Welcome to the latest edition of Talking Hoops With Ted Sarandis. Championship Week is in full swing and the first bids have gone out already.
We begin by talking about the first five automatic bids to be handed out, only one of which went to a regular season champion (Iona won the MAAC), and we have seen one more regular season champion fall already. That means that the NIT has five teams already guaranteed to be there, which means it becomes that much harder to get in for teams that do not reach the NCAA Tournament.
After that, we look at the power conferences whose tournaments tip later in the week. Most notable among them are some personnel matters as some teams may rest a player or two who is injured, even if they could play (and probably would if it were the NCAA Tournament) and a couple of teams will get suspended or injured players back.
Next, we look at a couple of conference tournaments that have concluded, with a focus on teams that are getting some lobbying for an NCAA Tournament at-large bid like Belmont and Lipscomb. Later, we go through each of the power conferences and talk about what to expect with each.
Along the way, as we talk about at-large candidates, I referenced this piece from colleague Adam Glatczak that is worth reading.
We also diverge to talk more about LSU suspending head coach Will Wade and the effect that will have on the team, as well as a bigger question: why is information from an ongoing investigation leaking out to the media?
We hope you enjoy the podcast and share it with your fellow college basketball fans. Be sure to join us again later in the week for more, and then join us every week during the NCAA Tournament for College Basketball Tonight as we break down the NCAA Tournament with special guests joining us each week.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
