NIT selects UConn to 32-team field
Prior to its impressive American Athletic Conference Championship tournament run, UConn looked more like an NIT than NCAA post-season team.
And that’s where the Huskies are headed after losing the AAC final to top-seeded Southern Methodist University, 62-54, on Sunday in Hartford.
UConn (20-14) received an at-large bid to the 32-team NIT field, earning a NO. 4 seed. The Huskies will host fifth-seeded ArizonaState (17-15) of the Pac-12 Conference at 7 p.m. (ESPN2) on Wednesday at Gampel Pavilion in Storrs.
It will be the program’s 13
th
appearance in the NIT and first since 2010 when UConn beat Northeastern and then lost at Virginia Tech. The Huskies are 15-11 overall in the NIT and won their only title in 1988.
During the regular season, ArizonaState tied for fifth place (9-9) with Stanford, which beat UConn, 72-59, on Jan. 17. The Sun Devils last appeared in the NIT in 2013. Senior Shaquielle McKissic (12.0 points), sophomore Savon Goodman (11.0) and junior Gerry Blakes (10.9) are ASU’s leading scorers.
UConn’s region includes top-seeded Richmond, No. 2 Miami, NO. 3 Illinois, No. 6 Alabama, No. 7 North Carolina Central and No. 8 St. Francis-Brooklyn.
If the Huskies win their first round game, they’d play the Richmond-St. Francis winner. Second round games will take place either Friday, Saturday, Sunday or Monday.
Other AAC teams in the field include Tulsa and Temple.
Temple joins Richmond, Colorado State and Old Dominion as top seeds.
The NIT Final Four will be March 31 and April 2 at MadisonSquareGarden in New York.
Tickets can be purchased for UConn’s first round game for $10 apiece for the general public and $4 for UConn students by going to UConnTickets.com starting at noon on Monday, or visiting the UConn Ticket Office. For more information, call 1-877-AT-UCONN from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
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