With the NIT in the books, a final wrap-up with news and notes is in order, including the All-Tournament team and thoughts from both head coaches who were in the final.
Month: March 2018
The Morning Dish – Saturday, March 31, 2018
Two more tournaments are in the books, leaving just one standing. Plus another national award, more coaching developments and a couple of players are leaving school to turn pro on the eve of the national semifinals.
Madness looks at college basketball history through national championship games
In “Madness: The Ten Most Memorable NCAA Basketball Finals”, authors Mark Mehler and Charles Paikert use ten significant national championship games as a jumping-off point to talk about college basketball history.
The Morning Dish – Friday, March 30, 2018
After another impressive performance in the final game of the 2018 National Invitation Tournament, the springboard has officially been set for Penn State next season.
NIT final: Penn State 82, Utah 66 – courtside observations
The NIT Final was just the second all-time meeting between the participating schools, and the prior one occurred in the same arena. The end result was the same as the first, and it was very similar to the winning team’s most recent game in that it was a convincing win.
Penn State 75, Mississippi State 60: The numerology
In the second NIT semifinal, Penn State took care of Mississippi State in a game that wasn’t as close as the final score might imply, and it was a double-digit win.
The Morning Dish – Thursday, March 29, 2018
The one postseason tournament that uses a series is once again going to a deciding game. Plus another tournament’s final is set, future ACC players are in the spotlight in a big high school game, and unsurprising NBA Draft early entrants announce their plans.
NIT Semifinal: Utah 69, Western Kentucky 64 – Courtside observations
Utah and Western Kentucky played a close game for most of their NIT semifinal contest, with the Utes pulling it out late.
The Morning Dish – Wednesday, March 28, 2018
The NIT championship game matchup is set, and the semifinals could hardly have been more different. Plus coaching changes dominate the other news, including who is staying, and another star-studded field will be in Maui in another year.
2018 NCAA Tournament second week review: Final Four has a distinct retro feel to it
Notes, numbers and factoids reviewing the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament, including the 1985 retro feel of this year’s Final Four group.