The dreams of the Hofstra Pride men’s basketball team reaching the 2023 NCAA Tournament may be over, but Hofstra will still get the opportunity to show their worth in postseason competition for the National Invitational Tournament (NIT).
The Pride were automatically selected to compete in the NIT, due to being a conference regular season champion that did not win their respective conference tournament. Hofstra was No. 1 in the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) with an impressive conference record of 16-2. Overall, the Pride finished the regular season with a 24-9 record, their second consecutive season with at least 20 wins.
The NIT bracket consists of 32 teams, eight teams per region. The first, second, and quarterfinal rounds will all take place at the campus site of the higher placed team. The semifinals and championship game will culminate at Orleans Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. This is the first time since 1938, its inaugural tournament, where the NIT final four will not take place at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
Hofstra’s region includes teams from power six conferences such as the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC), Big Ten, Big East, and the Pac-12. The Pride will open the first round of the NIT against the No. 1 ranked team in their region, the Rutgers University Scarlet Knights.
The Scarlet Knights, from the Big Ten, finished the regular season with a 19-14 record, and were one of the first four teams just shy of getting an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament.
Led by defensive juggernaut Caleb McConnell, Rutgers ranks in the top ten in scoring defense with only 60 points allowed per game. McConnell, one of four finalists for the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year, is averaging nearly three steals per game. McConnell is joined in the backcourt by Cam Spencer, who averaged almost 13 points per game. Clifford Omoruyi mans the paint for the Scarlet Knights. Omoruyi is having a career-best year for Rutgers with a team-high 13.2 point per game and two blocks per game on the defensive end.
Hofstra and Rutgers will each await the winner of the No. 4 seeded team the University of Cincinnati Bearcats from the American Athletic Conference, and the Virginia Tech Hokies out of the ACC.
The Bearcats finished 21-12 overall on the season and earned an at-large bid into the field. Cincinnati is led by guard Landers Nolley II. Nolley is having a career year for the Bearcats with 16.6 points per game, almost six rebounds per game, and is shooting an impressive 45.5% from the field, 42.2% from three-point. The multi-talented sharpshooter is a transfer student from Virginia Tech and the University of Memphis. Cincinnati is a fun team to watch, as the Bearcats can get hot on offense at any given time.
Virginia Tech enters the NIT at 19-14 overall. The Hokies finished 11th in the ACC and saw their NCAA Tournament hopes disappear after a loss to North Carolina State University in the second round of the ACC Tournament. The Hokies came into the season with high hopes after a miraculous ACC Tournament showing in 2022 that saw them as the seventh seeded team in the conference, win four games in four days to receive an automatic bid to the NCAAs.
The Hokies have four players that average in double figures with Grant Basile leading the way at 16 points per game. Virginia Tech is a physical team down low with senior forward Justyn Mutts, who is putting up nearly eight rebounds per game to go along with his 13 points scored on average.
The next matchup of the region pits the No. 2 seed University of New Mexico Lobos out of the Mountain West Conference, and the Utah Valley University Wolverines out of the Western Athletic Conference (WAC).
The Lobos was the darling of college basketball at one point, with New Mexico being the last remaining undefeated team of the season. However, the Lobos struggled down the stretch and were unable to capitalize on big game opportunities to stake their claim to be in the NCAA Tournament.
New Mexico sits at 22-11 overall and are led by a group of formal transfers, most notably Jamal Mashburn Jr. Mashburn is averaging a career-high 19.5 points per game and is shooting at a high rate as well at 42%. Two other players average at least 16 points per game, the first being Jaelen Houston, the starting guard opposite Mashburn, and big man Morris Udeze, who is playing his first season with the Lobos after transferring from Wichita State University.
For Utah Valley, the Wolverines have had a strong and consistent season throughout, standing at 25-8 overall, including winning nine out of its last 11 games. Utah Valley is a fun team to watch offensively, scoring 77 points per game, well in the top half of the NCAA. Le’Tre Darthard leads the team in scoring with 14 points per game, and 7’0” sophomore center Aziz Bandaogo is averaging a double-double with 11.5 points and 10.2 rebounds per game. Bandaogo also accounts for three blocks per contest.
The final two squads of the region are the No. 3 seed University of Colorado Buffaloes from the Pac-12 Conference, and the Seton Hall University Pirates out of the Big East Conference.
The Buffaloes, with a record of 17-16 overall, have had an up-and-down season to say the least. Colorado has pulled off major wins against teams like the University of Tennessee, Texas A&M University, and on the road against Arizona State University. However, Colorado has also suffered head-scratching losses against Grambling State University, the University of California, and Oregon State University.
Despite the defeats, Colorado has always played teams tough and has a roster that is worthy of being an NCAA Tournament contender. The Buffaloes, despite struggling offensively as a whole, are balanced with 10 guys scoring at least four points per game, most notably Tristan da Silva and KJ Simpson. Both average 16 points per contest. A major advantage for Colorado will be their height, as the Buffaloes rank in the top half of the country with 37 rebounds per game.
Seton Hall, at 17-15 overall, is very similar to Colorado. It’s an up-and-down season as well and a balanced offense attack but struggles overall as a team. The Pirates though are an exceptional defensive team. Seton Hall finished second in their conference in scoring defense, allowing just 65 points per game. Transfer guard Al-Amir Dawes leads the team in scoring with 12.6 points per contest, whilst KC Ndefo leads the team on the defensive end with his physically, putting up five rebounds and two blocks per game, to go along with his eight points.
The NIT is a great chance for teams to improve and raise their name value ahead of the next season. The NIT officially tips off on Tuesday, March 14, with Rutgers taking on Hofstra and Colorado battling Seton Hall.
Photo courtesy of The Hofstra Chronicle/Dylan Brett
