1988 American South Conference men's basketball tournament

The 1988 American South Conference men's basketball tournament was held March 4–6 at the Montagne Center at Lamar University in Beaumont, Texas.[2] This was the inaugural edition of the tournament after the league's establishment in 1987.

1988 American South Conference men's basketball tournament
ClassificationDivision I
Season1987–88
Teams6
Finals siteMontagne Center
Beaumont, TX
ChampionsLouisiana Tech (1st title)
Winning coachTommy Joe Eagles (1st title)
1989 →
1987–88 American South Conference men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
Louisiana Tech 7 3   .700 22 9   .710
New Orleans 7 3   .700 21 11   .656
Lamar 5 5   .500 20 11   .645
Arkansas State 4 6   .400 21 14   .600
Pan American 4 6   .400 14 14   .500
Southwestern Louisiana 3 7   .300 12 16   .429
1988 American South tournament winner
Rankings from AP Poll[1]

Louisiana Tech defeated New Orleans in the championship game, 69–66, to take home the first American South men's basketball tournament.

The Bulldogs, however, did not receive an automatic invitation to the 1988 NCAA Tournament. They ultimately participated in the 1988 NIT.

Format

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All six of the conference's founding members participated in the tournament field. They were seeded based on regular season conference records. The top two teams were given byes into the semifinals while the bottom four teams were placed and paired into the initial quarterfinal round.

All games were played at Lamar's home court at the Montagne Center in Beaumont, Texas.

Bracket

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Quarterfinals
Friday, March 4
Semifinals
Saturday, March 5
Championship
Sunday, March 6
         
1 Louisiana Tech 63
4 Arkansas State 61
5 Pan American 62
4 Arkansas State 67
1 Louisiana Tech 69
2 New Orleans 66
3 Lamar 76
6 Southwestern Louisiana 75
3 Lamar 59
2 New Orleans 75

References

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  1. ^ sports-reference.com 1987-88 American South Conference Season Summary
  2. ^ "1987-88 American South Conference Season Summary". sports-reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. 2016. Retrieved May 16, 2016.