Busting Brackets
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SWAC Basketball Tournament: Prairie View A&M, Texas Southern headline

ByBryan Mauro|
LAS VEGAS, NV - NOVEMBER 20: Gary Blackston #3 of the Prairie View A&M Panthers shoots against Cameron Carmical #23 of the Eastern Kentucky Colonels during day one of the Main Event basketball tournament at T-Mobile Arena on November 20, 2017 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Sam Wasson/Getty Images)
LAS VEGAS, NV - NOVEMBER 20: Gary Blackston #3 of the Prairie View A&M Panthers shoots against Cameron Carmical #23 of the Eastern Kentucky Colonels during day one of the Main Event basketball tournament at T-Mobile Arena on November 20, 2017 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Sam Wasson/Getty Images)
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NASHVILLE, TN – MARCH 16: Trayvon Reed #5 of the Texas Southern Tigers reacts against the Xavier Musketeers during the game in the first round of the 2018 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at Bridgestone Arena on March 16, 2018 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
NASHVILLE, TN – MARCH 16: Trayvon Reed #5 of the Texas Southern Tigers reacts against the Xavier Musketeers during the game in the first round of the 2018 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at Bridgestone Arena on March 16, 2018 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)

Favorites

Prairie View A&M Panthers

If the Panthers don’t make the NCAA tournament, this has already been the best season in their history. The Panthers enter the tournament with 19 wins and 17 conference wins. Prairie View A&M has only experienced six winning seasons in their school’s history and has never had 20 wins. These numbers are the best in the school’s D-1 history, and with one win the school will finally have a 20-win season. The one time the Panthers have made the NCAA tournament was in the 1997-1998 year when they won the SWAC tournament. This season, behind Blackston, the Panthers are hoping to not waste their tremendous play. Prairie View A&M has locked up the No. 1 seed in the tournament, and they are hungry to represent the conference in the tournament.

Texas Southern Tigers

Texas Southern has built their team using high major transfers who have fizzled out or been dismissed from their former teams for several reasons. That has led to the Tigers dominating the SWAC conference for the last handful of years. To go along with the high major players, the school has elected to hire former high major head coaches. The Tigers enter the conference tournament fresh off an 11-game winning streak. Texas Southern also handed the Panthers their only loss in the conference. If those two meet in the finals it has the potential to be one of the better games of championship week. Texas Southern would be playing for their third straight appearance in the NCAA tournament. If they are going to make it again, they will have to beat one of the best teams the SWAC has seen in quite some time in the Panthers.

Sleeper

Arkansas Pine Bluff Golden Lions

The Golden Lions entered the year as one of the favorites to win the conference title. The regular season did not go as planned but they should not be dismissed as a team who can not make a run and win the conference auto bid. Pine Bluff has the conference leading scorer, Martaveous McKnight, and when he is going well, the Golden Lions are going to be a tough team to beat. Will his teammates be able to score enough to beat the favorites in this tournament? Pine Bluff still has the talent of a team that most picked to win the conference. If the higher seeds have a bad game or the Golden Lions get hot, they can win this tournament.