The road to the NCAA men’s Final Four begins on Monday night.
In the Atlantic Sun conference.
The ASUN is the first of 32 men’s conference tournaments set to get underway this month, and their tournament begins with a pair of games on Monday night. No. 9 Kennesaw State will face No. 10 Jacksonville on the campus of Eastern Kentucky, with the winner advancing to take on Eastern Kentucky, the top seeded-team in the ASUN, on Tuesday.
At the same time No. 7 Florida Gulf Coast will take on No. 8 Queens on the campus of Stetson. The second-seeded Stetson Hatters will take on the winner of that game Tuesday night.
The ASUN is likely a one-bid conference, and there is a chance the top-seeded EKU Colonels advance to the NCAA men’s tournament even if they lose in the ASUN conference tournament. Queens is ineligible for the NCAA men’s tournament, as they are in their first season of transitioning to Division I from Division II. Should Queens — who finished with a 13-18 overall record — somehow win the ASUN tournament EKU would get the bid.
The Colonels finished atop the ASUN standings with a 17-13 overall record, and a 12-4 conference record. However, EKU is limping into the ASUN tournament having lost their last two games, a four-point loss at Austin Peay on February 28 and a 14-point loss at Lipscomb, the No. 3 seed in the ASUN tournament, on Friday.
Another interesting feature of the ASUN tournament? All rounds reseed in the semifinals. That is where the highest remaining seed will play the lowest remaining seed in one game, with the other two teams squaring off in the other matchup.
2024 men’s Atlantic Sun tournament bracket
You can view the entire ASUN bracket at the conference tournament website.
2023 men’s Atlantic Sun tournament schedule
March 4 First Round
Game 1: Jacksonville 92, Kennesaw State 86
Game 2: Queens 69, Florida Gulf Coast 63
March 5 Second Round
Game 3: Jacksonville 67, Eastern Kentucky 65
Game 4: Austin Peay 101, North Florida 98
Game 5: Stetson 83, Queens 71
Game 6: North Alabama 77, Lipscomb 75
March 7 Semifinals
Game 7: Stetson 88, Jacksonville 87
Game 8: Austin Peay 77, North Alabama 71
March 10 Championship
Game 9: No. 4 Austin Peay at No. 2 Stetson, 2:00 p.m. ET, ESPN