Please note: All projected NIT seeds referenced in these notes come from our latest NIT Bracketology, published before yesterday’s games.
They’re doing it again.
They’re playing basketball out west.
In the afternoon.
Game of the NITe of the Afternoon
Stanford (5), fresh off kicking Andy Enfield’s ass in a different afternoon game, takes on Washington State (6) right now in Pullman. It’s tipping off at any second on ESPNU as I write this, which means it will probably be well underway by the time this reaches your lips (I assume you print these off and eat them, and if you don’t do that, maybe start). It was supposed to tip off a few minutes ago, actually, but they’re waiting on a Covid test result, so right now everyone’s just running around a mostly empty arena getting shots up and stretching and that sort of thing. Very “indoor recess” feel. And it’s being broadcast. What a way to start the day.
NIT or NOT? Louisville
Oooooof. Louisville (4, but that was before this happened) lost at home to NC State (nowhere close), and I believe it was bad enough that they’d be out of our bracket if we updated it right now. So, there’s your answer, I guess. NOT.
It’s shocking how badly Chris Mack’s tenure has gone in the Gateway to the South, and I say that to point out…we didn’t know it would go this badly. This isn’t just a Louisville thing. None of us knew Chris Mack was this bad at coaching a basketball team. None of us. Xavier must be a great environment for winning? That violates a lot of narratives. Might have to kill the city of Cincinnati and dissect its corpse for science. I don’t make the rules.
NITe Train: Virginia AND Virginia Tech
In a game which hardly cracked 100 points, Virginia (5) won at home against Virginia Tech (1), and winning at home is something you have to do if you’re in danger of falling below the NIT, as is losing on the road. Tony Bennett knows. He’s getting back to his roots. He’s bringing basketball back to its roots. And those roots have a dashing touch of gray. The legislature (Virginia probably has some weird word for this) has to be thrilled with the performance of their most prominent public schools right now.
Close Call: Minnesota Dodged a Bullet
The Gophers (3) nearly took down Michigan State (nowhere close but in the opposite way from NC State) in East Lansing, and whew! That would’ve been bad! Could conceivably still be bad down the line, but…I don’t know. Maybe Minnesota can hope again. I don’t want to say it too loudly, but at the moment, they’re all the Big Ten’s really got. Especially with Northwestern (third team out, but that was before last night) falling to Maryland at home. Would making the NIT as a three-seed be the biggest moment in Minnesota sports history in the last seven years? For the whole state, I mean.
Chattanooga: NIT Favorite?
Chattanooga (third team out in the opposite way from Northwestern, and again this was before last night) lost at Western Carolina with Blooper in the house (that guy’s like Forrest Gump right now), and it’s time to talk about the Mocs.
Chattanooga, to be clear, is not the NIT favorite. They aren’t good enough. But they’re a heavy SoCon favorite, the SoCon’s an easy tournament to lose, and they’re one of those teams who, if they do get the auto-bid, will likely be a mid-tier seed, which gets everybody all hot and bothered about them. Want to get hot and bothered? You can. Go ahead. It’s ok to get hot and bothered here and there. Especially when the Mocs are involved.
The elephant in the room, of course, is that San Francisco (nowhere close) is nowhere close to the NIT at the moment, and we’ve been calling them the NIT favorite. Full disclosure: We assumed they were closer. Me, in particular. I did the assuming.
We’re going to stick with it, though. The NIT favorite Dons host Loyola Marymount tonight. If they lose they’re right back in it.
Chili Bowl!
We promised Chili Bowl content, so here’s Chili Bowl content. The Chili Bowl, for those not familiar, is a big dirt-track event in Tulsa. Tons of races all week. Tons of different heats and classifications and all sorts of other things. Things like this going on:
Yes, that’s Kyle Larson they’re talking about, the reigning NASCAR Cup Series champion, which brings us back to that great thing about NASCAR—NASCAR drivers really like to drive. They spend the offseason driving dirt, and driving short-tracks, and in doing that they’re in firm contact with the grassroots of the sport. People have talked about wanting a Drive to Survive-style NASCAR show following a season, but honestly, the offseason episodes would be the best part. That’s where it gets interesting. And not just on the track, though also, yes, on the track, where Larson pulled off a move in this clip that would get you extradited from Formula 1 (unless the stewards didn’t feel like it, of course).
Another great thing about the Chili Bowl is that there are rules governing fighting, and they’re sensible. All about safety but letting people work out their differences. Which they did. Steven Snyder Jr, very low-level driver, caused a few wrecks and a brawl happened. He apologized. People were still mad. Probably rightly so. This shit costs money! Also, a car got stuck in the fence:
And this was all just Tuesday. More every day/night through Saturday.
They’re Letting the Senators Play Again (Allegedly)
The Sens are in Calgary to play the Flames, and it sounds like the game will happen? Unsure. Would be their second game in 26 days if they pull it off. Otherwise, they got a free trip to Calgary, and I would love a free trip to Calgary, personally. So it’s a win-win for the Sens. Unless they lose, I guess. But even then…
Also, Jake Sanderson (up-and-coming prospect for those who don’t know) will play for Team USA in the Olympics, provided, you know, there isn’t a big war in the Ukraine that cancels the Olympics or anything.
AFCON Live
The Ivory Coast won its opener in the Africa Cup of Nations, with Maxwel Cornet getting a start up front. Next match Sunday, which is one day after Burnley’s next scheduled match, a home one against Leicester that could certainly get canceled. We’ll see.
Other Things
We went through the latest college football playground rankings earlier, and we also talked about Turkmenistan trying to close Hell and—of course—the pick pic, which really just reminded us how many mascots are perverts.
The Game of the NITe of the Afternoon still hasn’t tipped. The Pac-12 is performance art. This getting canceled after they ran around each other maskless shooting hoops would be such a good gag. What a Game of the NITe of the Afternoon move. Playing it in a few hours would be great too. Game of the NITe of the Afternoon of the NITe.
i’ve noticed a lot of NIT content on this website. is that intentional?