The Cardinal landed the #2 seed in the Colorado State region to face #7 UC Davis. The Cardinal's first NIT matchup tips off Tuesday, March 17, 8pm (PT) on ESPN 2. At the #2 seed, Stanford certainly is one of the favorites to win the tournament. The NIT kicks off on March 17 and lasts until April 2.
UCLA is a #11 seed in the NCAA tournament with a record of 20-13. Stanford on the other hand finished the season with a 19-13 record and narrowly missed the NCAA tournament. We can look back and lament all the close loses that could have and should have gone the other way. We can wonder what might have been if Stanford's downward trajectory in the second half of the season may not have been so steep.
Conversely, we can get excited for more Stanford basketball. Sure, the second half of the season was wildly disappointing. It is also true that it does not feel good when your team fails to qualify for the NCAA Tournament. While some of us may enjoy mocking the NIT, the tournament does provide us with more Stanford games to watch.
Qualifying for the NIT also allows Cardinal seniors like Chasson Randle an opportunity to extend their career at Stanford. The NIT also provides more opportunities for Cardinal seniors to impress pro scouts both here and abroad. Let's not forget that the NIT is an opportunity for Coach Dawkins to get off the hot seat ensuring his continued employment, or make an argument for a coaching change.
You can read more about UC Davis HERE.
Here is how the rest of the NIT bracket shakes out:
2015 NIT Bracket
No. 1 Seeds
Colorado State
Old Dominion
Richmond
Temple
Colorado State region
1 Colorado State vs 8 South Dakota State
4 Saint Mary's vs 5 Vanderbilt
3 Rhode Island vs 6 Iona
2 Stanford vs 7 UC Davis
Old Dominion region
1 Old Dominion vs 8 Charleston Southern
4 Illinois State vs 5 Green Bay
3 Murray State vs 6 UTEP
2 Tulsa vs 7 William and Mary
Richmond region
1 Richmond vs. 8 St. Francis
4 UConn vs. 5 Arizona State
3 Illinois vs. 6 Alabama
2 Miami (FL) vs. 7 NC Central
Temple Region
1 Temple vs. 8 Bucknell
4 Pittsburgh vs. 5 George Washington
3 Louisiana Tech vs. 6 Central Michigan
2 Texas A&M; vs. 7 Montana
