Big South Basketball: 2022 Conference Tournament preview and prediction

INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA - MARCH 19: D.J. Burns Jr. #30 of the Winthrop Eagles attempts the shot against the Villanova Wildcats during the second half in the first round game of the 2021 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Indiana Farmers Coliseum on March 19, 2021 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images) /

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Big South Basketball Kevin McGeehan Campbell Fighting Camels (Photo by Lance King/Getty Images) /

Quarterfinals (March 4, ESPN+)

#1 Longwood vs #8 Radford – Noon

Longwood is the best offensive team in the Big South while Radford ranks in the bottom 100 nationally in eFG%, 2P%, 3P%, and FT%.

The Lancers went 2-0 against Radford in the regular season and should extend that to 3-0 in the Big South Tournament.

Prediction: Longwood 70, Radford 64

#4 USC Upstate vs #5 UNC Asheville – 2 p.m.

USC Upstate was picked to finish dead last in the Big South this season but ended up earning the No. 4 seed at 10-6, the program’s first winning record in conference play since 2014-15 when they were in the Atlantic Sun. Head Coach Dave Dickerson deserves a ton of credit for what he’s done in Spartanburg this season.

That said, this UNC Asheville team has a great chance at making a deep run in this tournament, especially considering they beat Upstate by 27 points in their most recent meeting on Feb. 12.

Prediction: UNC Asheville 74, USC Upstate 72

#2 Winthrop vs #7 High Point – 6 p.m.

High Point has dangerous potential with a player like John-Michael Wright, but Winthrop’s tournament experience, recent history, depth, and offensive firepower make them an incredibly tough team to pick against.

Prediction: Winthrop 80, High Point 76

#3 Gardner-Webb vs #6 Campbell – 8 p.m.

This is easily the most difficult quarterfinals game to pick. Gardner-Webb is elite defensively but Campbell is the better shooting team in addition to being more experienced. At the end of the day, I lean towards the Runnin’ Bulldogs because of their defensive identity. I know exactly what they’re going to show up and do, while Campbell has been much streakier over the course of the season.

It’s also worth mentioning that both Tim Craft (Gardner-Webb) and Kevin McGeehan (Campbell) have done tremendous jobs with their respective programs over the last several seasons.

Prediction: Gardner-Webb 64, Campbell 63