Big 12 Basketball Tournament: What every team needs in Kansas City this week

12. UCF needs to create some chaos in their first Big 12 Tournament appearance 

The talented backcourt of Jaylin Sellers and Darius Johnson has allowed UCF to have some success this season. They finished the regular season 16-14 (6-10) in their first season as a member of the Big 12. While they aren’t heading to the NCAA Tournament without a conference tournament championship, they can certainly create some chaos in Kansas City this week. UCF’s first-round matchup is with Oklahoma State, a team they have already beaten. Their second-round game would be against BYU, a team they have lost to twice this year, by a total of just 7 points. A third-round game would be against Texas Tech, a team they have already beaten this year. As talented as the Big 12 is, it sure would be something to see UCF go on a run to the semifinals or beyond. 

11. Cincinnati needs to finish out close games

The Bearcats find themselves on the outside looking in at the NCAA Tournament. It will take an automatic bid via a Big 12 Tournament Championship for Cincinnati to make the field of 68. However, that isn’t to say that Cincinnati has had a bad season. In their first year in the Big 12, Cincinnati picked up 7 conference wins and an overall record of 18-13. 

Cincinnati has struggled to win close games this season. Had a couple of matchups had different results, the Bearcats would be an NCAA Tournament team. 10 of their 11 conference losses come by 9 points or less, and 8 of those 10 losses are by 5 points or less. 

Cincinnati lost to:

 Texas by 1

Baylor by 3

Oklahoma by 3 and 4

Oklahoma State by 4

WVU by 4

Houston by 5 and 8

Kansas by 5

Iowa State by 9

As they have been all season long, expect Cincinnati to be competitive in Kansas City. If they can win the close ones, maybe, just maybe, they can go on a run.