Under The Radar Postseason News, Notes and Highlighted Games – Wednesday, March 23

Click here for the weekly HoopsHD report that recaps the first week of the NCAA Tournament

Only 2 games were played last night, but those 2 games determined who would move on to the NIT semfinals to be played in Madison Square Garden next week. The first winner was Valparaiso; they defeated St. Mary’s 60-44 last night. The Gaels had a 31-24 lead late in the first half, but Valpo had a decisive 16-0 run wrapped around the end of the first half and the beginning of the 2nd half to give them a lead they would not relinquish again. The Crusaders only allowed St. Mary’s 13 points in the 2nd half, including a very low FG percentage of just under 21%.

Their opponent in the NIT semifinals will be BYU; the Cougars also trailed for much of the 1st half against Creighton before ultimately mounting a comeback and winning 88-82. Zac Seljaas scored 19 points on 5-for-6 shooting beyond the arc, and Nick Emery helped ice the game for BYU with 4 free throws in the final minute of the game.

NIT

(2) FLORIDA AT (4) GEORGE WASHINGTON (7:00 PM, ESPN2) – The Colonials are coming off of a nice road outing at Monmouth on Monday night – they defeated the Hawks 87-71 to earn one more home game at Foggy Bottom. Their opponent will be the Florida Gators; they have won their first two NIT games on the road by an aggregate 37 points at North Florida and Ohio State. The winner of this game takes on the winner of the Georgia Tech-San Diego State game at Madison Square Garden next week.

(4) GEORGIA TECH AT (2) SAN DIEGO STATE (9:00 PM, ESPN2) – Another team that has had an easy pair of early NIT games are the San Diego State Aztecs; they’ve beaten Fort Wayne and Washington by a combined 39 points at home. Georgia Tech offers a little more stiff tests, but it’s much less likely that they’ll be facing another team with 5 suspended players anytime soon.

CIT (click on the link for all live streams)

GRAND CANYON AT COASTAL CAROLINA (7:00 PM) – This year’s Team of the People hits the road for the first time this postseason after a pair of home wins against South Carolina State and Jackson State. Coastal Carolina earned their trip to the CIT quarters with wins over Mercer and New Hampshire.

BALL STATE AT COLUMBIA (7:00 PM) – Despite a 3rd place finish in the Ivy League this season, the Lions were awarded a bye through the second round of the CIT after defeating Norfolk State in Round 1 last week. But no deficit has proven to be too large for Ball State; they’ve managed a pair of double-digit comebacks in their first two wins against Tennessee State and Tennessee-Martin. The only bad news for Ball State – there aren’t any teams remaining in the CIT from the Volunteer State.

UC-IRVINE AT LOUISIANA-LAFAYETTE (8:00 PM) – Partly because of their stellar record and partly because of the inability of the Vegas 16 to get a complete field this year, the Anteaters also got a bye through the 2nd round of the CIT after defeating North Dakota 89-86 in overtime in their opener. Lafayette had an easy opener against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, but Furman provided a stiffer challenge for the Rajun’ Cajuns in the 2nd round.

CBI (click on the link for both live streams)

MOREHEAD STATE AT OHIO (7:00 PM) – Another team that advanced in the postseason after overcoming a double-digit deficit was the Ohio Bobcats; they were down by 12 against UNC-Greensboro in the 2nd half before mounting a late comeback to advance to the semifinals of the CBI. They’re hosting a Morehead State team that had a 10-point win at home against Duquesne on Monday night. Bobcats beware – the Eagles already have one road win against Siena in the CBI so far and are more than capable of sneaking into Athens and escaping with a W.

VERMONT AT NEVADA (10:00 PM) – Vermont completed their first leg of their West Coast swing (okay, Nevada isn’t on the coast, but they are in the Pacific Time Zone) with an easy 73-54 win at Seattle on Monday night. Nevada had an easier game in the 2nd round versus Eastern Washington than they did with their opener against Montana, but nonetheless will play the role of gracious host for at least one more round.