, 7 p.m.
UNC-Wilmington dominated the CAA this season, going 15–3 to win the regular season championship outright. One of those losses, its only reversal at home all season, came to Charleston, the conference’s second-place team at 14–4. This should be a great game between two teams with completely different styles. UNC-Wilmington gets up and down the floor, ranking 70th in tempo and 23rd in adjusted offensive efficiency, according to kenpom.com. Despite that pace, the Seahawks have the lowest turnover percentage in the country, and rank 10th in two-point percentage. Charleston, meanwhile, ranks 315th in pace and 142nd in adjusted offensive efficiency. The Cougars win with their defense, which is 60th in adjusted efficiency. When the Cougars upended the Seahawks in Wilmington, they held them to 66 points, nearly 20 fewer than their season average. Four Seahawks averaged 12 or more points per game this season, led by sophomore guard C.J. Bryce at 17.5.
Southern Conference Championship: UNC-Greensboro vs. East Tennessee State, 7 p.m.
This is another conference championship featuring the league’s two best teams. Both UNC-Greenboro and East Tennessee State went 14–4 in conference, and the winner on Monday will pick up its 26th victory of the season. Despite being the No. 3 seed in the conference tournament, East Tennessee State is the favorite to secure a bid to the dance. The Buccaneers were atop the conference most of the season, and enter Monday’s championship game ranked 67th on kenpom.com. That’s one spot ahead of bubble team Illinois, and better then fellow mid-major powers UT-Arlington (72) and Bucknell (81). Senior guard T.J. Cromer, who leads the Buccaneers at 18.7 points per game, exploded for a season-high 41 in Sunday’s semifinal win over Samford, and UNC-Greensboro will have to find a way to slow him down. The Spartans did just that in their two regular season meetings, holding him to nine points in both games. Unsurprisingly, the Spartans swept the regular season series.
Metro Athletic Association Championship: Siena vs. Iona, 9 p.m.
Monmouth won the MAAC regular season championship for the second straight year. Monmouth was upset in the MAAC tournament for the second straight year, as well, and will once again be shut out of the Big Dance. Last year, it was Iona that knocked off Monmouth, doing so in the conference championship game. Iona is back in the MAAC championship, but it was Siena that slayed the Hawks this season. Siena and Iona split their regular season meetings, with both teams winning in the other’s gym. The former should be considered the favorite, and not just because it’s hosting the tournament. When the Saints have Nico Clareth available, as they will on Monday, they have one of the best scorers in the conference. He torched Monmouth for 27 points on 8-of-11 shooting from the floor on Sunday. Iona, however, was the top-ranked offense in the conference, and is 14th in the country in three-point percentage, led by junior forward Jordan Washington and senior guard Jon Severe.
Last Four In
Vanderbilt
Syracuse
USC
Kansas State
First Four Out
Illinois State
Rhode Island
Iowa
Georgia Tech
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