The CAA Tournament will get underway on Friday with four first-round games between the lower seeds in the tournament. The top four seeds and prohibitive favorites -- George Mason, Old Dominion, Hofstra and Virginia Commonwealth -- all have byes to the quarterfinals, which will take place on Saturday. Here are Friday's matchups from Richmond.
All games are broadcasted on CSS, or, if you don't get that, you can pay $15 for a live stream on CAASports.com. Stats via KenPom.com.
Noon: No. 8 UNC-Wilmington (13-17, 7-11 CAA) vs. No. 9 Georgia State (11-18, 6-12)
The 8-9 matchup will kick things off in Richmond. The two squads split their two games this season, with each winning tight games on their home floor. Point guard Chad Tomko, a second-team all-CAA selection, leads a fairly mediocre UNC-Wilmington team on both sides of the ball (ninth in both offensive and defensive efficiency in the CAA) against the relatively strong defense of Georgia State (fourth in defensive efficiency in the league). The winner will face George Mason on Saturday.
2:30 p.m.: No. 5 Drexel (20-9, 11-7 CAA) vs. No. 12 Towson (4-25, 0-18 CAA)
This will likely be as close to a cakewalk as there is in the conference tournament. Drexel is on a roll, and were one of our sleeper teams to watch as we entered the CAA Tourney. Towson, meanwhile, has lost every single league game. Then again, both of the regular-season matchups between these teams were close, with Drexel winning by only six and three points. The winner will face VCU on Saturday.
6 p.m.: No. 7 Delaware (13-16, 8-10 CAA) vs. No. 10 Northeastern (11-19, 6-12 CAA)
Northeastern has the starpower of this matchup, with all-CAA first-team guard Chaisson Allen leading the way, but Delaware has won both matchups between the two teams this season. The winner will face Old Dominion on Saturday.
8:30 p.m.: No. 6 James Madison (21-10, 10-8 CAA) vs. No. 11 William & Mary (9-21, 4-14 CAA)
It's been a rough season for William & Mary, last season's CAA Tournament runners-up. They depended on several seniors that departed, and have paid the price with a horrendous season. However, one of their four CAA wins was over this same James Madison squad on the road on February 2. Could history repeat itself again? Forward Denzel Bowles and the Dukes hope the answer is no. The winner will face Hofstra on Saturday.