NEW YORK — Coming off one of the best seasons in school history, the UTSA men's basketball team has been selected to play in the 2011 Dick's Sporting Goods NIT Season Tip-Off, NIT selection committee chair C.M. Newton announced Wednesday.
The Roadrunners, who won the Southland Conference Tournament and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament en route to a 20-14 record in 2010-11, are the 16-team field's No. 8 seed and will face six-seed Oral Roberts in the Midwest Regional in Stillwater, Okla. The host Oklahoma State Cowboys will face Arkansas-Pine Bluff in the other contest at Gallagher-Iba Arena.
The first- and second-round doubleheaders will be played Nov. 14-16 on the campuses of the four highest-seeded teams: Syracuse, Virginia Tech, Oklahoma State and Stanford. The winners of the preliminary rounds advance to the semifinals, which take place on Nov. 23 in New York's historic Madison Square Garden. The consolation and championship games will be played Nov. 25.
The remaining teams will play third- and fourth-round doubleheaders on Nov.21-22 on the campuses of the three highest remaining seeds. Participating teams will not play any team twice and the third and fourth rounds will be assigned to the most geographically compatible site.
"Once again, the NIT Season Tip-Off field is outstanding," said Newton, a member of the Naismith Hall of Fame who is in his seventh year as chair of the NIT. "This year, we have two former champions with Syracuse (1988, 2001) and Oklahoma State (1991) along with teams that have experienced success in the postseason. There is also a good number of young clubs on the rise. This tournament has been an early showcase of the best in college basketball, and many times you see our teams competing deep in the NCAA Championships some March."
The three other sites and pairings are as follows …
· The North Regional will take place at Syracuse, where the Orange will host Manhattan and Albany squares off against Brown.
· The East Regional will be held on the campus of Virginia Tech and the Hokies will meet Monmouth, with George Mason facing Florida International.
· Stanford is the host team in the West Regional and the Cardinal will play Fresno State in one half of the doubleheader, while Colorado State takes on SMU.