The 2022 Atlantic Sun tournament is set to kick off March 1st, one of the first conferences to start their tournament. Last year, the first seed Liberty Flames knocked off the 5th seed North Alabama Lions. It was an upset kind of a year in the Atlantic Sun tournament, as three of the top four seeds got knocked off in the first round. This year, Jacksonville State and Liberty are crowned 1-seeds of their respective divisions. The favorite is Liberty, as they’ve shown they can win it yearly and get an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. The following contains the Atlantic Sun Tournament Bracket, as well as a preview of what we can expect to see throughout the tournament.
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Atlantic Sun Basketball Standings
ASUN East
| Team | Conf. Record | Overall Record | Seed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Liberty | 12-4 | 21-10 | E1 |
| Jacksonville | 11-5 | 19-9 | E2 |
| Florida Gulf Coast | 10-6 | 20-10 | E3 |
| Kennesaw State | 7-9 | 12-17 | E4 |
| North Florida | 7-9 | 11-19 | E5 |
| Stetson | 5-11 | 11-18 | E6 |
ASUN West
| Team | Conf. Record | Overall Record | Seed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jacksonville State | 13-3 | 20-9 | W1 |
| Bellarmine | 11-5 | 17-13 | W2 |
| Central Arkansas | 7-9 | 10-19 | W3 |
| Lipscomb | 6-10 | 13-18 | W4 |
| Eastern Kentucky | 5-11 | 13-17 | W5 |
| North Alabama | 2-14 | 9-20 | W6 |
Atlantic Sun Tournament Schedule
Dates: March 1, 3, 5, 8.
TV Schedule: ESPN+ (First Round, Quarterfinals, and Semifinals) and ESPN (Championship Game).
Venue: Campus Sites (higher seed hosts)
Byes: None
Defending Champion: Liberty
Atlantic Sun Bracket
First Round
- (W3) Central Arkansas 74, (E6) Stetson 73
- (E4) Kennesaw State 82, (W5) Eastern Kentucky 75
- (E3) Florida Gulf Coast 81, (W6) North Alabama 72
- (W4) Lipscomb 74, (E5) North Florida 65
Quarterfinals
- (E1) Liberty 52, (W4) Lipscomb 47
- (W1) Jacksonville State 78, (E4) Kennesaw State 67
- (W2) Bellarmine 81, (E3) Florida Gulf Coast 68
- (E2) Jacksonville 79, (W3) Central Arkansas 69
Semifinals
- (W2) Bellarmine 53, (E1) Liberty 50
- (E2) Jacksonville 54, (W1) Jacksonville State 51
Championship
- (W2) Bellarmine 77, (E2) Jacksonville 72
Jacksonville State advances to NCAA Tournament
Atlantic Sun Breakdown
Liberty is once again the favorite to come out of the conference as Atlantic Sun basketball tournament champions. However, if there is a year where that is in serious question, it is this one. Jacksonville State beat Liberty at Liberty Arena by double-digits in late January. The Flames have won the Atlantic Sun Tournament three of the last four seasons, but this might be one of the cases where they don’t. With both them and Jacksonville State winning their respective divisions, we could see a rematch in the ASUN Championship Game if both teams take care of business.
Further down the Atlantic Sun basketball bracket, 2-seeds Bellarmine and Jacksonville have legitimate cases as well. That being said, Bellarmine can’t qualify for the NCAA Tournament this season, so they can only prevent other teams from making it. North Alabama made a nice run as a 5-seed last season and could surprise some college basketball analysts and fans again this year.
Of all the teams in the Atlantic Sun basketball conference, only four rank in the top-200 in the College Basketball NET. In addition, only 5 teams were above .500 play in conference play this season. Going back to the preseason poll, the media who voted had them pretty much on point, except for the bottom half. The big jumps in the final Atlantic Sun standings relative to the preseason poll were made by Jacksonville and Kennesaw State, with both teams exceeding expectations tremendously.
Team Stats | 2022 Atlantic Sun Basketball Tournament
East Bracket
(1) Liberty Flames
NET Rankings: 116 (No. 1 in ASUN)
KenPom Overall Efficiency Ranking: 115 (No. 1 in ASUN)
Adjusted Offensive Efficiency: 108.8 (No. 84)
Adjusted Defensive Efficiency: 103.9 (No. 178)
Strength of Schedule Rating: -3.96 (No. 258)
(2) Jacksonville Dolphins
NET Ranking: 168 (No. 3 in ASUN)
KenPom Overall Efficiency Ranking: 165 (No. 3 in ASUN)
Adjusted Offensive Efficiency: 100.1 (No. 249)
Adjusted Defensive Efficiency: 99.7 (No. 97)
Strength of Schedule Rating: -5.02 (No. 284)
(3) Florida Gulf Coast Eagles
Net Ranking: 189 (No. 4 in ASUN)
KenPom Overall Efficiency Ranking: 201 (No 4 in ASUN)
Adjusted Offensive Efficiency: 104.0 (No. 169)
Adjusted Defensive Efficiency: 106.4 (No. 236)
Strength of Schedule Rating: -5.58 (No. 284)
(4) Kennesaw State Owls
NET Ranking: 230 (No. 6 in ASUN)
KenPom Overall Efficiency Ranking: 227 (No. 6 in ASUN)
Adjusted Offensive Efficiency: 105.4 (No. 141)
Adjusted Defensive Efficiency: 109.7 (No. 293)
Strength of Schedule Rating: -1.45 (No. 189)
(5) North Florida Ospreys
NET Ranking: 274 (No. 8 in ASUN)
KenPom Overall Efficiency Ranking: 265 (No. 8 in ASUN)
Adjusted Offensive Efficiency: 98.2 (No. 278)
Adjusted Defensive Efficiency: 106.4 (No. 235)
Strength of Schedule Rating: +2.07 (No. 116)
(6) Stetson Hatters
NET Ranking: 306 (No. 10 in ASUN)
KenPom Overall Efficiency Ranking: 309 (No. 10 in ASUN)
Adjusted Offensive Efficiency: 97.2 (No. 297)
Adjusted Defensive Efficiency: 109.7 (No. 292)
Strength of Schedule Rating: -3.13 (No. 233)
West Bracket
(1) Jacksonville State Gamecocks
NET Ranking: 138 (No. 2 in ASUN)
KenPom Overall Efficiency Ranking: 136 (No. 2 in ASUN)
Adjusted Offensive Efficiency: 106.9 (No. 113)
Adjusted Defensive Efficiency: 104.3 (No. 192)
Strength of Schedule Rating: -4.69 (No. 277)
(2) Bellarmine Knights
NET Ranking: 220 (No. 5 in ASUN)
KenPom Overall Efficiency Ranking: 225 (No. 5 in ASUN)
Adjusted Offensive Efficiency: 107.3 (No. 108)
Adjusted Defensive Efficiency: 111.4 (No. 316)
Strength of Schedule Rating: -0.74 (No. 167)
(3) Central Arkansas Bears
NET Ranking: 319 (12th in ASUN)
KenPom Overall Efficiency Ranking: 321 (No. 12 in ASUN)
Adjusted Offensive Efficiency: 98.8 (No. 272)
Adjusted Defensive Efficiency: 113.0 (No. 335)
Strength of Schedule Rating: -0.26 (No. 155)
(4) Lipscomb Bisons
NET Ranking: 276 (No. 9 in ASUN)
KenPom Overall Efficiency Ranking: 273 (No. 9 in ASUN)
Adjusted Offensive Efficiency: 103.9 (No. 175)
Adjusted Defensive Efficiency: 112.8 (No. 331)
Strength of Schedule Rating: -2.71 (No. 223)
(5) Eastern Kentucky Colonels
NET Ranking: 265 (No. 7 in ASUN)
KenPom Overall Efficiency Ranking: 260 (No. 7 in ASUN)
Adjusted Offensive Efficiency: 102.0 (No. 208)
Adjusted Defensive Efficiency: 109.9 (No. 294)
Strength of Schedule Rating: -6.02 (No. 307)
(6) North Alabama Lions
NET Ranking: 314 (No. 11 in ASUN)
KenPom Overall Efficiency Ranking: 315 (No. 11 in ASUN)
Adjusted Offensive Efficiency: 90.3 (No. 353)
Adjusted Defensive Efficiency: 104.1 (No. 180)
Strength of Schedule Rating: -3.15 (No. 234)
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