Power six conference champion predictions
Front-runner for the Naismith Men’s College Basketball Player of the Year award, Perdue’s Zach Eddy, looks to repeat as both a conference champion and player of the year this season (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images).
With March upon us, National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) men’s college basketball is going to start heating up. March Madness will begin soon, though a quick pit stop for the Conference Championship tournaments is necessary to get an idea of who the real contenders are to win the end-of-year tournament. This article will contain predictions for the winners of all of the Power Six conferences. These conferences include the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC), Big 12, Big East, Big Ten, Pac-12, and Southeastern Conference (SEC).
ACC: Duke Blue Devils
The Duke Blue Devils are a wild card, however, if they can get hot for the Conference Championship tournament, they can definitely come out victorious. Duke is one of the few teams in the country whose starters all average double-digit points per game, and they can look to many different scorers to lead the way as a result. Duke’s matchup against the North Carolina Tar Heels this Saturday, Mar. 9 would be a huge game for the Blue Devils to try and swing momentum in their favor down the stretch.
Big 12: Houston Cougars
The Houston Cougars have been on a tear for over a month now. Houston hasn’t lost a game since they traveled to Lawrence, Kansas to take on the Kansas Jayhawks back on Saturday, Feb. 3. Houston has taken down two ranked teams in that span, one of them being on the road against their conference foe, Baylor Bears. Similarly to the Blue Devils and Tar Heels out of the ACC, Houston and Kansas, who are widely considered the two best teams in the Big 12, will go head-to-head one more time this season. The Cougars will get home-court advantage this time around, providing a huge opportunity to avenge their most recent loss of the season.
Big East: Creighton Bluejays
This one is a little more controversial, however Creighton deserves it. The Bluejays will be heading into the conference tournament after coming away with wins against the two best teams in their conference over the last month. Creighton convincingly beat the UConn Huskies by 19 points on Tuesday, Feb. 20, and just took down the Marquette Golden Eagles by 14 on Saturday, Mar. 2. Both of these wins were at home, but that shouldn’t take away from the fact that they beat number one overall Uconn and number five overall Marquette during those matchups. The Bluejays will only continue to build confidence if they can take down the Villanova Wildcats on the road this Saturday, Mar. 9.
Big Ten: Purdue Boilermakers
Purdue is easily the front-runner to win the Big Ten conference. The Boilermakers got lucky this year as the rest of their conference had a really tough time putting it all together during the regular season. The Michigan State Spartans were ranked as high as the number four seed in the country earlier this season but currently hold an 18-11 record. The Wisconsin Badgers seemed to be set up as Purdue's toughest opponent in the conference, however, the Badgers have lost three of their last four games. Nevertheless, Purdue is still a powerhouse holding a 26-3 record, and is currently the number two seed in the country.
Pac-12: Washington State Cougars
The Pac-12 is easily the weakest conference out of the Power 6 this year. That being said, the Washington State Cougars and the Arizona Wildcats are at the top of the conference, with Washington State having beaten Arizona both times they played this season. The Cougars have won ten of their last eleven games, all of which have been against conference opponents. If Washington State can get to the championship game of the tournament, one would have to think that they have the upper hand in any matchup they get dealt. Unfortunately for them, the Cougars still have to get past the Washington Huskies at home.
SEC: Tennessee Volunteers
Tennessee has been on a roll recently. The Volunteers have won six in a row and two of those games have been against ranked conference opponents. Tennessee took down the number eleven-seeded Auburn Tigers on Wednesday, Feb. 28, and recently beat number fourteen overall-seeded Alabama Crimson Tide on the road on Sat. Mar. 2. Tennessee has somewhat of an SEC gauntlet to go through as they still have to take on the currently ranked eighteen-overall South Carolina Gamecocks on the road, and the sixteen-overall Kentucky Wildcats on their home turf.
Everybody loves the March Madness tournament, but the Conference Championship tournaments should get some recognition as well. For a lot of teams, the Conference Championship tournament is the first time they play at a neutral site all season. The teams that come out of their conference as champions have the added advantage of momentum and confidence, which has historically played a huge role, going into the 64-team March Madness tournament.