2017 MAC Tournament Preview

The 2017 MAC Tournament is back, and perhaps better than ever. The venue will once again be Quicken Loans Arena, home of the Cleveland Cavaliers. The Q has played host to the men’s tournament since 2000 and the women’s tournament since 2001.

This year, the Akron Zips emerged as men’s regular season champions in dominating fashion, going 14-4 in conference play and 24-7 overall. On the women’s side, Central Michigan put together an equally impressive campaign, sporting a 15-3 conference record while going 23-7 overall.

Despite the Zips dominance, MAC Commissioner Dr. Jon Steinbrecher thinks the men’s side is anyone’s to take. “I think the men’s side is wide open”, Steinbrecher said. He feels that some other teams at the top of the standings have a shot at winning the title. Ohio University, who leads the conference in defensive efficiency, is one of those teams who could take out the Zips. Western Michigan, while not possessing the most impressive record, is undoubtedly the hottest team in the conference right now, riding an 8 game win streak.

On the women’s side, Dr. Steinbrecher made note of Kent State’s fantastic turnaround year. This season, they put together more conference wins than the previous three seasons combined. They have looked good this year and are poised to make a title run. The other big team to look out for is Central Michigan. As mentioned earlier, they finished first overall in the conference and have no plans of their season ending in Cleveland.

The tournament will be held at The Q from March 8th-11th and promises to be an eventful one. Make sure you find a way to go cheer on your favorite MAC team up in Cleveland this week, you won’t want to miss it!