Cougars To Face Colorado State In NIT First Round

CHARLESTON, S.C. (CofC Sports) – The College of Charleston men’s basketball team will make its fifth all-time appearance in the National Invitation Tournament (NIT) as the 32-team field was announced on Selection Sunday.

The fifth-seeded Cougars (25-9) last played in and received a NIT automatic bid in 2011 as the Southern Conference regular-season champions under former head coach Bobby Cremins and advanced all the way to the quarterfinals – the program’s deepest postseason run in the month of March.

CofC advanced to the championship game of the Colonial Athletic Association Men’s Basketball Championship under third-year head coach Earl Grant and earned an at-large bid in this year’s field by the body of the team’s work in the regular and postseason.

The Cougars will face fourth-seeded Colorado State (23-11) in the first round on Tuesday, March 14, at 9 p.m. (ET) / 7 p.m. (MT) before a national television audience on ESPN3 at Moby Arena in Fort Collins, Colo. It will mark a first-time meeting between both schools.

“Colorado State is a very good team,” Grant said. “They play in a very good league and made it to the Mountain West Conference championship game and lost to Nevada. They are well coached and talented. It will be a great challenge for us to play another great team on their home court. I am really happy for our players and coaches. They put so much hard work into being able to play in a postseason tournament. It is great to be rewarded for our efforts this season. Hopefully, we can continue to advance.”

The Cougars are 4-4 all-time in the NIT having last played Dayton (W, 94-84) in the first round, Cleveland State (W, 64-56) in the second round and Wichita State (L, 75-82) in the quarterfinals in 2011.

The winner of the first-round game will advance to second-round action slated for March 16-20 with the quarterfinals on March 21 and 22.

Both semifinal games will be played on Tuesday, March 28, with the championship game on Thursday, March 30, at Madison Square Garden in New York City.

For fans traveling to Colorado State, NIT tickets can be purchased through the McGraw Athletic Center Ticket Office at: 1-800-491-RAMS (7267) or online at: www.CSURams.com/tickets

COUGARS ALL-TIME IN THE NIT (4-4)
1995 – College of Charleston at Providence, L, 67-72, First Round on 3/16/95 in Providence, R.I.
1996 – College of Charleston at Tennessee, W, 55-49, First Round on 3/13/96 in Knoxville, Tenn.
1996 – College of Charleston at Rhode Island, L, 58-62 (OT), Second Round on 3/19/96 in Kingston, R.I.
2003 – College of Charleston at Kent State, W, 71-66, First Round on 3/19/03 in Kent, Ohio
2003 – College of Charleston at Providence, L, 64-69, Second Round on 3/22/03 in Providence, R.I.
2011 – College of Charleston vs. Dayton, W, 94-84, First Round on 3/15/11 in Charleston, S.C.
2011 – College of Charleston at Cleveland State, W, 64-56, Second Round on 3/19/11 in Cleveland, Ohio
2011 – College of Charleston at Wichita State, L, 75-82, Quarterfinals on 3/23/11 in Wichita, Kan.