The second round of the 2026 NIT began on Saturday with two games on the slate. The theme of those games saw the higher-seeded team taking care of business to advance to next week’s quarterfinals.No. 2 seed Dayton defeated UNC Wilmington 80-61 to advance to the next round behind 20 points from guard De’Shayne Montgomery. The Flyers will face the winner of No. 1 seed Wake Forest and No. 4 seed Illinois State next week.In the Auburn Region, No. 2 seed Nevada defeated Liberty 73-63 behind 15 points from Elijah Price.Six more games will take place on Sunday, which will determine who joins Dayton and Nevada in the quarterfinals. Among the notable games going on, No. 1 seed Auburn faces No. 4 seed Seattle U. After earning the No. 1 overall seed in last year’s NCAA Tournament, the Tigers are looking to make a run in the first year of Steven Pearl’s tenure.
Only four power conference teams are competing in the NIT this year: Auburn, Cal, Wake Forest and Oklahoma State. Multiple programs — such as Seton Hall, Virginia Tech, Belmont and San Diego State — declined an invitation to the NIT after missing out on the NCAA Tournament. All four of those high-major teams are still in contention to win the NIT title.Here is a look at the full bracket.2026 NIT key dates First Round: March 17-18Second round: March 21-22Quarterfinals: March 24-25Semifinals: April 2 (Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis)Championship: April 5 (Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis)All times Eastern2026 NIT First Round schedule Games in the first three rounds to be played at the higher-seeded team’s home arena
Auburn RegionFIRST ROUNDNo. 1 Auburn 78, South Alabama 67 | RecapNo. 2 Nevada 89, Murray State 75 | RecapLiberty 77, No. 3 George Mason 71 | RecapNo. 4 Seattle U 67, St. Thomas (MN) 52 | RecapSECOND ROUNDNo. 1 Auburn vs. No. 4 Seattle U | Sunday, 6:30 p.m. No. 2 Nevada 73, Liberty 63 | RecapQuarterfinalsNo. 2 Nevada vs. TBD | TBDAlbuquerque RegionFIRST ROUNDNo. 1 New Mexico 107, Sam Houston 83 | RecapNo. 2 Cal 91, UIC 73 | RecapNo. 3 Colorado State vs. Saint Joseph’s | RecapGeorge Washington 79, No. 4 Utah Valley 78 | Recap
SECOND ROUNDNo. 1 New Mexico vs. George Washington | Sunday, 8 p.m. No. 2 Cal vs. Saint Joseph’s | Sunday, 9 p.m.QuarterfinalsTBD vs. TBD | TBDWinston-Salem RegionFIRST ROUNDNo. 1 Wake Forest 82, Navy 72 | RecapNo. 2…
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2026-03-22 05:27:35
