Colonial Athletic Association
Site -- Richmond (Va.) Coliseum
When -- Today through March 10
Web site -- caasports.com
TV -- Championship game (March 10, 7 p.m.) will be on ESPN.
Favorite -- Top-seeded VCU (15-3, 23-6 overall).
State entry -- Ninth-seeded Tow son (7-11, 12-17)
Outlook -- VCU is peaking at the right time, having won eight of nine heading into the tournament. The Rams are vulnerable on rebounding, however, with no player averaging more than Michael Anderson's 4.9 per game. George Mason had a productive season but sputtered down the stretch, losing three of its last five. The third-seeded Patriots do boast a victory over the Rams this season and are unlikely to be intimidated should the two teams meet again. Old Dominion and UNC-Wilmington have a legitimate chance to advance, and Hofstra could be dan gerous behind senior guard Antoine Agudio, who led the conference in scor ing with 22.5 points per game.
Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference
Site -- Times Union Center, Albany, N.Y.
When -- Today through Monday
Web site -- maacsports.com
TV -- Championship game (Monday, 7 p.m.) will be on ESPN2.
Favorite -- Top-seeded Siena (13-5, 19-10 overall)
State entry -- Fourth-seeded Loyola (12-6, 18-13)
Outlook -- This tournament is up for grabs, at least as far as the top six seeds are concerned. In what was a wild regular season that came down to the final weekend, two games sepa rated first place from sixth as those teams spent the entire year beating up on each other. Siena swept third-seeded Niagara and sixth-seeded Marist but got swept by Loyola. The Greyhounds got swept by Niagara but split the sea son series with Rider, the second seed. The Broncs didn't sweep anybody but didn't get swept, either, going 1-1 against the rest of the group. Same for fifth-seeded Fairfield, which posted im pressive road wins against Siena, Niaga ra and Loyola, but lost to all three teams at home.
Site -- Events Center, Binghamton, N.Y. (championship game at highest remaining seed)
When -- Today through March 15
Web site -- americaeast.com
TV -- Championship game (March 15, noon) will be on ESPN2.
Favorite -- Top-seeded UMBC (13-3, 21-8 overall)
Outlook -- The Retrievers' journey to the top seed featured a nine-game winning streak late in the season that ended with a one-point loss to Hart ford. Five of those wins were by four points or fewer, however, so there is little margin for error if UMBC hopes to capture its first NCAA Tournament bid in the modern era. Five teams were separated by one game in the stand ings, and any one of them could knock off UMBC. Hartford's win gives them confidence, but the second-seeded Hawks were 4-12 away from home this season, which could be a deciding fac tor. Albany, Binghamton, and Boston U. are all right there.