With just three games to go, it's probably time to set aside the "golf" standings and look race for seedings in next month's MAC Tournament.

The No. 1 seed is decided. Central clinched its fourth straight regular-season championship Wednesday with a 78-60 win overall Western Michigan at home. The Chippewas are 15-0 in the league.

Everything else is contested closely.

Ball State is alone is second place with an 11-4 record. The Cardinals play Central in Muncie on Saturday. Ball State is 8-0 at home; this game may be Central's biggest challenge of the conference season. The Chippewas did rout BSU 66-39 in Mount Pleasant early in the season. Ball State beat Toledo 66-60 Wednesday.

Ohio dropped to third at 10-6 when it lost at last-place Bowling Green 82-68 Wednesday. BG is better than its 2-13 record; the Falcons have lost seven conference games by seven points or fewer, including three in overtime. They host fourth-place Kent State Saturday.

Kent's 68-50 win over Akron moved it into fourth place by itself with a 9-6 record. Suddenly the Flashes are just a game out of third and play Ohio at home next week. If Ball State loses to Central and Kent State wins at BG, the Flashes are just a game out of second. Of course they are also just a game out of sixth.

Eastern and Western Michigan are 8-7 and tied for fifth, a game behind Kent State. The teams play each other next week at Eastern, and Eastern ends the season with a game at Central. Western finishes with Ball State at home. Eastern lost at NIU 65-59 Wednesday.

Toledo, Akron and Buffalo are all two game further back at 6-9. If any of them were to win out, it would have a good chance to tie for fifth, even fourth if KSU lost all of its games. But one of the three is almost certain to finish ninth and have to play on the road in the first round of the tournament. Buffalo beat Miami 88-72 at home Wednesday.

Northern Illinois is 5-10, Miami 4-11 and BG 2-13. All seem destined for road games in the tournament.

The top four teams get a bye into the quarterfinals of the tournament in Cleveland, which are Wednesday, March 11, at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse in Cleveland. (That's the new name for Quicken Loans Arena. Both are part of the same company.)

The next four teams host first-round games on Monday, March 9. The fifth-place team plays the 12-place team, six plays 11, etc.

Here's the remain schedule for the league (stolen from a next chart the MAC posts on Twitter). Teams are listed in order they stand now, including tie-breakers.

CENTRAL MICHIGAN (15-0, 22-4): At Ball State, at Toledo, Eastern Michigan.
BALL STATE (11-4, 19-8): Central, at Northern Illinois, at Western Michigan.
OHIO (10-5, 17-9): Buffalo, at Kent State, Miami.
KENT STATE (9-6, 16-10): at Bowling Green, Ohio, at Buffalo.

EASTERN MICHIGAN (8-7, 13-13): Toledo, Western, at Central.
WESTERN MICHIGAN (8-7, 15-11): Northern Illinois, at Eastern, Ball State.
TOLEDO (6-9, 11-15): At Eastern, CMU, NIU.
AKRON (6-9, 13-13): at Miami, Buffalo, BG.

BUFFALO (6-9, 15-11): at Ohio, at Akron, Kent State.
NORTHERN ILLINOIS (5-10, 9-17)): At Western, Ball State, at Toledo.
MIAMI (4-11, 11-16): Akron, BG, at Ohio.
BOWLING GREEN (2-13, 9-18): Kent State, at Miami, at Akron.

Detailed MAC standings are at
http://www.espn.com/womens-college-baske...onference.

MAC statistics are at
https://getsomemaction.com/stats.aspx?pa...&year=2019

Kent State is tied with Ohio for third place, and the two teams meet at the M.A.C. Center at 7 Wednesday.

Eastern and Western Michigan, who are tied for fifth, meet Wednesday at Eastern. The loser has almost no chance of getting the fourth seed in the MAC Tournament, which starts next week.

Here's a roundup on where the MAC stands with two games to go.

Central drops its first MAC game

Central Michigan lost 67-62 at second-place Ball State. CMU still has a lock on the top seed in next week’s MAC Tournament with a 15-1 record.

Ball State’s win clinches a first-round bye in the tournament and very nearly clinches the second seed. The only way the Cardinals (12-4) don’t finish second is for them to lose their last two games and Ohio to win its last two.

Saturday’s game was fitting for the MAC’s top teams. Ball State led most of the game, but Central came back to take a 62-57 lead with 3:01 to go. Then BSU’s Thelma Dis Augustsdottir and Sydney Freeman hit consecutive 3-pointers to put the Cardinals back in the lead. Oshlynn Brown blocked a CMU shot, and Ball State sank free throws to guarantee the win. The Cardinals finish the MAC season 9-0 at home.

Freeman had 18 points, Brown 17 and 14 rebounds for Ball State. Micaela Kelly scored 17 for Central Michigan, which made just 33% of its shots — 12 points off its league-leading percentage. Ball State has the best field-goal defense in the MAC.

Ohio loses third in a row; KSU wins in double overtime[/u]

Ohio fell into a third-place tie with Kent State when it missed a foul shot with 0.7 seconds to go that would have tied a 63-62 game. Buffalo’s win at Ohio is its third straight after losing six in a row. Ohio has lost three straight.

Buffalo sophomore forward Adebola Adeyeye led the Bulls with 16 points and nine rebounds. Cece Hooks and Gabby Burris each had 16 for Ohio.

Kent State beat last-place Bowling Green in double overtime. The Flashes fell behind by 19 in the first quarter, then outscored BF 27-15 in the second and the teams were close until the second overtime. KSU scored the first 11 points to pull away.

Freshman guard Katie Shumate had a career-high 27 points for Kent. Caterrion Thompson had a career-high 32 for BG.

EMU and WMU keep pace

Eastern Michigan and Western Michigan both won at home to go to 9-7 and stay a game behind Kent State and, now, Ohio.

The teams play Wednesday at Eastern. Western’s final game is home against Ball State. Eastern’s is Central Michigan.

Eastern pounded Toledo 64-46 behind 15 points from Areanna Combs. The Eagles held Toledo to 29% shooting, 23% in the second half.

Western got 33 points for sophomore guard Jordan Walker and beat Northern Illinois 63-50. NIU made only 18% of its shots in the second half.

Akron tops Miami in race for tournament home game

Akron and Buffalo lead the race for the last two home games in the tournament’s first round. They’re tied for seventh at 7-9. Toledo is ninth at 6-10, NIU 10th at 5-11.

Teams that finish fifth through eighth host home games on Monday, March 9. The fifth-place team plays the 12th-place team, sixth plays 11th, etc.

On Saturday, junior guard Jordyn Dawson had 16 points and 11 rebounds to lead Akron past Miami 75-62. Freshman Peyton Scott had 14 points for Miami.

BEST WEDNESDAY GAMES: Ohio at Kent State. Western Michigan at Eastern Michigan. Buffalo at Akron.

Here are the standings. (“Golf” standings are in parenthesis, but at this point they are exactly the same as the regular standings. They give -1 for a road win (“birdie”), +1 for a home loss (“bogie”) and 0 for a home win or road loss (“par”).

1. Central Michigan 15-1, 22-5 overall (-7 in “golf standings)
2. Ball State 12-4, 20-8 (-3)
3. Ohio 10-6, 17-10 (-2)
3. Kent State 10-6, 17-10 (-2)

5. Western Michigan 9-7, 16-11 (-1)
5. Eastern Michigan 9-7. 14-13 (-1)
7. Buffalo 7-9, 16-11 (+1)
7. Akron 7-9, 14-13 (+1)

9. Toledo 6-10, 11-16 (+2)
10. Northern Illinois 5-11, 9-18 (+3)
11. Miami 4-12, 11-17 (+4)
12. Bowling Green 2-14, 9-19 (+7)

Central has won the West Division and overall regular-season title. KSU and Ohio are tied for lead in East. Divisional championships mean a pennant for a school to hang but have no effect in seeding.

Detailed MAC standings

MAC statistics

Annnnnd CMU falls to Toledo. Weird season.

And Ball State loses at Northern Illinois. And Kent State beats Ohio to clinch a bye in the tournament.

If Kent wins at Buffalo Saturday and Ball State loses at Western, Kent ties for second in the conference. Ball State would get the second seed, though. Kent and BSU split, but Ball State beat Central Michigan.

Kent beating Buffalo won't be easy. Bulls have won four in a row after losing six in a row. But Kent State has won four in a row and six of seven. The two are the hottest teams in the conference.

Ohio and Western Michigan are tied at 10-7 in the race for the fourth bye. Eastern Michigna is a game behind at 9-8. Ohiho hosts Miami Saturday. Eastern plays at Centra. Western, as we said, hosts Ball State.

If there ever was a year when any could truly beat anyone in the tournament, it's this year.

Wednesday scores:
• Kent State 81, Ohio 77 in Kent.
• Toledo 76, Central Michigan 67 last Toledo.
• Northern Illinois 70, Ball State 62 at NIU.
• Bowling Green 82, Miami 69 at Miami.
• Buffalo 76, Akron 61 at Akron.
• Western Michigan 64, Eastern Michigna 49 at Eastern.

(RPI) MAC TEAM
(18) 15-2 CMU
(69) 12-5 BSU
(97) 11-6 KSU
(87) 10-7 OU
(137) 10-7 WMU
(183) 9-8 EMU
(121) 8-9 UB
(160) 7-10 UT
(159) 7-10 UA
(178) 6-11 NIU
(228) 4-13 MU
(238) 3-14 BGSU

One game to go in the MAC season, and much is still unsettled.

I spent too much time Friday puzzling through the MAC standings and the league's tie-breaking procedures for tournament seedings.

I don't promise this is 100% correct, but I think it's pretty good. Official seedings will be announced shortly after Saturday's games.

Corrections and discussion is welcome.

(Warning: It's long because there are so many possibilities.)

First-round tournament action starts Monday at campus sites. Seeds five through eight will host nine through 12. Five hosts 12, six, hosts 11, etc.

Winner advance to the quarterfinals at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse (formerly Quicken Loans Arena) in Cleveland, where they will meet the top four seeds.

Here's where things stand now:

First seed: Central Michigan (15-2, 22-6 overall)

Even though Central Michigan lost at Toledo Wednesday, it still has a lock on the No. 1 seed in next week's tournament.

Second seed: Ball State (12-5, 20-8 overall)

Ball State lost at Northern Illinois Wednesday, so it's possible that Kent State could tie Ball State for second place. The Flashes would have to win at Buffalo and Ball State lose at Western Michigan. I think the Cardinals would get the second seed through tie-breakers. The teams split, and Ball State beat first-place Central Michigan.

(Tie-breaker rules are listed before, but the rule here is that if there is no winner in head-to-head competition, the school that has beaten the highest-ranking team in the league gets the higher seed.)

Third seed: Kent State (11-6, 18-10)

Kent State is alone in third place. If the Flashes lose to Buffalo, things get complicated. Ohio and Western are a game behind KSU. If those teams both win, we have a three-way tie for third.

I think Kent would get the tie-breaker because it has the best overall record about the three teams. 

The Flashes beat Western and split with Ohio for a 2-1 record. Ohio lost to Western and split with Kent. 1-2. Western lost to Kent State and beat Ohio. 1-1.

If Kent State and Ohio tie, the tie-breaker goes to their East Division record, as I read the rules. Kent State is 6-2 in the East. Ohio is 4-4. 

If Kent and Western tie, Kent gets the higher seed because the Flashes beat the Broncos in January.

Fourth seed: Ohio, Western or Eastern Michigan.

Ohio and Western are 10-7. Eastern is 9-8.

Ohio plays 11th place Miami at home. Western plays Ball State at home. Eastern plays at Central.

If Eastern wins and the others lose, we have a three-way tie. Eastern split with Western and lost to Ohio. 1-2. Ohio beat Eastern and lost to Western. 1-1. Western split with Eastern and beat Ohio. 2-1. So in those circumstances, Western would get  the fourth seed.

I think that scenario is unlikely. Eastern has to beat the first-place team on the road. Ohio and Eastern both are unlikely to lose at home, especially Ohio against Miami.

If Ohio and Western tie, Western gets the higher seed because of its 73-72 win over Ohio in January.

If Eastern and Western tie, we go to a tie-breaker because they split on the season. For those teams to tie, Eastern has to win at first-place Central Michigan Saturday. That would give it the tie-breaker.

Is your head spinning yet? Mine is.

Fifth seed: Ohio, WMU or EMU

Same as the fourth seed. If Ohio and Western win, Eastern can't catch them.

Sixth seed: EMU or Buffalo

A new team enters the picture. Buffalo is 8-9 and 17-11 overall going into Saturday's home game with Kent State.

If Eastern wins at Central, it gets the seed. If the Eagles lose and Buffalo wins, they both have 9-9 records. Buffalo gets the higher seed because it beat Eastern 68-63 in January.

Seventh seed: EMU, Toledo or Buffalo

If Buffalo ties Eastern, it owns the sixth seed and EMU claims this spot.

If Eastern beats out Buffalo for sixth, it could be a scramble.

If Buffalo loses to Kent State, we could have as much as a three-way tie for seventh.

Enter Akron and Toledo, who are both 7-10. Akron is 14-14 overall. Toledo 12-16. Akron hosts last-place Bowling Green Saturday; Toledo hosts 10th-place Northern Illinois.

If Akron and Toledo win, all three teams are 8-10. In head-to-head-to-head competition, Toledo beat Buffalo twice and Akron once. 3-0. The Rockets win this scenario.

If Akron and Toledo lose, Buffalo owns seventh.

If Akron loses and Toledo wins to tie Buffalo, the Rockets own the tie-breaker because they beat Buffalo twice.

If Toledo loses and Akron wins, Buffalo wins the tie-breaker because of its February win over Kent State. Akron lost to KSU twice.

Eighth seed: Buffalo or Toledo.

This spot is important because it's the last seed to get a first-round game at home on Monday.

It's the lowest either Buffalo or Toledo could finish.

Ninth seed: Akron or NIU

If the Zips win, they're 8-10 and capture this spot.

If they lose, they're 7-11.

Northern Illinois goes into the weekend at 6-10. If they beat Toledo       and Akron loses, NIU and Akron are tied.

And NIU has the tie-breaker because it beat Akron 70-65 on Jan. 18.

11th seed: Miami or Bowling Green

Miami goes into Saturday in 11th with a 4-13 record (11-18 overall). If it wins, it keeps 11th. 

If it loses, it could fall into a tie with Bowling Green, which is 3-14 (10-19 overall). 

Miami plays at Ohio. Bowling Green travels to Akron.

Tie-breaker gets even more confusing here. The two teams split. BG beat Ohio and Western Michigan, which are fighting for fourth. Miami beat Western. It plays Ohio Saturday, and the only way BG can tie if for the Redhawks to lose. So best I can figures it, Bowling Green could creep out of last if it won and Miami lost.

12th seed: Miami or Bowling Green

Whoever doesn't finish 11th.

The tie-breaker rules

I couldn't find anything current on the MAC website. Here are the rules from a 2015 post I saw online. I don't think they've changed. If have an inquiry in to the MAC public relations folks, but I'm sure they're awfully busy.


TIE-BREAKER PROCEDURE
Ties in winning percentage, and thus for tournament seeding positions shall be broken as follows:
 
1. Between TWO teams:
A. Head-to-head competition
 
B. Division Record (10 games)^
 
C. Winning percentage* vs. ranked conference teams (top to bottom, regardless of division, vs. common opponents regardless of the number of times played)
 
D. Coin flip
 
2. For MULTIPLE (3 or more) team ties:
E. Total won-lost record/winning percentage* of games played among the tied teams
 
F. Two (2)-team tie-breaker procedure goes into effect (refer to A)
[NOTE: Once a three-team tie has been reduced to two teams, the two-team tiebreaker will go into effect.]
 
^ - For the purpose of determining the Division champion. This tiebreaker is ONLY used for seeding purposes if the two teams in question are tied for the Division lead. (Teams will still be considered co-divisional champions)
 
* - Winning percentage is used instead of record because of situations where teams do not play each other the same number of times. Therefore, a team that is 1-0 (1.000) would win the tiebreaker over a team that is 1-1 (.500).

(03-05-2020 10:30 PM)cschierh Wrote:  The tie-breaker rules

I couldn't find anything current on the MAC website. Here are the rules from a 2015 post I saw online. I don't think they've changed.

The 2020 MAC WBB Tournament page still links to the 2015 rules under "Tiebreaker Procedures", so I think you are using the correct rules.

https://getsomemaction.com/tournaments/?...ath=wbball

Congratulations on puzzling out all the possibilities right to the bitter end. My eyes started to cross at the sixth/seventh/eighth place seeds.

I think Toledo could finish worse than 8th. If the Rockets lose and Akron wins, then Toledo finishes ninth or tenth, behind Akron and Buffalo and tied with Northern Illinois. NIU and Toledo would have split their two games. I didn't bother looking to see who would win the tiebreaker because who cares whether you're 9th or 10th? Rockets need to beat Northern at home.

(03-06-2020 07:06 AM)Joe Foss Wrote:  

(03-05-2020 10:30 PM)cschierh Wrote:  The tie-breaker rules

I couldn't find anything current on the MAC website. Here are the rules from a 2015 post I saw online. I don't think they've changed.

The 2020 MAC WBB Tournament page still links to the 2015 rules under "Tiebreaker Procedures", so I think you are using the correct rules.

https://getsomemaction.com/tournaments/?...ath=wbball

Congratulations on puzzling out all the possibilities right to the bitter end. My eyes started to cross at the sixth/seventh/eighth place seeds.

My eyes were glazing, too. The only two seeds that really matter at this point is fourth (for a bye) and eighth (for a first-round home game).

And both are wide open.

(03-06-2020 07:50 AM)Dwight Wrote:  I think Toledo could finish worse than 8th. If the Rockets lose and Akron wins, then Toledo finishes ninth or tenth, behind Akron and Buffalo and tied with Northern Illinois. NIU and Toledo would have split their two games. I didn't bother looking to see who would win the tiebreaker because who cares whether you're 9th or 10th? Rockets need to beat Northern at home.

I think you're right. This is sure complicated.

(03-06-2020 11:46 PM)cschierh Wrote:  

(03-06-2020 07:06 AM)Joe Foss Wrote:  

(03-05-2020 10:30 PM)cschierh Wrote:  The tie-breaker rules

I couldn't find anything current on the MAC website. Here are the rules from a 2015 post I saw online. I don't think they've changed.

The 2020 MAC WBB Tournament page still links to the 2015 rules under "Tiebreaker Procedures", so I think you are using the correct rules.

https://getsomemaction.com/tournaments/?...ath=wbball

Congratulations on puzzling out all the possibilities right to the bitter end. My eyes started to cross at the sixth/seventh/eighth place seeds.

My eyes were glazing, too. The only two seeds that really matter at this point is fourth (for a bye) and eighth (for a first-round home game).

And both are wide open.

Since the MAC doesn't do a double bye to protect its top seeds, I wish we would reseed the tournament after the campus round games. The lowest seed remaining plays the 1 seed. 2nd lowest plays 2nd seed etc.

(03-07-2020 09:47 AM)kreed5120 Wrote:  Since the MAC doesn't do a double bye to protect its top seeds, I wish we would reseed the tournament after the campus round games. The lowest seed remaining plays the 1 seed. 2nd lowest plays 2nd seed etc.

That sounds like it would make sense and not impose any additional logistical cost, since the same teams would be making the trip to Cleveland either way.

I would like to see the MAC delete the confusing tiebreaker B (record against teams in division), which only applies if two teams are tied for the division lead. The rule would come into play this year if Ohio wins today while Western and Kent State lose. Ohio and Kent would then be tied for third at 11-7. The two teams split their games against each other. Since they are tied for the East Division lead, rule B goes into effect and Kent State wins third with a better record within the division.

But every other tie is resolved by rule C (better record against best seeded team). If that rule applied to Ohio/Kent State, Ohio would win third because both teams are winless against top seed Central, but Ohio has the better record against second seed Ball State, 1-0 vs. 1-1.
I don't see why a different rule is applied to division leaders, since it has been several years since position within the division was part of the seeding process. I wonder if this rule is not just a leftover from the days when teams were still seeded within divisions, and the top team from the East played the bottom seed in the West, and vice versa. Since tied teams at the top of a division are declared to be co-champs in any event, there doesn't seem to be a need for rule B.

Here are the tournament seedings, matchups and Saturday's scores.

FIRST SEED: Central Michigan (16-2 in MAC, 23-6 overall), which came from behind in the fourth quarter at home to beat Eastern Michigan 76-69.the Chippewas will play the winner of the Toledo-Akron game in Wednesday's quarterfinals.

SECOND SEED: Ball State (13-5, 21-9), which beat Western Michigan on the road in overtime. The Cardinals will play Eastern Michigan or Northern Illinois Wednesday.

THIRD SEED: Kent State (11-7, 18-11). Even though the Flashes lost to Buffalo 72-58, they had already clinched the third seed. They tied for third with Ohio but got the better seed because they had a better Eastern Division record. The Flashes could play Buffalo again Wednesday if the Bulls beat Miami in the first round.

FOURTH SEED: Ohio (11-7, 18-11), which routed Miami 92-78 in Athens, breaking a four-game losing streak. Ohio will play the winner of the Western Michigan-Bowling Green game.

FIFTH SEED: Western Michigan (10-8, 17-12). Its loss to Ball State means the Broncos will play first round game at home Monday against Bowling Green. The teams split in the regular season. Winner of that game plays Ohio Wednesday.

SIXTH SEED: Buffalo (9-9, 18-11). The Bulls are hottest team in league going into the tournament, having won five in a row. The only other winning streak in the conference is just two games, belonging to Northern Illinois. Buffalo will play Miami Monday. The Bulls swept the regular season series with the Redhawks. Buffalo-Miami winner plays Kent State in quarterfinals.

SEVENTH SEED: Eastern Michigan (9-9, 14-15). Its loss to Central sent them into a tie with Buffalo, who had the tie-breaker because it beat the Eagles in their only meeting. EMU will host Northern Illinois Monday. The teams split in the regular season. Winner plays Ball State.

EIGHTH SEED: Akron (8-10, 15-14). The Zips beat Bowling Green 70-61 in Akron to get the last spot for a home game in the first round. Akron will play Toledo, which won the only meeting between the two teams in the regular season. Winner plays Central Michigan.

NINTH SEED: Toledo (7-11, 12-17). The Rockets lost 86-79 at home to Northern Illinois, costing them their chance for a home game. Toledo did win its only game with Akron, their Monday opponent. Winner plays Central.

TENTH SEED: Northern Illinois (7-11, 11-18). The Huskies lost the tie-breaker with Toledo because the teams split and Toledo had beaten first-place Central Michigan. NIU will play at Eastern Michigan. The teams split this season. Winner plays Ball State.

11TH SEED: Miami (4-14, 11-19). Miami’s loss to Ohio means the Redhawks end the regular season on an eight-game losing streak. Miami will play Monday at Buffalo, a team it lost to twice. Winner plays Kent State.

12TH SEED: Bowling Green (3-15, 10-20). Falcons did win one more than they did last season and had a lot of close losses. They play Monday at Western Michigan, one of the three teams it beat this season. Western and BG split their two games. Winner plays Central.

Final MAC standings

MAC women’s Tournament Central, with schedule and ticket information.

It could be a wide-open MAC Women’s Basketball Tournament.

Central Michigan had by far the best league record (16-2) but the lost two of its last three, including to ninth-place Toledo. The Chippewas won nine games by eight points or fewer.

No. 2 Ball State (13-5) lost its second-to-last game at 10th-place Northern Illinois. No. 3 Kent State (11-7) lost twice — by 13 and 14 points — to No. Buffalo, a team it could meet in the quarterfinals.

Ohio (11-7) had lost four in a row before it beat Miami in its last game. Western Michigan and Eastern Michigan were tied or a game apart in the battle for the fourth seed all season.

The seventh through 12th seeds all defeated at least one team in the first division.

MAC women’s Tournament Central, with schedule and ticket information.

All games are on ESPN+, which costs costs $4.99 a month. All men’s and women’s MAC Tournament games except those on network TV, including cable channel CBS Sports. ESPN+ also will stream the MAC gymnastics championship and many spring sports, including most championships. ESPN+ includes all MAC games except a handful on free channels, including CBS Sports. It includes many other mid-major conferences and some original programming.

Links to Monday’s games are noted in the pairings.

Here are tonight’s first-round matchups. Winners will advance to the quarterfinals at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse in Cleveland Wednesday.

No. 12 seed Bowling Green (3-15 MAC, 10-20 overall) at No. 5 Western Michigan (10-8, 17-12). The teams split in the regular season. Game starts at 7 p.m. ESPN+ link: https://es.pn/2IwrLNi.

The winner will play No. 4 Ohio (11-7, 18-11) at about 2:30 p.m. Wednesday in Cleveland.

No. 11 seed Miami (4-14, 11-19) at No. 6 Buffalo (9-9, 18-11). The teams split in the regular season. Buffalo has won five in a row; Miami has lost eight in a row. Game starts at 5 p.m. (The Buffalo men play at 7:30.) ESPN+ link: https://es.pn/3cDe0KN.

The winner will play No. 3 Kent State (11-7, 18-11) at about 8 p.m. Wednesday.

No. 10 Northern Illinois (7-11, 11-18) at No. 7 Eastern Michigan (9-9, 14-15). The teams split. Game starts at 7 p.m. ESPN+ link: https://es.pn/39DceqQ.

Winner plays No. 2 Ball State (13-5, 21-9) at about 5:15 p.m Wednesday.

No. 9 Toledo (7-11, 12-17) at No. 8 Akron (8-10, 15-14). Toledo won the only meeting in the regular season. Game starts at 7 p.m. ESPN+ link: https://es.pn/2TMW0F4.

The winner will play No. 1 seed Central Michigan (16-2, 23-6) at noon Wednesday.

It seems that the MAC has been hit harder than usual with transfers on the women's side. High-level transfers out that I am aware of:
Bowling Green - Caterrion Thompson and Andrea Cecil
Eastern Michigan - Aliyah Stanley
Kent State - Asia Dingle
Northern Illinois - Gabby Nikitiniate

Am I missing any big ones? Are there teams that benefited from transfers in? I know that Buffalo got the leading scorer from Tennessee State of the Ohio Valley Conference, and Ball State got a player who was highly touted out of high school but didn't get much playing time in her two years at Dayton.

Miami got a transfer guard from UC. She has 3 years of eligibility left. She probably has to sit out next year. Early season she scored 10 vs Ball State and 8 vs Miami, but ended up on the bench by the end of the year.