NEWSLETTER
There are 27 conferences, four leagues, and one association. They are all the same things, it’s just semantics, but stick with me. The Patriot is fourth out of four in my power ranking of the “leagues” but, they like to start the tourney nice and early and have a high concentration of service academies, so I’ll happily watch and bet their conference league tournament.
When is the Patriot League Tournament?
The Patriot League Basketball Tournament starts up on Tuesday, March 28th at 7pm ET. The title game is on Wednesday, March 8th.
Where is the Patriot League Tournament played?
All games will be held at the home arena of the higher seed. Foreshadowing: Colgate has won 28 straight home games versus conference opponents, and is the high seed. Â
How to watch the Patriot League Tournament
The first two rounds can be streamed on ESPN+. The semifinals and championship will be on CBS Sports Network.
Defending Champions
Colgate cruised last year, winning their three games on average by over 24 points, including a 74-58 drubbing of second-seeded Navy in the final.
Who won the regular season title?
Colgate finished the season 17-1 (23-8 overall) with their only league loss coming in our nation’s capital three weeks ago to an American squad that used an 18-0 run in the second half to pull off the upset.
Who will participate
All 10 teams will play, with the top six given a 1st round bye and the bottom four left to scratch out a win to make the quarterfinals.
How Many teams will the Patriot League send to the tournament
22 (maybe 23) conferences will be represented by a lone auto-qualifier. The Patriot League is definitely one of them.
Patriot League Tournament Bracket
No reseeding, all games at the higher seed’s home gym and for some reason, spread out over eight days.
Patriot League Tournament Odds
Colgate is a big favorite at DraftKings, and it’s hard to make a case against them.
Patriot League Tournament Preview
I hate to be so reductionist, but you are basically handicapping Colgate vs Navy this year. The competition past them takes a pretty good drop and that should be the chalky final we see.
The Midshipmen started the conference season 1-5 but, recovered by winning 10 of the final 12 games and would be the hottest team coming into the tournament if it weren’t for the juggernaut across the bracket from them.
They were able to keep it close in a home loss to end the season, but even if you think it’s folly to look at some of Navy’s results early in the year, they did give up 87 points when they played Colgate on the road in early January.Â
A guy could make a case for Army as the third favorite based on their upside, but it’s still a squad that was inconsistent down the stretch, really hasn’t beaten anyone and would likely have to beat Colgate AND Navy in back to back games on the road.
Patriot League Tournament Prediction
Gross to lay the chalk, but I think I’d want more like +350-400 in order to bet Navy. I understand the team has improved, but the closing price for the Navy vs Colgate game in January was around +300. I think if you want the midshipmen, a money line rollover pays better in every case where Colgate’s entire team doesn’t get the flu. As for me, I’ll take a top 50 offense in a league that has no business having one. I’ll take a team that shot 40%+ from deep for the season.
My Bet: Colgate -220
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