When is N.I.T. Basketball Tournament?

What is N.I.T. Basketball Tournament?

The National Invitation Tournament, typically referred to as the NIT Tournament, is a NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association) men's college basketball tourney. Each NCAA men's basketball season, there are two NIT events. The first event is the NIT Season Tip-Off tourney that was founded in 1985 and is played during the pre-season. The second event, and much more popular event, is the post-season NIT Tourney that was founded in 1938. Originally, both events were managed by the Metropolitan Intercollegiate Basketball Association (MIBA) but both were purchased by the NCAA in 2005. When people use the term "NIT," they are almost always referring to the post-season tournament. 

Even though the NCAA Men's College Basketball Tourney is much more prominent, the NIT Tournament is actually older by one year. Created in 1938, the first tournament only featured six teams with the Temple University Owls defeating the Colorado Buffaloes for the first ever National Invitation Tournament title. The tourney expanded to feature as many as forty teams but currently only contains thirty-two teams. Currently, ESPN holds the rights for airing the games. 

The NIT Tourney typically features teams that were on the bubble but did not receive an opportunity to play in the NCAA Tournament. As a result, the NIT carries a stigma that has resulted in some people referring to the NIT as the "Not Invited Tournament," "Not Important Team," " National Insignificant Tournament," and many other names including "Not In Tournament." Even though it may have somewhat of a negative reputation, the teams in the NIT Tournament take the tourney very seriously and should be respected for their hard work and dedication that they have displayed for the entire season.