The Northeast Conference Tournament starts Monday with a matchup between the two highest-seeded teams — No. 9 Central Connecticut State vs. No. 8 Fairleigh Dickinson. The two open the tournament with only five conference wins.

The NEC is home to 10 Division-I programs with Bryant (19-9) and Wagner (19-5) as heavy favorites for making a tournament bid. These are the only two teams that have less than 10 losses on the season and the best odds to take home the title.

Bryant is my easy winner for the tournament, after securing the No. 1 seed with a win over Wagner Saturday. The Bulldogs looked to be out of reach of the top seed until the Seahawks suffered back-to-back loses to Bryant and Fairleigh Dickinson.

Wagner could have been my for sure lock to punch their bid to the NCAA Tournament, but following these two losses, I am not high on the Seahawks in March even as the highest-ranked NEC team in NET rankings at 125.

Bryant also has my player of the tournament in senior Peter Kiss. Kiss leads the nation with 25 points a game, while dropping a combined 50 points in two meetings against Wagner.

Northeast Conference teams thrive on home advantages, but for my 2022 sleeper, the Merrimack Warriors are who I think can sneak their way to the championship game. As the No. 4 seed, the Warriors have not faired well against non-conference opponents but have big wins over top teams in the NEC.

Merrimack doesn’t have a strong track record of win streaks this season, but it has beaten Wagner by 15 points on the road. The Warriors could have that advantage up their sleeve, depending on who their second round opponent is if they make it out. Merrimack opens play Tuesday against the No. 5 seed St. Francis Brooklyn.