Seedings Announced for 2022 Hercules Tires Men's Basketball Championship
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (www.BigSouthSports.com) – The seedings and pairings for next week’s Hercules Tires Big South Conference Men’s Basketball Championship at Bojangles Coliseum in Charlotte, N.C., have been determined following the conclusion of the conference’s regular-season schedule this evening. The top four teams earned byes into the quarterfinals.
BRACKET
North Division Champion Longwood (15-1) is the No. 1 seed –- its first No. 1 seed in the Big South Tournament since becoming league members in 2012-13, and has secured the Big South’s automatic bid to the NIT should the Lancers not win the tournament. South Division Champion Winthrop (14-2) is the No. 2 seed and enters the tournament as the two-time defending conference champion. Gardner-Webb (11-5) captured the No. 3 seed, with USC Upstate (10-6) locking in the No. 4 seed and the final first round bye. Upstate earned its highest tournament seeding since joining the league four seasons ago.
Seeds 5-12 will open the tournament in the first round on Wednesday, March 2. UNC Asheville and Campbell finished 8-8 in Big South games this season, and the Bulldogs claimed the No. 5 seed based on its head-to-head victory over the 6th-seeded Camels. High Point and Radford tied with 7-9 Big South records, and since the teams split the season series, HPU’s victory over No. 2 Winthrop gave the Panthers the No. 7 seed, with the Highlanders landing at No. 8. North Carolina A&T (6-10) captured the No. 9 seed, followed by Hampton (5-11) receiving the No. 10 seed. Presbyterian (4-12) is the No. 11 seed, with Charleston Southern (1-15) rounding out the seedings at No. 12.
First round action begins Wednesday morning, March 2 at 11:30am with No. 8 Radford vs. No. 9 North Carolina A&T, followed by No. 5 UNC Asheville vs. No. 12 Charleston Southern at 2:00pm. No. 7 High Point meets No. 10 Hampton at 6:00pm, with No. 6 Campbell vs. No. 11 Presbyterian concluding the day at 8:00pm. The winners of each first round contest advance to Friday’s quarterfinal round, which begin at 12:00pm with No. 1 Longwood facing the winner of Radford/North Carolina A&T, followed by No. 4 USC Upstate playing the winner of UNC Asheville/Charleston Southern at 2:00pm. The 6:00pm game will feature No. 2 Winthrop vs. the winner of High Point/Hampton, with No. 3 Gardner-Webb against the winner of Campbell/Presbyterian at 8:00pm. The semifinals will be Saturday, March 5 at 12:00pm and 2:00pm, with the Championship game on Sunday, March 6 scheduled for 12:00pm.
The 2022 Hercules Tires Big South Men’s Basketball Championship will be televised on ESPN+ Tuesday-through-Saturday, while Sunday’s Championship game will air live on ESPN2 and Westwood One Sports. The Big South’s Tournament champion receives an automatic bid to the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament. The Conference Championship schedule is below, and tickets are available at www.BigSouthSports.com/CLTChamps.
First Round – Wednesday, March 2 – ESPN+
Game 1: (8) Radford vs. (9) North Carolina A&T, 11:30am (Education Day)
Game 2: (5) UNC Asheville vs. (12) Charleston Southern, 2:00pm
Game 3: (7) High Point vs. (10) Hampton, 6:00pm
Game 4: (6) Campbell vs. (11) Presbyterian, 8:00pm
Quarterfinals – Friday, March 4 – ESPN+
Game 5: (1) Longwood vs. 8/9 winner, 12:00pm
Game 6: (4) USC Upstate vs. 5/12 winner, 2:00pm
Game 7: (2) Winthrop vs 7/10 Winner, 6:00pm
Game 8: (3) Gardner-Webb vs. 6/11 Winner, 8:00pm
Semifinals - Saturday, March 5 – ESPN+
Game 9: Semifinals – Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner, 12:00pm
Game 10: Semifinals – Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 winner, 2:00pm
Championship - Sunday, March 6 – ESPN2
Game 11: Championship – Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 12:00pm