CBB Review hands out awards for each conference tournament in 2023. Up first: The OVC Tournament.
In Dan Siegel’s OVC Tournament preview, he predicted a Morehead State vs. Southern Indiana final. Neither team reached the championship game, but it didn’t matter, as Southeast Missouri State and Tennessee Tech played for the right to advance to the Big Dance.
The final 10 seconds were a masterclass of what March Madness is all about. Words really don’t do it justice:
CBB Review OVC Tournament Most Outstanding Player
Chris Harris, SEMO
Throughout the OVC Tournament, it was clear that senior guard Chris Harris wanted to extend his college basketball career. The Redhawks’ star put up a massive 29-point, 12-rebound performance against Tennessee State in the quarterfinals. In the championship against Tennessee Tech, Harris went for 26 points.
A lot of his success came at the free-throw line. He drilled 36 of 45 shots from the charity stripe, burning teams for committing fouls. Should SEMO have any chances of upsetting a team – likely a 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament – Harris will need to be on his A-game.
CBB Review All-OVC Tournament First Team
- G: Jordan Sears, UT Martin – 2 games played (24.0 PPG, 3.5 RPG, 3.0 APG, 1.5 SPG)
- G: Phillip Russell, SEMO – 4 games played (18.0 PPG, 4.3 APG, 4.3 RPG, 2.3 SPG)
- G: Damarco Minor, SIU Edwardsville – 2 games played (29.5 PPG, 6.5 RPG, 3.0 APG, 53.3 3P%)
- G: Chris Harris, SEMO – 4 games played (20.3 PPG, 7.3 RPG, 2.0 APG, 1.0 SPG)
- F: Jaylen Sebree, Tennessee Tech – 2 games played (21.0 PPG, 9.5 RPG, 2.5 APG, 1.5 BPG)
SEMO’s NCAA Tournament Prediction
Round of 64
While SEMO’s run to the NCAA Tournament as a 5-seed is commendable, you’ve still got to be realistic. The Redhawks did keep it close at Missouri, only losing by seven points. They also lost at Bradley by 13. But in the same breath, losing to Iowa by 31 doesn’t give me much confidence that the Redhawks could keep it close with any of the top seeds.