Commentary: Washington State’s dominant run to the NIT semifinals bodes well for this season – and beyond
When dawn broke Thursday morning, the Pac-12 Conference had three men’s teams still standing in the postseason: Arizona and UCLA in the NCAA Tournament, and Washington State in the NIT.
Despite the National Invitation Tournament’s secondary status, this stands as a significant development for the Cougars and, potentially, the conference.
WSU blasted Brigham Young 77-58 on Wednesday night behind 27 points from guard Michael Flowers to advance to the NIT semifinals in New York City. (Yes, somebody has finally beaten BYU.)
The experience is undoubtedly exhilarating for the Cougars, but the true value of NIT success is the foundation it creates for the following season.
The extra practices, additional competitive opportunities and cohesiveness forged serve as launch points.
Four times in the past decade, the postseason NIT winner has reached the NCAA Tournament the following season:
• Memphis won the NIT last year and just lost a close game to Gonzaga in the second round.
• TCU claimed the title in 2017 and reached the NCAAs the following year.
• Baylor won the NIT in 2013 and then began its run of March Madness success, culminating in the national title last spring.
• Wichita State’s NIT title in 2011 led to a seven-year stretch of NCAA appearances.
• And we should account for the COVID disruption: Texas won the NIT in 2019 and was viewed as a bubble team in March 2020 before the shutdown.
But Washington State doesn’t need to win the NIT to receive the full benefits.
Teams have turned semifinal runs into an NCAA berth the following year. It’s all about the experience that comes with playing four or five additional games against quality competition.
WSU beat Santa Clara, SMU and BYU to reach Madison Square Garden and will face Texas A&M, one of the last teams left out of the NCAAs.
The other semifinal matches Xavier against St. Bonaventure.
Given that they have only one senior in the rotation (Flowers), the Cougars could very well join the list of teams that use NIT success as a springboard for the following season – and give the Pac-12 another NCAA berth.