1986 Sun Belt Conference men's basketball tournament

The 1986 Sun Belt Conference men's basketball tournament was held February 27–March 1 at the Birmingham–Jefferson Civic Center in Birmingham, Alabama.

1986 Sun Belt Conference men's basketball tournament
Classification	Division I
Season	1985–86
Teams	8
Site	Birmingham–Jefferson Civic Center Birmingham, AL
Champions	Jacksonville (2nd title)
Winning coach	Bob Wenzel (1st title)
MVP	Otis Smith (Jacksonville)
Sun Belt Conference men's basketball tournaments

1985–86 Sun Belt Conference men's basketball standings

	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		PCT			W		L		PCT
Old Dominion	11	–	3		.786			23	–	8		.742
Western Kentucky	10	–	4		.714			23	–	8		.742
UAB	9	–	5		.643			25	–	11		.694
Jacksonville †	9	–	5		.643			21	–	10		.677
VCU	6	–	8		.429			12	–	16		.429
South Alabama	5	–	9		.357			16	–	16		.500
South Florida	5	–	9		.357			14	–	14		.500
UNC Charlotte	1	–	13		.071			8	–	20		.286
† 1986 Sun Belt Conference tournament winner Rankings from AP Poll

Jacksonville upset hosts UAB in the championship game, 70–69, to win their second Sun Belt men's basketball tournament.

The Dolphins, in turn, received an automatic bid for the 1986 NCAA tournament. They were joined in the tournament by fellow Sun Belt members Old Dominion, UAB, and Western Kentucky, all of whom received at-large bids.

Format

There were no changes to the existing tournament format. All eight conference members were placed into the initial quarterfinal round and each team was seeded based on its regular season conference record.

Bracket

	Quarterfinals Friday, February 27					Semifinals Saturday, February 28					Championship Sunday, March 1
	1	Old Dominion	76
	8	UNC Charlotte	67
						1	Old Dominion	61
						4	Jacksonville	67
	5	VCU	49
	4	Jacksonville	56
											4	Jacksonville	70
											3	UAB	69
	3	UAB	64
	6	South Alabama	51
						3	UAB	57
						2	Western Kentucky	45
	7	South Florida	46
	2	Western Kentucky	57

See also

• Sun Belt Conference women's basketball tournament