Mississippi State enters the Southeastern Conference (SEC) tournament with renewed confidence, despite slipping out of the AP Top 25 rankings after an 11-week stay. The No. 10 seed Bulldogs (20-11) will take on No. 15 seed LSU (14-17) in the first round on Wednesday night in Nashville, Tennessee, aiming to extend their recent tournament success under head coach Chris Jans. The Bulldogs have two key advantages heading into this matchup: “We’ll have a bounce in our step,” Jans said. “We’ve been there and done that. Our goal is going to be to go down there and to be playing for a championship.” Mississippi State hasn’t played for an SEC tournament championship in 15 years, but this year’s team has shown

The stakes could not be higher for Texas as it enters the Southeastern Conference tournament. The No. 13-seeded Longhorns (17-14) must win their first-round game against No. 12-seeded Vanderbilt (20-11) on Wednesday afternoon in Nashville to keep their NCAA Tournament dreams alive. With a second-round matchup against No. 5 seed Texas A&M awaiting the winner, Texas will likely need at least two victories to even be considered for an at-large bid. The Longhorns have dropped seven of their past nine games, including a disappointing 76-72 home loss to Oklahoma in the regular-season finale on Saturday. Texas coach Rodney Terry knows the margin for error is gone. The Longhorns’ struggles on Saturday were highlighted by an off night from star freshman

Georgia Tech and Virginia both enter the ACC Tournament looking to shake off recent struggles and piece together a deep postseason run. Their second-round showdown on Wednesday in Charlotte will determine which team advances to face No. 1 seed Duke in the quarterfinals. The Yellow Jackets (16-15) and Cavaliers (15-16) each received first-round byes, but neither team enters this matchup with significant momentum. Ninth-seeded Virginia has dropped four of its past six games, while eighth-seeded Georgia Tech saw its three-game winning streak snapped in a lopsided 69-43 loss at Wake Forest on Saturday. Georgia Tech has shown flashes of strong play, but sustaining success has been a challenge. The Yellow Jackets’ three-game win streak leading into the Wake Forest loss

Colorado has struggled mightily in its first season in the Big 12, winning just three conference games all year. However, the Buffaloes are suddenly showing life at the right time, securing back-to-back wins for the first time since December. After defeating TCU in the regular-season finale, Colorado followed up with a hard-fought 69-67 victory over the Horned Frogs in the opening round of the Big 12 Tournament on Tuesday. Now, they look to continue their improbable run against eighth-seeded West Virginia on Wednesday in Kansas City. While the Buffaloes have been far from dominant, coach Tad Boyle is pleased with his team’s resilience in close games. Despite allowing 22 offensive rebounds and committing 15 turnovers against TCU, Colorado found a