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A whopping 12 teams will secure automatic bids to the NCAA Tournament on Saturday as championship week in college basketball begins winding to a close. The drama figures to be elite, especially in the numerous one-bid leagues that will be crowning champions. 

Three of the five high-major conferences will also have champions decided during one of the most high-stakes days of March. Among them could be No. 1 seed Houston from the Big 12, No. 1 seed St. John’s from the Big East and No. 1 seed Duke from the ACC. While the Cougars and Blue Devils are already in great position to be No. 1 seeds in the NCAA Tournament, conference tournament titles would only add to their already accomplished résumés. The Red Storm don’t have much of a case to be considered for a No. 1 seed but could add another feather in their cap by capturing a conference tournament crown inside their home confines of Madison Square Garden.

Friday’s conference tournament action brought a recent March Madness hero one step closer to another NCAA Tournament opportunity as No. 4 seed Iona and head coach Tobin Anderson edged No. 1 seed Quinnipiac 81-73 in the semifinals of the MAAC Tournament. The Gaels will play No. 6 seed Mount St. Mary’s on Saturday for a spot in the Big Dance.

Anderson famously guided No. 16 seed FDU to a historic upset of No. 1 seed Purdue in the 2023 NCAA Tournament before succeeding Rick Pitino at Iona. His team will enter Saturday’s title game on a five-game winning streak and profiling as a likely No. 16 seed if it were to reach the tournament. Other top seeds narrowly avoided the fate suffered by Quinnipiac on Friday. 

Two prime examples were top-seeded Liberty, which survived for an 81-79 win over No. 4 seed Kennesaw State in the Conference USA semifinals. Memphis was another of the day’s survivors. The top-seeded Tigers evaded an upset bid from No. 8 seed Wichita State in the AAC Tournament quarterfinals. Bubble teams everywhere breathed a sigh of relief when Memphis hung on. Why? Because the AAC will be a one-bid league if Memphis wins it. But if any other team takes the title, it will put the pinch on bubble teams as the Tigers are headed to the Big Dance no matter what.

SportsLine conference tournament odds, picks: Proven experts share best bets for every tourney 

Saturday’s conference tournament scores

2025 conference tournaments/champions

Conference Location Dates Championship game / Tournament champion ACCCharlotte, North CarolinaMarch 11-15Sat., Mar. 15, 8:30 p.m. | ESPN America EastCampus sites March 8,11,15Sat., Mar. 15, 11 a.m. | ESPN2 AmericanFort Worth, TexasMarch 12-16Sun., Mar. 16, 3:15 p.m. | ESPN ASUNCampus sitesMarch 2,3,6,9 Lipscomb (25-9) Atlantic 10Washington D.C.March 12-16Sun., Mar. 16, 1 p.m. | CBS Big 12Kansas CityMarch 11-15Sat., Mar. 15, 6 p.m. | ESPN Big EastNew York CityMarch 12-15Sat., Mar. 15, 6:30 p.m. | Fox Big SkyBoise, IdahoMarch 8-12Montana (25-9) Big SouthJohnson City, TennesseeMarch 5,7-9 High Point (29-5) Big TenIndianapolisMarch 12-16Sun., Mar. 16, 3:30 p.m. | CBS Big WestHenderson, NevadaMarch 12-15Sat., Mar. 15, 9:40 p.m. | ESPN2 Coastal AthleticWashington D.C.March 7-11UNCW (27-7) Conference USAHuntsville, AlabamaMarch 11-15Sat., Mar. 15, 8:30 p.m. | CBSSN Horizon LeagueCampus sitesMarch 4,6,10,11Robert Morris (25-8) IvyProvidence, Rhode IslandMarch 15-16Sun., Mar. 16, 12 p.m. | ESPN2 MAACAtlantic City, New JerseyMarch 11-15Sat., Mar. 15, 7:30 p.m. | ESPNU MACClevelandMarch 13-15Sat., Mar. 15, 7:40 p.m. | ESPN2 MEACNorfolk, VirginiaMarch 12-15Sat., Mar. 15, 1 p.m. | ESPN2 Missouri ValleySt. LouisMarch 6-9 Drake (30-3) Mountain WestLas VegasMarch 12-15Sat., Mar. 15, 6 p.m. | CBS NortheastCampus sitesMarch 5,8.11Saint Francis (15-17) Ohio ValleyEvansville, IndianaMarch 5-8 SIUE (22-11) PatriotCampus sitesMarch 4,6,9,12American (22-12) SECNashvilleMarch 12-16Sun., Mar. 16, 1 p.m. | ESPN SouthernAsheville, North CarolinaMarch 7-10 Wofford (19-15) SouthlandLake Charles, LouisianaMarch 9-12McNeese (27-6) SummitSioux Falls, South DakotaMarch 5-9 Omaha (22-12) Sun BeltPensacola, FloridaMarch 4-10 Troy (23-10) SWACAtlantaMarch 11-15Sat., Mar. 15, 9:30 p.m. | ESPNU WACSt. George, Utah / Las VegasMarch 11-15Sat., Mar. 15, 11:40 p.m. | ESPN2 WCCLas VegasMarch 6-11Gonzaga (25-8)