DeKALB – The Mid-American Conference men’s basketball regular season came to an end on Friday. Of the 12 teams in the conference, the top eight are headed to Cleveland on Thursday for the MAC tournament. The games will be played from Thursday through Saturday and will take place at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse – home of the Cleveland Cavaliers. 

The tournament is played in single elimination format, with the No. 1 seed playing the No. 8 seed, the No. 2 seed playing the No. 7 seed, the No. 3 seed playing the No. 6 seed and the No. 4 seed playing the No. 5 seed. 

The winner of the MAC tournament will earn a spot in the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Tournament, which begins on March 14. 

NO. 8 MIAMI UNIVERSITY REDHAWKS VS NO. 1 UNIVERSITY OF TOLEDO ROCKETS

The Rockets (25-6, 16-2 MAC) come into the MAC tournament as favorites to reach the NCAA tournament, currently riding a 15-game win streak. Finishing as the No. 1 seed is nothing new to Toledo, as this is the Rockets’ third straight year atop the regular season MAC standings. Despite finishing as the best team in the MAC the last two years, Toledo has been unable to get over the hump and win the tournament. Led by junior guard RayJ Dennis (19.4 points per game) and senior forward JT Shumate (16.5 ppg), Toledo will look to prove their regular season success by winning the tournament. 

The RedHawks (12-19, 6-12 MAC) come into the tournament as the lowest seed but have been playing well. Miami started its season 2-11 in MAC play, but won four of its last five games to sneak into the tournament. Fifth-year guard Mekhi Lairy (17.4 ppg) and redshirt junior guard Morgan Safford (15.2 ppg) will look to lead Miami to a massive upset over Toledo in order to keep their season alive. The Rockets swept the season series between the two teams, winning by scores of 81-78 and 89-71. Tip-off will be at 10 a.m. CST Thursday. 

7 NORTHERN ILLINOIS UNIVERSITY HUSKIES VS NO. 2 KENT STATE UNIVERSITY GOLDEN FLASHES 

The Golden Flashes (25-6, 15-3 MAC) are a force to be reckoned with heading into the MAC tournament, winners of seven of their last eight games. Kent State was perfect at home this season, finishing 15-0. Kent State is led by the 2021-2022 MAC player of the year, redshirt senior guard Sincere Carry (17.4 ppg) and redshirt senior guard Malique Jacobs (12.6 ppg). The Golden Flashes are looking for revenge this season after losing in the MAC tournament championship game last year.

The Huskies (13-18, 9-9 MAC) come into the tournament losers of four of their last six games. NIU has played its best basketball on the road this season, winning seven games away from home – the third most in the MAC. The Huskies are led by sophomore guard David Coit (15.7 ppg) and senior guard Kaleb Thornton (8.9 ppg, 5.3 assists per game). This will be NIU’s first tournament game since the 2018-19 season. The Huskies handed Kent State one of its three conference losses in the two team’s only matchup of the season on Jan. 24, snapping Kent State’s 10-game win streak. Tip-off will be at 3 p.m. CST Thursday.

NO. 5 OHIO UNIVERSITY BOBCATS VS NO. 4 BALL STATE UNIVERSITY CARDINALS 

The Cardinals (20-11, 11-7 MAC) come into the MAC tournament struggling, losers of four of their last five games. This was Ball State’s most successful season since they were the No. 3 seed in the MAC in 2019-20. The Cardinals are led by sophomore center Payton Sparks (13 ppg, 8.7 rebounds per game) and redshirt junior guard Jarron Coleman (14.5 ppg). 

The Bobcats (18-13, 10-8 MAC) come into the tournament winning six of their last eight games, including a 92-58 blowout win over Bowling Green State University to close the regular season. Ohio used a dominant home record to find their way into the tournament, going 14-1 in the Convocation Center. Graduate forward Dwight Wilson III (15.9 ppg, 9.1 rpg) and senior guard Miles Brown (10.5 ppg) remain from the 2020-21 MAC tournament championship team. Despite being the lower seed, the Bobcats won their only game vs. Ball State by a final score of 76-71. Tip-off will be at 12:30 p.m. CST Thursday.

NO. 6 UNIVERSITY AT BUFFALO BULLS VS NO. 3 UNIVERSITY OF AKRON ZIPS

The Zips (21-10, 13-5 MAC), winners of last season’s MAC tournament, will look to defend their title. Akron was able to nab the No. 3 seed thanks to a 15-1 home record, which included an eight-game winning streak. Many players remain from last year’s title team. Two of those players are MAC leading scorer senior guard Xavier Castaneda (21.4 ppg) and junior forward Enrique Freeman (16.5 ppg, 11.1 rpg). Freeman was the only player in the MAC to average a double-double. 

The Bulls (15-16, 9-9 MAC) won three of their last four games to clinch the No. 6 seed. Buffalo is led by sophomore guard Curtis Jones (15.1 ppg) and junior guard Zid Powell (12.6 ppg). Buffalo is looking to make another run to the MAC championship game, where they won in 2018-19 and lost in 2020-21. Akron swept Buffalo in the season series, winning both games by scores of 81-64 and 86-66. Tip-off will be at 5:30 p.m. CST Thursday.

MAC CHAMPION HEADS TO MARCH MADNESS

The winner of the Toledo-Miami game will play the winner of the Ball State-Ohio game in the semi-finals on Friday. The winner of the Kent State-Northern Illinois game will take on the winner of the Akron-Buffalo game in the other semi-final game on Friday. The winners of the two semi-final games will play Saturday for the MAC tournament championship and the right to go to the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Tournament.