Auburn and Illinois State will compete in an NIT semifinal after experiencing different emotions on Selection Sunday.
Auburn’s coach, Steven Pearl, admitted his team were disappointed at not being selected for the NCAA tournament. Meanwhile, Illinois State were excited to receive an NIT invitation after their early exit in the Missouri Valley Conference quarterfinals.
Auburn’s NIT Journey
Steven Pearl said that telling his players of the intention to play in the NIT was difficult. This was because their sights had been set on making the NCAA tournament all year.
Auburn overcame a slow start to beat South Alabama in the first round. They then beat Seattle and Nevada for a spot.
Illinois State’s Road to the Semifinal
Ryan Pedon, Illinois State’s coach, gave his team nearly a week off after their loss in the Missouri Valley Conference quarterfinals. Pedon then called everyone back to campus for practice in the days leading up to Selection Sunday.
Guard Johnny Kinziger said that once they got the call that they were going to make it, they were all excited. They knew they had a chance to prove themselves.
Illinois State beat Kent State by 21 points at home in the NIT’s opening round. They then won road games at Wake Forest and at Dayton.
NIT Semifinal Details
The game between Auburn (20-16) and Illinois State (23-12) will take place at Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. Tip-off is scheduled for 8:30 p.m.
The match between New Mexico and Tulsa will precede it, starting at 6 p.m. The winners of both games will play at 7 p.m. Sunday at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.
Illinois State’s Resurgent Team
Illinois State returned three of their top four scorers and 65% of the team’s scoring from last season. The Redbirds were picked as the preseason favourite to win the MVC.
After a 4-0 start to conference play, things didn’t quite go to plan in January and February. Illinois State finished with a 12-8 conference mark.
Pedon said that their season ended abruptly in the Missouri Valley Conference tournament. He added that it wasn’t their best night and their guys were very disappointed.
- Auburn, New Mexico and Tulsa all had home-court advantage en route to Indianapolis as No. 1 seeds in the NIT.
- Illinois State did not have home-court advantage.
- Illinois State had wins at Wake Forest and at Dayton.
Pearl said that Illinois State had the two best wins out of anyone that’s here right now with wins at Wake Forest and wins at Dayton. He also said he wished he could say that those teams just weren’t excited to play them, but that’s not the case.
Despite the opposing emotions heading into the NIT, both teams have rattled off three consecutive wins to set up the semifinal matchup.