2026 CUSA Conference Basketball Tournament Odds & Predictions

The CUSA (Conference USA, or C-USA) Conference Tournament is back in Huntsville, Alabama at Propst Arena for the third time and, while this conference looks a lot different than it used to, there are several solid teams in the mix this year. Gone are the days of FAU, UAB, North Texas, and others who left C-USA to join the American, but an infusion of talent thanks to realignment has given us a strong field for this year’s festivities.

Ten of the 12 teams in this conference qualified for the tourney and all but one of them ranks between 106 and 196 for Bart Torvik and between 110 and 214 for KenPom. UTEP and Delaware, easily the two weakest teams in the conference, didn’t make it, leaving us with well-defined tiers. Liberty went 17-3, but is not the favorite, followed by Sam Houston who went 13-7 and then a trio of teams that went 11-9, two teams that went 10-10, and then three teams that went 8-12. Not surprising given the small gaps between most of the teams per the rankings.

How to Watch the CUSA Conference Tournament

When: March 10-14

Where: Propst Arena in Huntsville, AL (third year hosting)

Format: Top six seeds get byes to the quarterfinals, with No. 1 and No. 2 getting the advantage of playing Wednesday quarters instead of Thursday with Friday semifinals; Seeds 7 through 10 play in the first round

Watch: ESPN+, CBS Sports Network; Championship Game on CBS Sports Network on Mar. 14 at 8:30 p.m. ET

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CUSA Conference Tournament Bracket

Coming soon.

CUSA Conference Tournament Seeds, Teams and Odds

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1. Liberty (+310)

2. Sam Houston State (+200)

3. Western Kentucky (+700)

4. Louisiana Tech (+1100)

5. Middle Tennessee (+950)

6. Kennesaw State (+850)

7. Jacksonville State (+2800)

8. FIU (+3000)

9. Missouri State (+2500)

10. New Mexico State (+3500)

Current Odds

(odds from DraftKings Sportsbook accurate at time of publish)

Favorite To Win CUSA Conference Tournament

As you can see from the odds, which only go as high as +3500, there’s a lot of parity at play here. Even the team that went 17-3 in conference play was not installed as the favorite. We could see a wide range of outcomes here with one NCAA Tournament bid for the conference hanging in the balance.

Sam Houston is the highest-rated team for Torvik and KenPom, though not by much. This is a good time to talk about the advantage for the top two seeds. To accommodate CBS Sports Network, the semifinals are at 11:30 a.m. CT and 2 p.m. CT on Friday. The quarterfinal tip-offs on Thursday for No. 4 vs. No. 5 is at 5:30 p.m. CT and for No. 3 vs. No. 6 is at 8 p.m. CT. By virtue of playing on Wednesday. The winners of those quarters, like Liberty and Sam Houston, get a huge rest advantage. Worth thinking about when you consider fading the favorites.

Liberty beat Sam Houston twice, winning 82-74 on the road and 79-72 at home in the regular season finale. By that point, though, neither team could move up or down in the standings, so it was a throwaway game. The Flames shine on offense and outright stink on defense. They’re No. 1 in the conference in both 2P% and 3P% offense, but 12th of 13 teams in eFG% defense and 3P% defense. By virtue of being more balanced, and being a far better rebounding team, the Bearkats get the favorite nod.

CUSA Conference Tournament Darkhorse

None of the prices are all that attractive here because of the parity. And the brutal turnaround from Thursday to Friday neutralizes some of the potential edge for the No. 3 through No. 6 seeds. Since February 1, every team has lost at least three games to conference opponents, so it’s really hard to find somebody consistent enough to win three games in three days from that group.

Even though they are not rated well overall, Louisiana Tech has the best defense in the conference of late by a very large margin. They force turnovers and defend 2-point shots really well. I wish they weren’t on the 4 line to run into Liberty, but they did beat the Flames on the road last Thursday and the offense has perked up a little bit lately. Given that they’re an underdog to Middle Tennessee in the 4 vs. 5 game, a moneyline rollover with MTSU, Liberty, and probably Sam Houston is going to definitely yield better than +1100 on your investment.

Betting Pick to Win The CUSA Conference Tournament

Obviously the conference has had a facelift, but we haven’t had a repeat champ since 2016-17 when Middle Tennessee did it in Birmingham. I think we could get one here with Liberty. Their shooting prowess is so much stronger than everybody else’s and Sam Houston’s defense was malfunctioning late in the season, allowing over 1.1 points per possession in six of their last eight games. The Bearkats also split with Western Kentucky in two polar opposite games, so they may not even make it to the final. Liberty split with WKU as well, but I’d still be confident in the Flames if they had the Hilltoppers in the final.

Pick: Liberty (+310)

Makinen Power Ratings for CUSA

Coming soon.

Coming soon.

Check out the other previews in our 2026 College Basketball Conference Tournament Betting Guide.

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