2024 Ohio Valley Conference Tournament
The 2024 Ohio Valley Conference Tournament is one of the more interesting low-major tournaments. Obviously this will be a one-bid league, but the best team in the conference is the No. 3 seed Morehead State, who has a little bit of a disadvantage with the format of the tourney.
This one will be held at the Ford Center in Evansville, Indiana and eight of the 11 teams qualified for the field. If No. 8 seed Southern Indiana wins, they will be ineligible to play in the NCAA Tournament because they are transitioning to Division I, so the loser of the title game would make the Field of 68.
How to Watch the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament
When: March 6-9
Where: Ford Center in Evansville, IN
Format: No. 4 and No. 3 seeds get byes to the Quarterfinals; No. 2 and No. 1 seeds get byes to the Semifinals
Watch: ESPN+, ESPNU, ESPN2; Championship Game on ESPN2 on Mar. 9 at 8 p.m. ET
College Basketball Odds | College Basketball Betting Splits | Greg Peterson’s Daily Lines | Steve Makinen’s Power Ratings
Ohio Valley Conference Tournament Bracket
Ohio Valley Conference Tournament Seeds, Teams and Odds
1. Little Rock (+225)
2. UT Martin (+380)
3. Morehead State (+125)
4. Western Illinois (+900)
5. Tennessee State (+2500)
6. SIU Edwardsville (+3500)
7. Eastern Illinois (+10000)
8. Southern Indiana (+12000)
(odds from DraftKings Sportsbook accurate at time of publish)
Favorite To Win Ohio Valley Conference Tournament
No. 3 seed Morehead State is the favorite here, despite having to play an extra game. The No. 1 and No. 2 seeds get byes to the semifinals, so Little Rock and UT Martin get a huge schedule advantage. But, Morehead State has been the best team in this conference all year long and actually ranks in the top 50 in eFG% offense and top 15 in eFG% per Bart Torvik.
The Eagles only played the Trojans once and split with the Skyhawks during the regular season, losing by one at Little Rock and six at UT Martin late in the year, but second-leading scorer Jordan Lathon (15.9 PPG) missed both games.
Little Rock split with UT Martin, winning at home by 20 and losing on the road by 5, with the Trojans only mustering two shot attempts at the rim in the first game and 21 in the second.
Ohio Valley Conference Tournament Darkhorse
Much like the other low-major conferences thus far, there really isn’t an appealing long shot. Western Illinois doesn’t take good enough care of the basketball, even though nobody in this conference really forces a lot of turnovers. Their 19.4% TO% in league play was the second-worst behind Tennessee State.
Speaking of Tennessee State, they lost both games to UT Martin and Morehead State and split with Little Rock, but that win was way back on Dec. 30 and the Trojans didn’t have Makhel Mitchell yet.
Surprises are always possible, but I don’t think anybody longer than UT Martin at +380 has a good chance here.
Players to Watch in Ohio Valley Conference Tournament
Speaking of UT Martin, they have a dynamic duo in conference leading scorer Jordan Sears (21.2 PPG) and Jacob Crews (19.3 PPG, 8.2 RPG). Sears is also shooting nearly 45% from 3 and Crews is over 42%, so the Skyhawks are dangerous from deep. Secondary scoring comes from Issa Muhammad, who is just shy of a double-double per game with 11.3 points and 9.3 rebounds.
The top overall player in this conference is Morehead State’s Riley Minix, who is averaging 20.5 points and 9.9 rebounds per contest. The aforementioned Jordan Lathon (15.9 PPG, 6.2 RPG) is the best supporting actor on that roster, while Drew Thelwell is two full assists per game better than anybody else with 6.5.
Little Rock joins UTM and Morehead as the other team with two top-10 scorers, as KK Robinson (15.8 PPG) and Jamir Chaplin (14.8 PPG) lead the way. Neither guy shoots the 3 well, but both are adept at getting to the rim.
Betting Pick to Win The Ohio Valley Conference Tournament
Morehead State grades nearly 60 spots higher for KenPom than any other team in this conference, so it is tough to see anybody else emerging victorious. I don’t love the +125 price, especially since I think UT Martin is low-key good. The Skyhawks got revenge against Morehead State on Feb. 17 and their only loss since late January came against Little Rock in a game where they were just 3-of-23 from 3.
I will actually take a chance on the Skyhawks in the 2024 Ohio Valley Conference Tournament. Morehead State has a 3P Rate of 44.4% and have only shot 33.3% in road/neutral settings this season. UT Martin keeps teams away from the rim with a 27% shot share on Close Twos, so they’ll make teams take a lot of jumpers in an unfamiliar setting and I think that’s a positive.
I will say that UT Martin will be an underdog to both Morehead State and Little Rock, so this is a spot where a moneyline rollover is going to pay out higher than +380. UT Martin was +3.5 at home against Morehead, so think probably +6.5 or +7 here and I’m guessing they’ll be +1 or so against Little Rock, likely leading to about +225 and +100, so I think you can get about +550 or so on them with a moneyline rollover.
Pick: UT Martin +380 (consider a moneyline rollover for a better return)
Makinen Power Ratings for Ohio Valley Conference
Check out the other previews in our 2024 College Basketball Conference Tournament Betting Guide.
