• OVC Championship Central | Ford Center Clear Bag Policy | Bracket (PDF)
The field for the 2020 Ohio Valley Conference Men's Basketball Championship Presented by TicketSmarter has been set after the final day of the regular season.
Belmont will be the No. 1 seed after finishing OVC play 15-3 and sharing the OVC regular season championship with Murray State for the second-straight year. It marks the sixth regular season crown for the Bruins in eight years as members of the OVC. Belmont, 24-7 overall on the season, earned a double bye to the semifinals and will open play on Friday night.
Murray State also finished the regular season 15-3 in the OVC (22-8 overall), but lost the head-to-head tiebreaker with the Bruins and will be the No. 2 seed. The Racers did earn a share of the regular season crown, marking its record 27th OVC title. As the No. 2 seed MSU will open play on Friday night after earning a double bye to the semifinals.
Austin Peay (20-11, 14-4) is the No. 3 seed while Eastern Kentucky (in the tournament field for the first time since 2015) is the No. 4 seed. Both of those teams receive a single bye to Thursday's quarterfinals.
The field is rounded out No. 5 seed Tennessee State, No. 6 seed Eastern Illinois, No. 7 seed Jacksonville State and No. 8 seed Morehead State.
Since 2011 the men's bracket has used a merit-based system that gives the No. 1 and 2 seeds a double bye to the semifinals while the No. 3 and 4 seeds get a single bye to the quarterfinals. The first round will match up the No. 5/8 and No. 6/7 seeds.
This year marks the third-straight year the event has been held at the Ford Center, which opened in 2011 and is located in the core of Evansville’s downtown district. The event is scheduled to be at the venue through at least 2023.
This event marks the 57th time the OVC Men's Basketball Championship has been held; it is the fourth-oldest Division I basketball championship tournament.
This year's first round and quarterfinals can be seen on ESPN+, the multi-sport, direct-to-consumer video service from The Walt Disney Company’s Direct-to-Consumer and International (DTCI) segment and ESPN. It offers fans thousands of live events, on-demand content and original programming not available on ESPN’s linear TV or digital networks, along with premium editorial content. ESPN+ is available as an integrated part of the ESPN App (on mobile and connected devices) and ESPN.com. They are the industry-leading all-in-one digital sports platform, delivering a rich, personalized experience to tens of millions of fans every month. Fans can subscribe to ESPN+ through the ESPN App for just $4.99 a month (or $49.99 per year).
The semifinals will air live on ESPNU while the championship game will air live on ESPN2.
As part of an ongoing commitment to safety and security, aligning with the best practices at major entertainment and athletics venues, there is now a "Clear Bag Policy" in effect at the Ford Center. Fans are encouraged to visit
www.OVCSports.com/ClearBag for complete details on the policy.
2020 OVC Men's Basketball Championship Presented by TicketSmarter (Ford Center - Evansville, Ind.)
First Round - Wednesday, March 4
Game 1 -
#5 Tennessee State vs. #8 Morehead State, 6:30 p.m. (ESPN+)
Game 2 -
#6 Eastern Illinois vs. #7 Jacksonville State, 8:30 p.m. (ESPN+)
Quarterfinals - Thursday, March 5
Game 3 -
#4 Eastern Kentucky vs. Game 1 Winner, 6:30 p.m. (ESPN+)
Game 4 -
#3 Austin Peay vs. Game 2 Winner, 8:30 p.m. (ESPN+)
Semifinals - Friday, March 6
Game 5 -
#1 Belmont vs. Game 3 Winner, 7:00 p.m. (ESPNU)
Game 6 -
#2 Murray State vs. Game 4 Winner, 9:00 p.m. (ESPNU)
Championship - Saturday, March 7
Game 7 - Semifinal Winners, 7:00 p.m. (ESPN2/Westwood One)
All Times Central