7 p.m. • Western Michigan lead series 58-57
• Ball State has won two straight heading into the tournament with wins over Central Michigan and Northern Illinois. The Cardinals are averaging 63.4 points per game while allowing 60.4 points per game. The Cardinals are 4-1 all-time against the Broncos in tournament play but the two teams have not met since the 1993 season..The Broncos have lost three straight dropping games at Toledo, against Eastern Michigan and at Central Michigan. Senior Demetrius Ward is one of four Broncos averaging double figures as he leads the team at 11.7 points per game.Ward has hit a team-high 52 three-pointers and is second on the team with 92 assists. The winner of Monday’s game will advance to Quicken Loans Arena for a second round contest Wednesday night against the winner of No. 5 Eastern Michigan and No. 12 Northern Illinois at 7 p.m.
No. 10 Miami (9-20, 5-11 MAC) at No. 7 Toledo (16-15, 7-9 MAC)
7 p.m. • Miami leads series 68-50
• March Madness is coming to Savage Arena on Monday, March 5 when Toledo hosts Miami in the first round of the 2012 Mid-American Conference Tournament. Tip-off time for the contest between the No. 7 seed Rockets and No. 10 seed RedHawks is set for 7 p.m. The Rockets are 9-7 at home and have registered their first winning home mark since the 2007-08 campaign. UT is 8-2 all-time at home in MAC Tourney contests. UT is 2-4 vs. Miami in the MAC Tournament, with the last meeting a 58-53 setback in the 2007 MAC semifinals. Toledo’s post-season victories over the RedHawks came in the 1991 quarterfinals and the 1996 semifinals...Miami leads the MAC with 7.3 three-point field goals per game but ranks last in the conference in FG% defense (45.3). The RedHawks are led by senior F Julian Mavunga, who leads the MAC in points (16.6 ppg) and rebounds (9.1 rpg) and is 10th in assists (3.3 apg), tallied 14 points and 11 rebounds vs. UT earlier this year.
No. 11 Central Michigan (10-20, 5-11 MAC) at No. 6 Bowling Green (16-14, 9-7 MAC)
7 p.m. • Bowling Green leads series 37-31
• Bowling Green hosts Central Michigan in the first round of the MAC Tournament Monday night at 7 p.m. The Falcons are the No. 6 seed after going 9-7 in the regular season and CMU is the No. 11 seed after going 5-11. BGSU has exceeded its overall win total from each of the past two seasons. The nine conference wins are the most since the 2008-09 team won the MAC regular season with 11 wins. Offensively, Bowling Green has played well in Mid-American Conference play, ranking third in the league in field goal percentage (46.2)...Central Michigan has been surging of late and closed the season with wins in two of its final three contests. Sophomore guard Trey Zeigler is a dynamic player and head coach Ernie Zeigler’s son. He is averaging 16.2 points and 6.6 rebounds per game, while ranking second on the team in assists, blocks, and steals.
No. 12 Northern Illinois (4-25, 3-13 MAC) at No. 5 Eastern Michigan (14-17, 9-7 MAC)
7 p.m. • Northern Illinois leads series 49-31
• The Eagles enter the MAC Tournament with a 14-17 overall record, 9-7 in conference play. The fifth-seeded Eagles saw their three-game winning streak snapped in the regular season finale at Toledo, 76-51. Darrell Lampley leads Eastern Michigan averaging 13.3 points per game; he is the only Eagle scoring in double figures. Eastern Michigan, under first-year head coach Rob Murphy, is the best defensive team in the MAC allowing just 58.8 points per game... Northern Illinois enters the 2012 MAC Tournament looking to snap a nine-game tournament losing streak. NIU’s last victory in the MAC Tournament was a 75-63 win over Western Michigan in the quarterfinals of the 2003 Tournament. The Huskies are 8-16 all-time in MAC Tournament play. NIU’s Abdel Nader is second in the MAC in scoring among freshmen, 10.8 points per game, and second in rebounding among rookies, 4.2 boards per contest.