By Jeremy Wright
Conference Tournament Edition
Final Standings
(6) Shawnee State (Ohio)(23-2,18-1)- The Bears continue to be the hottest team in the nation, ending the season on a 19-game win streak. The team advances straight to Bowling Green for quarter final play next Sunday.
(14) Georgetown (Ky)(15-6,12-6)- The Tigers ended the regular season on a two-game losing streak, and fell in three of their last five contests. However, the team received a first-round bye and will advance to quarter final play next Sunday.
Thomas More (Ky)(14-8,12-8)- The Saints, along with Campbellsville (Ky) were the only teams to play at least 20 conference games, in a season where we unfortunately saw cancellations due to covid and winter weather. However, despite losing four of their last five to end the season, the team secured the #3 seed in the MSC tournament, and advance to the quarter final round next Sunday.
(RV) Cumberlands (Ky)(17-8,11-8)- The Patriots secured the final first round bye in the MSC Tournament, as the team closed the regular season on a two-game winning streak, and won three of their last four contests. The Patriots advance straight to Bowling Green, KY for the quarter final round next Sunday.
Martin Methodist (Tenn)(15-8,11-8)- The Redhawks ended the regular season winning three games in a row, and four of the last five. A tiebreaker between the team and Cumberlands did not go in their favor, so the Redhawks as the #5 seed will host #12 seed Lindsey Wilson at home on Wednesday to try and secure a berth to the quarter final round on Sunday.
Freed-Hardeman (Tenn)(15-8,9-7)- In a season full of game cancellations, the Lions played the third least amount of conference games with 16 conference games played. The team will be the #6 seed in the MSC tournament, and host #11 seed Bethel (Tenn) on Tuesday to try and secure a berth to the quarter final round.
Pikeville (Ky)(11-11,9-10)-The Bears ended the regular season winning two of their last three games, and tabbed the #7 seed in the MSC Tournament. The team is set to host #10 seed Campbellsville (Ky) on Tuesday with a spot in the quarter finals on the line.
Cumberland (Tenn)(9-12,8-11)- The Phoenix won three of their last five contests, and tabbed the #8 seed and final home-court advantage situation in the MSC opening round. The team is set to host #9 seed Life (Ga) on Tuesday for a chance to advance to the quarter final round.
Life (Ga)(9-10,5-10)- The Running Eagles dropped two of their last three to end the regular season. The team tabbed the #9 seed, and will visit Cumberland on Tuesday for a right to advance to the quarter finals on Sunday.
Campbellsville (Ky)(9-15,7-14)- The Tigers played a MSC-high 21 conference games and tabbed the #10 seed in the MSC Tournament. The team will visit #7 seed Pikeville on Tuesday for a spot in the quarter finals.
Bethel (Tenn)(9-11,3-11)- The Wildcats ended the regular season on a two-game losing streak, as the team has not played since February 8th. The team tabbed the #11 seed and they are scheduled to visit #6 seed Freed-Hardeman on Tuesday for a spot in the quarter finals.
Lindsey Wilson (Ky)(5-15,3-14)-The Blue Raiders ended the regular season on a four-game losing streak and will be the #12 seed in the MSC Tournament. The team is scheduled to visit #5 seed Martin Methodist on Wednesday.
Opening Round Info & Predictions (Higher Seed Hosts)
Mid South Conference Tournament Page
-#12 Lindsey Wilson @ #5 Martin Methodist
-January 7th, Martin Methodist def Lindsey Wilson 81-74
-With Lindsey Wilson on a four-game skid coming into the game, I feel confident in taking Martin Methodist in this one
-#11 Bethel @ #6 Freed-Hardeman
-January 18th, Bethel def Freed-Hardeman 104-83
-February 8th, Freed-Hardeman def Bethel 100-93
-I feel Freed-Hardeman has better momentum coming in, and Bethel has played only one game this month, which was the loss to Freed-Hardeman two weeks ago on Monday.
-#10 Campbellsville @ #7 Pikeville
-December 8th, Pikeville def Campbellsville 83-76
-January 28th, Pikeville def Campbellsville 89-72
-It’s hard to go against Pikeville in this one after a regular season sweep of Campbellsville. Campbellsville’s inconsistency this season also raises questions, as the team has not won the games they needed most.
–#9 Life @ #8 Cumberland
-January 25th, Life def Cumberland 73-71
-February 20th, Cumberland def Life 69-53
-This game could go either way. I’m taking Cumberland because the teams just played on Saturday, and they looked like the better team start to finish.
Quarterfinal Predictions (Games played on Sunday in Bowling Green, Ky)
#1 Shawnee State vs #8 Cumberland
-December 3rd, Cumberland def Shawnee State 68-57
-January 23rd, Shawnee State def Cumberland 82-54
-Shawnee State’s last loss was that December 3rd matchup vs Cumberland, so this is very interesting. However, Shawnee State is the hottest team in the nation, and it will take a lot to cool them off.
–#2 Georgetown vs #7 Pikeville
-December 12th, Georgetown def Pikeville 90-79
-January 30th, Georgetown def Pikeville 78-58
-I’ll be honest, I’m not as confident in picking Georgetown in this one. However, I know you don’t go against the two-time defending conference champs. With the way Georgetown finished the season losing three of the last five games, I feel they are liable to lose to anyone. However, I have to roll with the Tigers, seeing how dominant they were vs Pikeville in the regular season.
-#3 Thomas More vs #6 Freed-Hardeman
-January 14th, Thomas More def Freed-Hardeman 85-71
-February 13th, Freed-Hardeman def Thomas More 73-68
-Thomas More ended the season losing four of their last five games. They got a massive win against Georgetown on Saturday to claim the #3 seed. However,I’m going to pick my first upset because I feel like Freed-Hardeman’s offensive threats and solid defense can be enough to push them into the semifinals.
–#4 Cumberlands vs #5 Martin Methodist
-December 5th, Martin Methodist def Cumberlands 90-85
-January 21st, Cumberlands def Martin Methodist 85-73
-This matchup leaves me stone cold. I feel like Cumberlands has played better as of late, as their lone loss this month was to Shawnee State. However, Martin Methodist is on a three-game winning streak. I’m going with my gut with Cumberlands in this one.
-I will continue Semi Final and Championship game predictions in next week’s report.
