Utah Valley Earns Automatic Bid To Play In NIT
Mar 11, 2023, 2:35 PM | Updated: Mar 13, 2023, 1:35 pm
SALT LAKE CITY – The Utah Valley men’s basketball team earned an automatic to play in the National Invitational Tournament (NIT) after capturing the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) regular season title.
The Wolverines will find out their seed and first round opponent for the tournament during the NIT Selection Show on Sunday, March 12.
Utah Valley finished its regular season with a 24-7 record, including 15-3 in WAC play.
MBB | @UVUmbb will continue postseason play in the National Invitational Tournament (NIT) as the team receives an automatic bid into the event as the WAC regular season champion.#UVUhoops #UVU #WAChoops #NCAAmbb #NIT https://t.co/6JH1p9yL61
— UVU Athletics (@GoUVU) March 11, 2023
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The Wolverines have won the regular season title three times in program history (2014, 2021, 2023). The last two titles have come under head coach Mark Madsen. During the regular season, the Wolverines had an 11-game winning streak that spanned from December 3, 2022-January 11. Some of Utah Valley’s signature wins this season came over BYU, Oregon, Sam Houston State, Southern Utah, Stephen F. Austin, and Grand Canyon.
Le’Tre Darthard is Utah Valley’s leading scorer putting up an average of 14.2 points per contest. Aziz Bandaogo leads the team with 10.2 rebounds and 3.0 blocks per game. Trey Woodbury has a team-high 4.5 assists on average.
Utah Valley defeated the Tarleton State Texans during the quarterfinal round of the WAC Tournament.
The victory gave the Wolverines 25 wins this season, which tied a program record.
A little razzle-dazzle to Aziz pic.twitter.com/O6tzhtdTRY
— UVU Men’s Basketball (@UVUmbb) March 11, 2023
The Southern Utah Thunderbirds upset Utah Valley on a four-point play in the final seconds of the WAC Tournament semifinals.
RELATED: Southern Utah Pulls Off Comeback Win, Advances To WAC Championship Game
Now, the Wolverines wait to find out their path in the NIT.
It will be Utah Valley’s second trip to the NIT and the school’s sixth appearance in a national postseason tourney. Utah Valley has played in the NIT once, the CBI three times, and once in the CIT.
The NIT Selection Show will start on Sunday evening at 7 p.m. (MDT). The show will be televised on ESPNU. The first round of the NIT will take place from March 14-15.
