The 1997 Southland Conference men's basketball tournament was held March 6–8 at Hirsch Memorial Coliseum in Shreveport, Louisiana.
[2] Southwest Texas State defeated Louisiana-Monroe in the championship game, 74–64, to win their second Southland men's basketball tournament.
The Bobcats received a bid to the 1997 NCAA Tournament as the No.
Six of the ten conference members participated in the tournament field.
Tournament play began with the quarterfinal round.