The AAC basketball conference has slowly but surely been working itself into one of the better conferences in college basketball. Can Houston finish their magnificent season, or will Wichita State State take home the title? Or will another team shock the conference with a tournament win? Read on for the AAC Tournament bracket and schedule, as well as a preview of what we can expect to see.
AAC Basketball Conference Standings
| Team | Conference Record | Overall Record | Tournament Outlook |
| Wichita State | 11-2 | 15-4 | 1 Seed |
| Houston | 14-3 | 21-3 | 2 Seed |
| Memphis | 11-4 | 15-7 | 3 Seed |
| SMU | 7-4 | 11-4 | 4 Seed |
| Cincinnati | 8-6 | 10-10 | 5 Seed |
| UCF | 8-10 | 10-11 | 6 Seed |
| Tulsa | 7-9 | 11-11 | 7 Seed |
| USF | 4-10 | 8-12 | 8 Seed |
| Temple | 4-10 | 5-10 | 9 Seed |
| Tulane | 4-12 | 9-12 | 10 Seed |
| East Carolina | 2-10 | 8-10 | 11 Seed |
AAC Basketball Tournament Schedule
Dates: March 11-14
TV: ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU
Site: Dickies Arena, Fort Worth, TX
Byes: Top five get single bye
Most Recent Champion: Cincinnati
AAC Basketball Tournament Bracket
First Round
- (8) USF 73, (9) Temple 71
- (7) Tulsa 70, (10) Tulane 77
- (6) UCF 72, (11) East Carolina 62
Quarterfinals
- (1) Wichita State 68, (8) USF 67
- (4) SMU 71, (5) Cincinnati 74
- (2) Houston 77, (10) Tulane 52
- (3) Memphis 70, (6) UCF 62
Semifinals
- (5) Cincinnati 60, (1) Wichita State 59
- (3) Memphis 74, (2) Houston 76
Championship
- (5) Cincinnati 54, (2) Houston 91
Houston advances to the NCAA Tournament
AAC Basketball Tournament Breakdown
Wichita State won the regular season conference title this year, without being ranked all year. This is something to note because Houston had one of their best seasons in recent memory. The Shockers proved that they are still a force to be reckoned with after parting ways with head coach, Gregg Marshall. Wichita State ended their season on a seven game win streak. The Shockers are led by Tyson Etienne, who averages 17 points per game. Outside of Etienne, the Shockers only have one guy who averages over 10 points. Wichita State is excellent at getting to the free throw line, averaging 22.8 free throw attempts per game. Even though they get to the line, Wichita State only shoots 69% from the free throw line.
Houston is the team to watch though in the AAC. Quentin Grimes is one of the best players in the country and leads the Cougars in scoring at 18 points per game. Kelvin Sampson’s team makes its money on the defensive side of the ball, only allowing 57.6 points per game. They also rebound the ball extremely well, proved by their five ranking in the nation in rebounding. Even though the Cougars are the two seed in the tournament, they should be looked at as the favorite to win the tournament.
Wichita State “shocked” the preseason poll makers. They were the biggest overachiever in relation to the preseason rankings, as they were projected to finish seventh, but actually finished first. The biggest underachiever in relation to the preseason rankings was USF, who was projected to finish fifth, but actually finished eighth.
