2001 Sun Belt Conference Men's Basketball Tournament

The 2001 Sun Belt Conference Men's Basketball Tournament was held March 2–6 at the Mitchell Center at the University of South Alabama in Mobile, Alabama.[1]

2001 Sun Belt Conference Men's Basketball Tournament
ClassificationDivision I
Season2000–01
Teams11
SiteMitchell Center
Mobile, AL
ChampionsWestern Kentucky (3rd title)
Winning coachDennis Felton (1st title)
MVPChris Marcus (Western Kentucky)
2000–01 Sun Belt Conference men's basketball standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L PCT  W L PCT
East
Western Kentucky †14–2 .875  24–7  .774
Arkansas State10–6 .625  17–13  .567
Louisiana Tech10–6 .625  17–12  .586
Arkansas-Little Rock9–7 .563  18–11  .621
Florida International5–11 .313  8–21  .276
Middle Tennessee1–15 .063  5–22  .185
West
South Alabama11–5 .688  22–11  .667
Louisiana–Lafayette10–6 .625  16–13  .552
New Orleans10–6 .625  17–12  .586
New Mexico State10–6 .625  14–14  .500
Denver5–11 .313  10–18  .357
North Texas1–15 .063  4–24  .143
† 2001 Sun Belt Conference Tournament winner
Rankings from AP Poll

Top-seeded Western Kentucky defeated hosts South Alabama in the championship game, 64–54, to win their third Sun Belt men's basketball tournament.

The Hilltoppers, in turn, received an automatic bid to the 2001 NCAA Tournament. No other Sun Belt members earned bids to the tournament.

Format

The Sun Belt added three new teams prior to the 2000–01 season: Middle Tennessee State (Ohio Valley), New Mexico State (Big West), and North Texas (Big West). The conference's total membership increased to twelve.

The tournament field expanded once again, increasing from nine to eleven teams (NMSU did not compete). With all eleven participating Sun Belt members seeded based on regular season conference records, the five highest-seeded teams were awarded byes into the quarterfinal round while the six lowest-seeded teams entered the bracket in the preliminary first round.

Bracket
  First Round
Friday, March 2		 Quarterfinals
Saturday, March 3
Sunday, March 4		 Semifinals
Monday, March 5		 Championship
Tuesday, March 6
                                     
       
  1E Western Kentucky 68  
    5E Florida International 51  
5E Florida International 59
4W Denver 52  
  1E Western Kentucky 82  
  2W Louisiana–Lafayette 75  
       
       
  3E Louisiana Tech 56
    2W Louisiana–Lafayette 63  
     
       
  1E Western Kentucky 64
  1W South Alabama 54
       
       
  2E Arkansas State 82
    3W New Orleans 73  
6E Middle Tennessee 61
3W New Orleans 66*  
  2E Arkansas State 53
  1W South Alabama 76  
4E Arkansas–Little Rock 80  
5W North Texas 67  
  4E Arkansas–Little Rock 62
    1W South Alabama 85  
     

See also

References
  1. "2000–01 Sun Belt Conference Season Summary". sports-reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. 2016. Retrieved April 30, 2016.
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