The 2012 Ohio Valley Conference Tournament begins on Wednesday with the first round's two scheduled games. Of the 11 teams in the conference, only the eight with the best in-conference win-loss records qualify for the tournament, with half of those teams receiving byes.
On Wednesday, No. 5 seed SE Missouri State plays No. 8 seed Eastern Kentucky, and No. 6 seed Austin Peay faces No. 7 seed Jacksonville State. The winners of those two respective games will go on to face either No. 3 seed Morehead State or No. 4 seed Tennessee Tech in the quarterfinals.
The conference's top two seeds, No. 1 Murray State and No. 2 Tennessee State, both receive byes into the semifinals. Both teams need just a single victory to reach the tournament's final round after having the most success in the regular season.
Murray State is far and away the favorite to win the tournament, as the team is currently ranked No. 12 in the nation after losing just one game during the regular season. That loss came against Tennessee State, though, so they presumably have their eyes set on a potential re-match.
For the complete bracket and schedule, you can click here. For more on college basketball, you can check out SB Nation's college basketball hub.