The Final Four of the 2011 NIT Tournament is now set. Washington State, Wichita State and Alabama won quarterfinal round games Wednesday to advance to Madison Square Garden. Colorado had advanced on Tuesday with an 81-74 victory over Kent State.
The semifinals will be held Tuesday, March 29 at MSG. Washington State and Wichita State will meet at 7 p.m. (ESPN2) and Alabama will face Colorado at 9 p.m. (ESPN2). The winners will meet in the championship game Thursday, March 31 (7 p.m., ESPN2).
Here are quick recaps of Wednesday’s quarterfinal action.
Washington State 69, Northwestern 66 (OT): Northwestern rallied from 14 points down to force overtime, but could not sustain the momentum in overtime. Northwestern’s inability to make a shot in overtime led to the win for Washington State. The Wildcats made just one of their 10 attempts from the floor in overtime, and missed all eight of their three-point shots. Klay Thompson scored 17 points and grabbed nine rebounds to lead Washington State.
Wichita State 82, Coll. of Charleston 75: Gabe Blair had 16 points and eight rebounds to lead the Shockers to the victory.
Alabama 79, Miami (Fla.) 64: Trevor Releford scored 22 points to lead the Crimson Tide past the Hurricanes in the quarterfinals of the NIT at Coleman Coliseum. Senario Hillman contributed 17 points for Alabama.