Men's Basketball NIT First Round Game vs. Stephen F. Austin
The UMass basketball team earned the No. 2 seed and will host seventh-seeded Stephen F. Austin in the first round of the NIT.
The game will be televised nationally on ESPNU. he game will be carried on the UMass Sports Network on 100.9 FM in Western Massachusetts and 830 AM in the Eastern portion of the state. Bob Behler and former Minuteman Tim Collins call the action for UMass. Gametracker will be available on UMassAthletics.com.
UMass is in the NIT for the 11th time in history, posting a 6-11 all-time record. Last season, UMass pulled off a thrilling 89-87 overtime win over Alabama in the NIT First Round at the Mullins Center on March 13, 2007. UMass then advanced to the second round, where they lost to eventual NIT champion West Virginia, 90-77 in Morgantown, two days later on March 15. Prior to last season, the Minutemen last played in the NIT on March 16, 2000, losing to Siena, 66-65 in Albany. The Minutemen made their furthest run in the NIT in 1991, reaching the semifinals at Madison Square Garden (with wins over La Salle, Fordham and Siena) before a pair of losses in the semis (Stanford) and consolation game (Colorado). UMass has also played in the NIT in 1970 and 1971 with Julius Erving; 1973, 1974, 1975, 1977 and 1990.
SFA, the Southland regular-season champion, is in the NIT for just the second time, as they went 1-1 in 1987, beating James Madison (70-63) at home and falling to Arkansas-Little Rock (54-48) in the second round.
