AAC Tournament preview: 11 teams set to compete in Fort Worth
The 2021 American Athletic Conference Tournament will tip off Thursday at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth.
Wichita State has earned the top seed in the tournament. The Shockers will have a first-round bye, along with Houston and Memphis. SMU and Cincinnati, the fourth and fifth seed, respectively, won't play on Thursday but will open in the quarterfinal round Friday afternoon.
Need information on the teams? Here's a brief rundown of all 11 teams participating this week. All teams are listed in alphabetical order.
CINCINNATI
AAC Tournament seed: No. 5
Record: 10-10 (8-6 in AAC)
Coach: John Brannen
The Bearcats finished the regular season on a positive note Sunday, defeating East Carolina and snapping a two-game skid. G Keith Williams leads the team in scoring, averaging 15 points per contest. He also leads the team in steals.
G/F Jeremiah Davenport might be playing his best basketball of the season and is coming off a 19-point performance on Sunday.
EAST CAROLINA
AAC Tournament seed: No. 11
Record: 8-10 (2-10 in AAC)
Coach: Joe Dooley
The Pirates have lost nine of their last 10 games and are looking to snap a four-game skid. ECU is dangerous as one of its conference wins was against a nationally ranked Houston with only three losses on the season.
The Pirates are led by F Jayden Gardner, who averages 18.3 points and 8.3 rebounds per game. He leads the AAC in scoring and ranks second in rebounding.
HOUSTON
AAC Tournament seed: No. 2
Record: 21-3 (14-3 in AAC)
Coach: Kelvin Sampson
Currently ranked No. 7 in the country, the Cougars are playing for a high seed in next week's NCAA Tournament. Houston has won four in a row, the latest a dramatic, 67-64 victory over Memphis where Tramon Mark banked home a 40-footer at the buzzer to stun the Tigers.
The Cougars lead the AAC in scoring offense, averaging 77.2 points per game. G Quentin Grimes is the team's leading scorer. Perhaps more impressive is that Houston also leads the AAC in scoring defense, allowing only 57.6 points per contest.
MEMPHIS
AAC Tournament seed: No. 3
Record: 15-7 (11-4 in AAC)
Coach: Penny Hardaway
The Tigers were victims of a buzzer-beating, half-court game-winner Sunday at Houston, but that doesn't take away the fact that prior to that game, they'd won six in a row.
Memphis' defense allows only 62.3 points per game, which ranks second in the AAC behind Houston. Offensively, players like G Landers Nolley II and G Boogie Ellis have been reliable catalysts throughout the season.
SMU
AAC Tournament seed: No. 4
Record: 11-4 (7-4 in AAC)
Coach: Tim Jankovich
Of all the teams in the AAC Tournament, the Mustangs will be the biggest wildcard entering the week. Reason being, SMU hasn't played a game since Feb. 8 because of COVID-19 concerns.
The Mustangs had won two in a row and three of their last four games before play was on pause. G Kendric Davis is a legitimate AAC Player of the Year candidate, as he averaged 17.7 points (third in AAC) and a league-leading 7.6 assists.
SOUTH FLORIDA
AAC Tournament seed: No. 8
Record: 8-12 (4-10 in AAC)
Coach: Brian Gregory
For a South Florida team that's lost four in a row and seven of its last eight, no time is better than the present to get on a winning streak. The Bulls haven't won back-to-back games this calendar year, but players like G David Collins will look to turn things around in Fort Worth.
The interior tandem of Michael Durr and Alexis Yetna make up one of the most consistent rebounding duos in the conference. They pull roughly 15 rebounds collectively.
TEMPLE
AAC Tournament seed: No. 9
Record: 5-10 (4-10 in AAC)
Coach: Aaron McKie
Temple's 2020-21 season had a slow start, as it played its first game Dec. 19 -- nearly a month after everyone else -- because of COVID-19 concerns. The Owls snapped a six-game skid with a Feb. 24 win against South Florida, but they haven't played since, again because of COVID-19 concerns.
Temple features Khalif Battle and Damian Dunn, two big guards who can score and defend.
TULANE
AAC Tournament seed: No. 10
Record: 9-12 (4-12 in AAC)
Coach: Ron Hunter
It's been a frustrating conference season for the Green Wave, but with several close losses, the team has shown that it can play with the majority of the AAC opponents.
G Jaylen Forbes is averaging 16.5 points per game and is the iron man of the AAC, playing an average of 36 minutes per contest. As a team, Tulane is the AAC's most consistent from the free throw line, averaging 76% from the stripe collectively.
TULSA
AAC Tournament seed: No. 7
Record: 11-11 (7-9 in AAC)
Coach: Frank Haith
Tulsa took advantage of a nonconference buy-in game to end the regular season, dominating Northeastern State, 107-74 last Thursday. This is a Tulsa team that's played AAC opponents close throughout the calendar year and should be considered a dangerous matchup as the postseason tournament starts.
G Brandon Rachal, who contributes 14.7 points and 6.9 rebounds a game, leads Tulsa's offense and also is the team's top rebounder.
UCF
AAC Tournament seed: No. 6
Record: 10-11 (8-10 in AAC)
Coach: Johnny Dawkins
Few AAC teams are hotter than the Knights right now, as they have won four in a row. They were two losses away -- both losses coming by a point -- from stringing together an eight-game win streak.
G Darius Perry leads UCF is scoring at 14.6 points per game, and G Brandon Mahan has established himself as one of the nation's most dangerous deep threats. Mahan is shooting 43% from the 3-point line.
WICHITA STATE
AAC Tournament seed: No. 1
Record: 15-4 (11-2 in AAC)
Coach: Isaac Brown
The Shockers are on a seven-game winning streak after closing the season with a win over South Florida last Saturday. Wichita State, which earned its first AAC regular-season title, is led by G Tyson Etienne, who is averaging 17.1 points per contest.
G Alterique Gilbert is a scoring option, and G Dexter Dennis is the reigning AAC Player of the Week after averaging 17 points and eight rebounds in two victories. And let's not forget Isaac Brown took over the program full time days before the start of the season.