Southland Conference Tournament Preview: Prediction, Bracket, Odds, Standings and Schedule

The Nicholls State Colonels look to defend their regular season conference title this weekend in Katy, Texas when the Southland men's basketball Conference Tournament tips off on Wednesday.

The Colonels, along with New Orleans and Southeastern Louisiana appear to be the top three dogs in the fight for a bid to the NCAA Tournament, but Texas A&M Corpus Christie finished with the second-best overall record during the season.

Here's how the oddsmakers at WynnBET Sportsbook are reviewing the field:

Southland Conference Tournament Odds

• Nicholls State: +110
• New Orleans: +400
• SE Louisiana: +425
• Texas A&M-CC: +425
• McNeese State: +3000
• Northwestern State: +6000
• Houston Baptist: +7500
• Incarnate Word: +10000

Southland Conference Tournament Bracket and Standings

Incarnate Word, the No. 8 seed in the bracket gets the matchups going at the Leonard E. Merrell Center at 5 p.m. ET against Houston Baptist. The Huskies are a 4.5-point favorite over at WynnBET Sportsbook with a total of 140.5.

Later on, McNeese State takes on Northwestern State in the 7-8 matchup, with McNeese State a 1.5-point favorite with a high total of 154.5.

Southland Conference Tournament Schedule (Dates, Times, Channel)

All matchups Wednesday-Friday will air on ESPN+. The championship game will air on ESPN 2 at 9:30 p.m. ET.

Southland Conference Tournament Prediction and Pick

Despite Southeastern Louisiana and New Orleans right near the top, the clear value play is actually on the favorite in Nicholls State.

Oddsmakers at WynnBET have the Colonels implied probability to win at +110, or a win percentage of 47.62% relative to the field. Those numbers also hold up in the latest KenPom projections listed below.

To get plus-odds for a team that will almost assuredly get the winner of the two other contenders in the previous round feels like a very ideal setup. Nicholls State was the most consistent team in the Southland on both sides of the floor, ranking second in overall efficiency on offense and defense. I'll back them at plus-odds to come through and cut down the nets in Katy.

LEAN: Nicholls State +110

Southland Conference Tournament Dark Horse

I like New Orleans' commitment on the defensive side of the ball, but they're not really a dark horse as the 2-seed.

If Northwestern State can get hot, they could be an intriguing option at +6000 odds. They shoot almost 37% from 3-point range, best in the Southland, and also hold the fourth-best defensive efficiency numbers as well, albeit there's a big jump between them and the top three teams in the league.

Crazier things have happened, but if they get key stops and catch fire from beyond the arc, we got a major cinderella punching their ticket.

LEAN: Northwestern State +6000

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