OK...I know we still have some sort of tiny, outside shot at making it to the NCAAs, but we all know the NIT is our most likely destination (if we make the post-season at all.) The NIT is made up of 32 teams, and they do give a few auto-bids. Any team who won their regular season title but does not make it to the NCAAs is guaranteed an NIT spot. So...what one-bid conferences had their regular season champ lose in their conference tourney?

I think these are the one-bid leagues, but feel free to correct me and I will try to edit accordingly as this week progresses.

AMERICA EAST
Reg. Season Champ - Vermont
Tourney Champ - Vermont

ATLANTIC SUN
Reg. Season Champ - Jacksonville State
Tourney Champ - Bellarmine
However, since Bellarmine is in the "transition phase" from Division II to Division I, they are ineligible for the NCAA tourney. Therefore, J'ville State...the regular season champ...will represent the A-SUN in the Big Dance. Strange rule, but that's where we are.

BIG SKY
Reg. Season Champ - Montana State
Tourney Champ - Montana State

BIG SOUTH
Reg. Season Champ - Longwood
Tourney Champ - Longwood

BIG WEST - LONG BEACH STATE WILL GO TO THE NIT
Reg. Season Champ - Long Beach State
Tourney Champ - Cal State-Fullerton

COLONIAL ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION - TOWSON WILL GO TO THE NIT
Reg. Season Champ - Towson
Tourney Champ - Delaware

CONFERENCE USA - HAS UNT DONE ENOUGH TO GET AN NCAA BID, OR ARE THEY HEADED TO THE NIT?
Reg. Season Champ - North Texas
Tourney Champ - Alabama-Birmingham

HORIZON LEAGUE - CLEVELAND STATE WILL GO TO THE NIT
Reg. Season Champ - Cleveland State
Tourney Champ - Wright State

IVY LEAGUE - PRINCETON WILL GO TO THE NIT
Reg. Season Champ - Princeton
Tourney Champ - Yale

MID-ATLANTIC ATHLETIC CONFERENCE - IONA BEATEN BY RYDER, HEADED TO THE NIT
Reg. Season Champ - Iona
Tourney Champ - St. Peters

MID-AMERICA CONFERENCE - TOLEDO BEATEN BY AKRON TODAY, HEADED TO THE NIT
Reg. Season Champ - Toledo
Tourney Champ - Akron

MIDEASTERN ATHLETIC CONFERENCE
Reg. Season Champ - Norfolk State
Tourney Champ - Norfolk State

MISSOURI VALLEY CONFERENCE - NIU WILL LIKELY GO TO THE NIT
Reg. Season Champ - Northern Iowa
Tourney Champ - Loyola-Chicago

NORTHEASTERN CONFERENCE
Reg. Season Champ - Bryant
Tourney Champ - Bryant

OHIO VALLEY CONFERENCE
Reg. Season Champ - Murray State
Tourney Champ - Murray State

PATRIOT LEAGUE
Reg. Season Champ - Colgate
Tourney Champ - Colgate

SOUTHERN CONFERENCE
Reg. Season Champ - Tennessee-Chattanooga
Tourney Champ - Tennessee-Chattanooga

SOUTHLAND CONFERENCE - NICHOLLS STATE WILL GO TO THE NIT
Reg. Season Champ - Nicholls State
Tourney Champ - Texas A&M-Corpus Christi

SUMMIT LEAGUE
Reg. Season Champ - South Dakota State
Tourney Champ - South Dakota State

SUN BELT CONFERENCE - TEXAS STATE WILL GO TO THE NIT
Reg. Season Champ - Texas State
Tourney Champ - Georgia State

SOUTHWEST ATHLETIC CONFERENCE - ALCORN STATE WILL GO TO THE NIT
Reg. Season Champ - Alcorn State
Tourney Champ - Texas Southern

WESTERN ATHLETIC CONFERENCE
Reg. Season Champ - New Mexico State
Tourney Champ - New Mexico State


So far, the Atlantic Sun (Jacksonville State) and Sun Belt (Texas State) conference will be sending their regular season champs to the NIT.

I don't think North Texas can survive a loss in the C-USA Tournament.

bobinator said:

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I don't think North Texas can survive a loss in the C-USA Tournament.

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CUSA added to the list.

Are there any conferences I put on the list that might be multiple bid leagues? Anyone need to be taken off my list?

If Bellarmine beats Jacksonville, Jacksonville St will be the auto qualifier for NCAA, because Bellarmine is ineligible. That would take J State out of the NIT

Luke The Drifter said:

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bobinator said:

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I don't think North Texas can survive a loss in the C-USA Tournament.

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CUSA added to the list.

Are there any conferences I put on the list that might be multiple bid leagues? Anyone need to be taken off my list?

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They may have if they didn't lose Saturday to UTEP. I don't think that UNT will win the CUSA tournament. They play great defense but really struggle to score.

Mikesyracuse1

Still amazes me that a conf tournament champ gets auto ncaa bid even if it means leaving out the conf champion. I know they need these these conf tourneys to mean something but still. The conference record is a full body of work.

Towson loses to Delaware in the Colonial Athletic Conference, so they will get the automatic bid to the NIT.

Mikesyracuse1

Are we on the NIT bubble?

Nah, should be good to go

Thanks. Awaiting confirmation. Rothers! Print the shirts!

NIT-star or we riot

also wear 2 shirts

Updated to show:

• Southern Conference - Chattanooga's win and auto-bid to the NCAAs
• Sun Belt - Georgia State's win and auto-bid to the NCAAs, sending regular season champ Texas State to the NIT

I'm in

Updated to include:

• Atlantic Sun champs - what a weird situation, but ultimately no NIT auto bid was "stolen".
• Horizon - Wright State won the conference tourney and go to the NCAAs, so Cleveland State will get an auto bid to the NIT.
• Northeast - chalk - regular season champ won the tourney, so no NIT implications here.
• Summit League - South Dakota State, regular season champ, won the tourney. Therefore, SDSU will go to the NCAAs and no NIT auto bid was "stolen".

Would we rather win the NIT or lose in the first round of the ncaa tourney?

Lose first round NCAA. I understand the 'getting more experience' aspect of playing more games but I think the implications of making NCAA tourney would be much larger.

I dunno man, that experience playing with quarters or a metal basketball or a ten second shot clock or whatever rules they come up with for the NIT this year is invaluable.

I can't wait to see the 4pt line!

Would love for them to play with the old ABA ball

Plus the experience of playing on the big stage of Madison Square Garden. Think of the fantastic exposure it will bring the program. Especially if we pack MSG in our custom made NIT shirts.

Updates:

• Colonial Athletic Association - Delaware won the tourney, so regular season champ Towson will go to the NIT.
• Patriot League - Regular season champ Colgate also won the tourney, so no NIT at large bid was stolen here.

Sources: Bellarmine --- which won the ASUN Tournament --- but was not eligible for the NCAA Tournament because it recently transitioned from Division II to Division 1, was informed this morning that it is ineligible to play in the Postseason NIT.

— Jon Rothstein (@JonRothstein) March 10, 2022

That's dumb.

That really sucks for those kids. The rule makes no sense to me. Why punish a team for moving to D1?

Especially for the NIT. Who gives a ****?

_lefraud_ said:

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I can't wait to see the 4pt line!

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can they show a 4-pointer on tv? #kempspin

Oregon basketball coach Dana Altman, asked about playing in NIT instead of NCAA, via @johncanzanobft: “We had aspirations of going to the Rose Bowl but we’re going to the Weedeater Bowl”

— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) March 11, 2022

No NCAA tourney bids were awarded on Thursday and no regular season champs from one-bid leagues were eliminated in their respective conference tourneys. Friday's schedule has the potential to knock some of these champs to the NIT.

Hopefully, we'll be Auburn today and this thread becomes a moot point.

Hopefully the win over Auburn made this thread meaningless...but just in case it didn't, updated to show three more regular season champs who did not win their tourney. Therefore, we have possibly three more NIT auto-bids claimed today.

• North Texas was eliminated in the C-USA tourney. Has UNT done enough to get to the NCAAs or will they be relegated to the NIT?
• Iona was eliminated in the MAAC and will go to the NIT.
• Toledo was eliminated in the MAC and will go to the NIT.

I appreciate you staying on the grind

Known NIT teams at this point:

• Cleveland State
• Iona
• North Texas (likely)
• Northern Iowa
• Texas State
• Toledo
• Towson

bobinator said:

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I appreciate you staying on the grind

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You bet. More dominoes could fall tonight, but I won't be able to update anything again 'til tomorrow. I'm just very happy we're an NCAA bubble team right now and not sweating out being on the NIT bubble.

No doubt. It's fun to be in the mix.

Southland: TAMU-CC upsets top seed Nicholls