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NCAA Basketball: 2018 Emerald Coast Classic preview and predictions

WICHITA, KS - MARCH 04: Cincinnati Bearcats players celebrate after beating the Wichita State Shockers on March 4, 2018 at Charles Koch Arena in Wichita, Kansas. (Photo by Peter Aiken/Getty Images)
WICHITA, KS - MARCH 04: Cincinnati Bearcats players celebrate after beating the Wichita State Shockers on March 4, 2018 at Charles Koch Arena in Wichita, Kansas. (Photo by Peter Aiken/Getty Images)
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NASHVILLE, TN – MARCH 18: Trevor Moore #5 of the Cincinnati Bearcats high fives Jarron Cumberland #34 against the Nevada Wolf Pack during the first half in the second round of the 2018 Men’s NCAA Basketball Tournament at Bridgestone Arena on March 18, 2018 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Frederick Breedon/Getty Images)
NASHVILLE, TN – MARCH 18: Trevor Moore #5 of the Cincinnati Bearcats high fives Jarron Cumberland #34 against the Nevada Wolf Pack during the first half in the second round of the 2018 Men’s NCAA Basketball Tournament at Bridgestone Arena on March 18, 2018 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Frederick Breedon/Getty Images)

The 2018 Emerald Classic features program who could use some quality wins. Which team should be favored to win the event?

This weekend, the fifth annual Emerald Coast Classic will take place in Niceville, Florida on the campus of Northwest Florida State College. Like most of these tournaments, every year the field gets better and deeper and this year is no exception. in 2016, Virginia defeated Providence in the championship game to win the tournament and in 2017, TCU defeated St. Bonaventure in the championship game.

This year, we get to see a wide range of teams playing and the match ups are bound to be intriguing. The power 5 is represented with Baylor and Ole Miss and the other six teams all bring interesting and unique match ups with them. Western Michigan, Southern, North Carolina Central, Nicholls State, Cincinnati and George Mason make up the rest of this tournament.

Due to earlier in the season head to head results and the first two rounds of this classic, Cincinnati, Baylor, George Mason and Ole Miss make up the top half of the bracket while North Carolina Central, Nicholls State, Southern and Western Michigan make up the bottom half.

Let’s take a deeper look at this years participants.