The men’s 2026 Conference USA tournament is March 10, so let’s take a look at where every team stands heading into the bracket.
The frontrunner
The Liberty Flames are the frontrunner to win this year’s conference tournament, sitting all alone at the top of the conference with an overall record of 25-6 and a conference record of 17-3.
The Flames are no doubt pushed ahead by their excellent shooting, possessing the No. 1 effective field goal percentage in the nation at a clip of 61.6% and No. 3 overall field goal percentage of 51.7%.
Lots of their offensive damage comes from beyond the arc where Liberty has shot at a clip of 40.2%, the third best mark in the country, while scoring an average of 10.7 threes per game, the 19th most in the nation.
The Flames have a couple of players who lead them in producing the three ball, one of which is guard Brett Decker Jr. who has the No. 2 three point percentage in the country at 48.9% while also averaging 3.52 threes a games, the eighth most in the nation.
The other one is guard Kaden Metheny who is tied for 30th in the country for most three pointers per game with three and tied for 43rd for best three pointer percentage in the nation at 40%.
The Flames are also very smart with the ball, possessing the third best assist to turnover ratio in the country at 1.95, along with turning the ball over just 8.9 times per game, the fourth least in the nation.They also commit an average of just 14 fouls per game, the seventh least in the country.
Another aspect of their game is their ability to pass the ball, averaging 17.3 assists per contest as a team, the 25th most in the nation. The playmaking is controlled by forward Zach Cleveland who averages 6.9 assists per game, the eighth most in the country.
The team’s defense is also rather impressive, allowing just 70.2 points per game, the third least in the conference. They control the paint by allowing just 33.3 boards a game, the second least in the conference. They are led in this department by Cleveland who averages 6.7 rebounds per contest, the 14th most in the nation.
Contenders
The Sam Houston Bearkats are the No. 2 seed in the tournament, finishing the regular season with an overall record of 21-10 and conference record of 13-7. The team, similarly to Liberty, are led by their shooting and rebounding.
The team has the No. 39 offense in the nation with 83 points per game, shooting at a clip of 46.9% from the field and 37.6% from beyond the arc, both the second best in the conference and 27th best overall from 3.
The Bearkats are also sufficient at sharing the ball, ranking at second in the conference in both assists per game with 15.6 and assist to turnover ratio with a ratio of 1.32. They also keep things moving by both taking the ball away and making good on their opportunities.
Guard Kashie Natt has 61 total steals on the season, tied for the 39th most in the country, and the team averages 14.8 fast break points a contest, tied for the 25th most in the nation.
Sam Houston also defends shots quite well, specifically from downtown, allowing a connection of just 31.3% on opponents deep ball shots. But the thing that really ties the team together is their rebounding, as they averaged 40.6 boards a game, the 14th most in the country.
They get it done on both sides of the court too, racking up 13.5 offensive rebounds a game, the 15th most in the nation, 27 defensive rebounds a game, the 33rd most in the country. This has given the Bearkats a rebound margin of six, the 24th best margin in the nation.
Scoring wise, Sam Houston is led by guard Po’Boigh King who scores 14.4 points per game,
Next up are the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs who finished the season at 18-13 overall and 11-9 in conference play. The Bulldogs are led by their defense, as they have allowed just 64.6 points per game, the least in the conference.
They have allowed just a 39% opponent field goal percentage, also the best mark in the conference, and are incredible at boxing out, allowing their opponents just 32.9 rebounds per game, again, the least in the conference.
They’re led on the boards by guard Kaden Cooper who averages 7.8 rebounds per outing, the fifth most in the conference, with forward Avery Thomas II sitting with 6.9 boards a game, the 10th most in the C-USA.
They also average 4.87 blocks per game, led by center Melian Martinez who leads the conference with 1.8 blocks per game. Cooper also contributes on the defensive end with 1.6 steals a game, the third most in the conference.
Offensively however, things start to fall apart as the team scores just 69.9 points per game, the third least in the conference, while also shooting at a clip of just 44.4% and three point percentage clip of 30.3%, the worst in the conference.
Dark horse
My dark horse for this tournament are the Middle Tennessee State Blue Raiders who may be the hottest team in the conference right now as they ride a five game winning streak into the tourney.
The team ranks in the middle of the conference in just about every perceivable stat, with not many clear strengths or weaknesses, meaning that their play could easily come down to just how they’re feeling that day.
Because of their momentum and their unpredictability, I think that gives them great potential to be a dark horse in the C-USA this year.
After winning five straight, they now sit at 17-14 overall with a conference record of 11-9 and have nothing to lose. The Blue Raiders have four guys who average in the double digits for points, meaning that they have a number of players who could potentially take over if needed.
They also shoot at a solid field goal clip of 44.6% and have an exceptional rebounder in forward Torey Alston who averages 7.9 boards a game, the third most in the conference. They also have guard Jahvin Carter who leads the team in assists with 3.6 per outing, the sixth most in the conference.
Carter and fellow guard Sean Smith also are rather efficient, each sitting in the top six of individual assist to turnover ratios in the conference with Smith sitting at fifth with a ratio of 2.3 and Carter tied right up with him, possessing a ratio of 2.3 as well.
Prediction and schedule
Still, I feel that I have to take the Liberty Flames to make it to the big dance, as they are still clearly the most well rounded and talented team in the conference. Game one of the tournament kicks off at 5:30 P.M. on March 10 between Missouri State and FIU before game two begins at 8:00 between New Mexico State and Jacksonville State.