Thirty-one NCAA Division I men’s basketball conferences will crown champions over a nine-day stretch that begins with the Ohio Valley Conference tournament on Saturday, March 6, and comes to an end with five leagues — the Patriot League, Atlantic 10, SEC, American and Big Ten — all crowning their champions on Sunday, March 14.
Who will earn the automatic bid in each conference? ESPN.com’s college basketball experts — Myron Medcalf, Jeff Borzello, John Gasaway and Joe Lunardi — issued their picks below, with leagues listed in the order that tickets will be punched. Click here for updated Bracketology from ESPN’s Joe Lunardi and Bubble Watch analysis from John Gasaway. Follow this link for the 2021 NCAA tournament dates, venues and complete schedule for each round.
(Also, remain on the lookout for ESPN’s Champ Week Challenge, which will begin March 7.)
| Medcalf | Borzello | Gasaway | Lunardi | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
| Ohio Valley (Evansville, Ind.) 3/6, 8 p.m. ET (ESPN2) |
 Morehead St |
 Belmont |
Belmont |
Belmont |
| Big South (Campus) 3/7, 12 p.m. ET (ESPN) |
 Winthrop |
Winthrop |
Winthrop |
Winthrop |
| Atlantic Sun (Jacksonville, Fla.) 3/7, 2 p.m. ET (ESPN) |
 Liberty |
Liberty |
Liberty |
Liberty |
| Missouri Valley (St. Louis) 3/7, 2:10 p.m. ET (CBS) |
 Loyola Chi. |
Loyola Chi. |
Loyola Chi. |
Loyola Chi. |
| Sun Belt (Pensacola, Fla.) 3/8, 7 p.m. ET (ESPN2) |
 Texas St |
 S. Alabama |
 Georgia St |
 Coastal Car. |
| Southern (Asheville, N.C.) 3/8, 7 p.m. ET (ESPN) |
 UNCG |
UNCG |
 Furman |
Furman |
| Colonial (Harrisonburg, Va.) 3/9, 7 p.m. ET (CBSSN) |
 Northeastern |
Northeastern |
 Charleston |
 Drexel |
| Horizon League (Indianapolis) 3/9, 7 p.m. ET (ESPN) |
 Detroit |
 Wright St |
Wright St |
Wright St |
| Northeast (Campus) 3/9, 7 p.m. (ESPN2) |
 Bryant |
Bryant |
 Wagner |
Bryant |
| Summit (Sioux Falls, S.D.) 3/9, 9 p.m. ET (ESPN2) |
 Oral Roberts |
Oral Roberts |
 S. Dakota St |
S. Dakota St |
| West Coast (Las Vegas) 3/9, 9 p.m. ET (ESPN) |
 Gonzaga |
Gonzaga |
Gonzaga |
Gonzaga |
| America East (Campus) 3/13, 11 a.m. ET (ESPN2) |
 UMBC |
 Vermont |
Vermont |
Vermont |
| MEAC (Norfolk, Va.) 3/13, 1 p.m. ET (ESPN2) |
 NC A&T |
 Morgan St |
 Norfolk St |
Norfolk St |
| MAAC (Atlantic City, N.J.) 3/13, 4 p.m. ET (ESPNU) |
 Iona |
Iona |
 Siena |
Siena |
| Big 12 (Kansas City, Mo.) 3/13, 6 p.m. ET (ESPN) |
 Kansas |
 Baylor |
Baylor |
 W. Virginia |
| Mountain West (Las Vegas) 3/13, 6 p.m. ET (CBS) |
 Colorado St |
 Utah St |
 SDSU |
Utah St |
| SWAC (Birmingham, Ala.) 3/13, 6 p.m. ET (ESPNU) |
 Jackson St |
 Prairie View |
Prairie View |
 Tex. Southern |
| Big East (New York) 3/13, 6:30 p.m. ET (FOX) |
 Creighton |
 Villanova |
Villanova |
Creighton |
| MAC (Cleveland) 3/13, 7:30 p.m. ET (ESPN2) |
 Kent St |
 Buffalo |
 Toledo |
Toledo |
| Big Sky (Boise, Idaho) 3/13, 8 p.m. ET (ESPNU) |
 So. Utah |
 E. Wash. |
E. Wash. |
E. Wash. |
| ACC (Greensboro, N.C.) 3/13, 8:30 p.m. ET (ESPN) |
 Duke |
 FSU |
 N. Carolina |
FSU |
| C-USA (Frisco, Texas) 3/13, 9 p.m. ET (CBSSN) |
 W. Kentucky |
W. Kentucky |
W. Kentucky |
 Marshall |
| Southland (Katy, Texas) 3/13, 9:30 p.m. ET (ESPN2) |
 Sam Houston |
 ACU |
ACU |
ACU |
| WAC (Las Vegas) 3/13, 10 p.m. ET (ESPNU) |
 Grand Canyon |
Grand Canyon |
Grand Canyon |
 NMSU |
| Pac-12 (Las Vegas) 3/13, 10:30 p.m. ET (ESPN) |
 Colorado |
Colorado |
 USC |
USC |
| Big West (Las Vegas) 3/13, 11:30 p.m. ET (ESPN2) |
 UCSB |
UCSB |
UCSB |
UCSB |
| Patriot (Campus) 3/14, 12 p.m. ET (CBSSN) |
 Colgate |
Colgate |
Colgate |
Colgate |
| Atlantic 10 (Dayton, Ohio) 3/14, 1 p.m. ET (CBS) |
 St. Bona. |
 Richmond |
St. Bona. |
 St. Louis |
| SEC (Nashville, Tenn.) 3/14, 1 p.m. (ESPN) |
 Arkansas |
 Alabama |
Arkansas |
Alabama |
| American (Fort Worth, Texas) 3/14, 3:15 p.m. ET (ESPN) |
 Houston |
Houston |
Houston |
Houston |
| Big Ten (Indianapolis) 3/14, 3:30 p.m. ET (CBS) |
 Michigan |
 Illinois |
Michigan |
Michigan |
Consensus picks:
American: Houston (unanimous)
ACC: Florida State
America East: Vermont
Atlantic 10: St. Bonaventure
Atlantic Sun: Liberty (unanimous)
Big East: No consensus (Villanova, Creighton)
Big Sky: Eastern Washington
Big South: Winthrop (unanimous)
Big 12: Baylor
Big Ten: Michigan
Big West: UCSB (unanimous)
Colonial: Northeastern
Conference USA: Western Kentucky
Horizon: Wright State
MAAC: No consensus (Iona, Siena)
MAC: Toledo
MEAC: Norfolk State
Missouri Valley: Loyola Chicago (unanimous)
Mountain West: Utah State
Northeast: Bryant
Ohio Valley: Belmont
Pac-12: No consensus (Colorado, USC)
Patriot: Colgate (unanimous)
SEC: No consensus (Arkansas, Alabama)
Southern: No consensus (UNC Greensboro, Furman)
Southland: Abilene Christian
Summit: No consensus (Oral Roberts, South Dakota State)
Sun Belt: No consensus (Texas State, South Alabama, Georgia State, Coastal Carolina)
SWAC: Prairie View
WAC: Grand Canyon
West Coast: Gonzaga (unanimous)
Credit: Source link