Upsets roil Southern Conference

It was Upset Saturday in the Southern Conference, as the #5, #6 and #7 seeds advanced to the conference semifinals.

The wins by UNC Greensboro, Charleston and Elon (over #4 Appalachian State, #3 Georgia Southern and #2 Chattanooga, respectively) presumably clear the way for top seed Davidson, which walloped #8 Wofford 82-49, to waltz to a conference championship, NCAA automatic bid, and possible 8/9-ish seed in the Big Dance.

On the other hand, the upsets also raise the stakes for the #25-ranked, #44 RPI Wildcats (24-6), who would be a bubble contender if they were to need an at-large bid, because a loss in the conference tournament would now mean that they fell to a very bad team. The other remaining semifinalists are #138, #204 and #246 in the RPI.

In fact, if Davidson's going to lose (which they haven't done yet in conference play; they were 16-0 in the regular season), it might be better to do so in the semifinal against Greensboro (the #138 team) than in the final against either #204 Charleston or #246 Elon. But Charleston might be the biggest threat to pull the stunner, despite their distinctly unintimidating ranking and 16-16 record, since the tourney is being played in their back yard, in North Charleston. The semis are Sunday and the title game is Monday.

In other low-major conference tournament news, two Connecticut teams faced potential elimination Saturday, and one was in fact eliminated, while the other lived to play another day. MAAC #5-seed Fairfield lost to #4 Loyola, ending the Stags' season. But America East #2-seed Hartford beat #7 New Hampshire, and will face #6 Boston University in the semis Sunday at 2:30 PM. Also in semifinal action on Sunday: Connecticut's other remaining non-UConn team, NEC #3-seed Sacred Heart, which plays #2 Wagner in the semifinals at 7:30 PM.