Southland Tournament 2025: Bracket, schedule, scores, teams, and more

There are a number of reasons to tune in to the 2025 Southland Conference men’s tournament.

Many of those reasons begin with McNeese State.

You probably know how Will Wade’s tenure at LSU came to an end. But since taking over as the head coach of the Cowboys Wade has done nothing but win. McNeese finished 22-2 a season ago, qualifying for the men’s tournament as the winners of the Southland Conference.

This year the Cowboys are on track to make it back to the tournament, as they enter the conference tournament with another strong regular season record. The Cowboys finished the regular season 25-6 overall, with a 19-1 conference record. Those six losses include an eight-point loss to then-No. 2 Alabama, and a three-point loss to then-No. 25 Mississippi State.

Both Alabama and Mississippi State are still ranked in the Top 25.

Then there is the roster, led by a trio of guards — Javohn Garcia, Sincere Parker, and DJ Richards Jr. — that are averaging at least ten points per game. But this is a deep roster, as the Cowboys have nine players averaging at least 15 minutes per game.

Put this all together and you have a team with a tournament resume. The Cowboys are ranked 60th in the most recent NET rankings, and 58th in KenPom. That might be enough to get them into the dance should they fall short of a conference title, and a loss from the Cowboys might have some bubble teams worried on Selection Sunday.

Thanks to the structure of the Southland Conference tournament they’ll get a bye to the semifinals, but there is a chance they’ll meet up with No. 3 seed Nicholls, the only team to beat them in conference play this year, in the Championship Game.

If all of that is not enough, meet Amir “Aura” Khan, a team manager and the absolute guru of vibes:

Here is the bracket, along with the schedule of games.

Sunday, March 9

Game 1: No. 5 Texas A&M-Corpus Christi 62, No. 8 HCU 48
Game 2: No. 7 UIW 71, No. 6 Southeastern 67

Monday, March 10

Game 3: No. 4 Northwestern State 66, No. 5 Texas A&M-Corpus Christi 63
Game 4: No. 3 Nicholls vs. No. 7 UIW — 8:30 p.m. ET, ESPN+

Tuesday, March 11

Game 5: No. 1 McNeese 83, No. 4 Northwestern State 64
Game 6: No. 2 Lamar vs. Game 4 Winner — 9:30 p.m. ET, ESPN+

Wednesday, March 12 - Southland Championship Game

Game 7: No. 1 McNeese vs. Game 6 Winner — 5:00 p.m. ET, ESPN2