History:
Most of the dominant schools are no longer members of this conference. 5-time tournament winner Belmont is now in the Missouri Valley, while Liberty (who won three straight titles between 2019 and 2021) is now in Conference USA.
The Atlantic Sun is not to be taken lightly in the NCAA Tournament. In 2023, Kennesaw State played Xavier within five in a 14-vs-3 matchup, while Liberty pulled off a 12-vs-5 upset in 2019. No team is more famous than the 2013 Florida Gulf Coast squad. The Eagles won a pair of games in the NCAA Tournament, becoming the first #15 seed to make it to the Sweet 16 despite finishing second in conference play.
Returning Champion:
Stetson earned their first NCAA Tournament bid, losing to eventual champion UConn by 39 in the first round.
Format:
10 of the 12 teams (sorry, West Georgia and Bellarmine) make the field. The top six teams earn a bye into the Quarterfinals. In the first round, the #7 seed plays the #8 seed while the #9 seed plays the #10 seed. Interesting.
Two teams (Queens, and West Georgia) are ineligible for the NCAA Tournament due to their transition to Division 1. If Queens wins the conference tournament, the bid goes to the runner-up.
Contenders:
This well-balanced league was won by Lipscomb, who edged out North Alabama on tiebreakers. Both teams went 22-9 (14-4) and split the regular-season series. Lipscomb is the lone squad in the NET Top 100 (87th). All other teams are likely looking at a #16 seed, depending on how other small conference tournaments play out.
None of the teams are on a big winning streak. Florida Gulf Coast (18-13, 13-5) is on a 4-game winning streak.
Eastern Kentucky (18-13, 12-6) played Lousiville within two and Clemson within 13.
Sleeper:
North Florida (15-16, 8-10) has a win over an SEC team. Sure, that team is South Carolina, but that still impresses. The Ospreys went 2-1 in Quadrant 2 games (defeated Georgia Tech on the road). They play a high-scoring style (83.3 PPG, though they also give up 84.6).
How it should play out:
Lipscomb is comfortably the best team in the league. Using KenPom Efficiency, they are in the top 100 in offense and defense. They boast the league’s top scorer (Jacob Ognacevic). Ognacevic averages 20.3 PPG (12th in the country) and his career 65.8% rate on 2-point shots is fifth in conference history. This is the type of player big schools don’t want to see on their side of the bracket. If Lipscomb earns a 12-14 seed, they won’t be an easy out.
However, they aren’t unbeatable. They were swept by Eastern Kentucky, who could be their opponent in the semi-finals. Six teams won 18-22 games, making this a competitive conference.
Winner:
I am sticking with Lipscomb. They would be a team that many will pick for a first-round upset, and they may pull it off. As stated above, this conference should never be taken lightly.