1986 MAC men's basketball tournament

1986 MAC men's basketball tournament
Classification	Division I
Season	1985–86
Teams	7
Finals site	Rockford MetroCentre Rockford, IL
Champions	Ball State (2nd title)
Winning coach	Al Brown (1st title)
MVP	Dan Palombizio (Ball State)
MAC men's basketball tournaments

1985–86 Mid-American Conference men's basketball standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		PCT			W		L		PCT
Miami (OH)	16	–	2		.889			24	–	7		.774
Ohio	14	–	4		.778			22	–	8		.733
Ball State †	11	–	7		.611			21	–	10		.677
Northern Illinois	10	–	8		.556			15	–	12		.556
Toledo	8	–	10		.444			12	–	17		.414
Western Michigan	7	–	11		.389			12	–	16		.429
Central Michigan	7	–	11		.389			11	–	17		.393
Kent State	7	–	11		.389			11	–	16		.407
Eastern Michigan	5	–	13		.278			9	–	18		.333
Bowling Green	5	–	13		.278			7	–	20		.259
† 1986 MAC tournament winner Rankings from AP Poll

The 1986 MAC men's basketball tournament was held March 6–8 at the Rockford MetroCentre in Rockford, Illinois.^[1] Third seeded Ball State defeated top-seeded Miami in the championship game by the score of 87–79 to win their second MAC men's basketball tournament and a bid to the NCAA tournament. There they lost to Memphis State in the first round.^[2][3] Dan Palombizio Ball State was named the tournament MVP.^[4]

Format

Seven of the ten MAC teams participated. All games were played at the Rockford MetroCentre in Rockford, Illinois.

Bracket

	Quarterfinals March 6					Semifinals March 7					Final March 8
						1	Miami (OH)	93
						5	Toledo	76
	5	Toledo	82
	4	Northern Illinois	79
											1	Miami	79
											3	Ball State	87
	3	Ball State	87
	6	Western Michigan	76
						3	Ball State	93
						2	Ohio	69
	7	Central Michigan	62
	2	Ohio	66

^[1]

References

1. "1985-86 Mid-American Conference Season Summary". Sports Reference. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
2. "1986 NCAA tournament: Bracket, scores, stats, rounds". NCAA. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
3. "1985-86 Ball State Cardinals Schedule and Results". Sports Reference. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
4. "Mid-American Conference men's basketball championship history". FOX News. Retrieved February 18, 2022.