UMass & Ohio St. Battle for NIT Crown

No. 2 Massachusetts (25-10) vs. No. 1 Ohio St (23-13), 4:00 pm, ESPN

NEW YORK (Ticker) - Ohio State has had an easy time, so far, during the National Invitation Tournament. Expect Massachusetts to give the Buckeyes more of a challenge when the schools meet in the NIT championship on Thursday.

Ohio State (23-13), which lost in last year's NCAA Tournament final, has won all four of its games by double figures for an average of 14.5 points. The Buckeyes jumped out to a 24-point halftime lead over Mississippi in the semifinals on Tuesday before settling for an 81-69 victory. Jamar Butler and freshman Evan Turner each scored 17 points to lead the Buckeyes, who forced 21 turnovers.

While Ohio State has cruised during the tournament, the Minutemen (25-10) have rallied for a couple of comebacks during their NIT run. Massachusetts trailed Florida by nine at halftime in Tuesday's semifinal, but used a 22-6 burst during the second half en route to a 78-66 victory over the NCAAs two-time defending champion. "The reason I thought we'd have a chance in this game was if our seniors showed some leadership," Massachusetts coach Travis Ford said. "These guys just have that never-die attitude." Gary Forbes scored 19 points and Dante Milligan had 17 and 11 rebounds for the Minutemen, who also rallied from a 22-point second half deficit to defeat Syracuse in the quarterfinal round.

NIT Selects Teams, Including SDSU

INDIANAPOLIS (Ticker) -- A year after headlining the college basketball world, Florida and Ohio State are left playing for pride. The defending national champion and runner-up, Florida and Ohio State were both included in the National Invitation Tournament field, which was released on Sunday.

The absence of the Gators and the Buckeyes from the NCAA Tournament marked the first time since 1980 that both finalists failed to qualify the following season. After winning back-to-back national championships the previous two seasons, Gators coach Billy Donovan was forced to reload with a number of freshmen this season, going 20-11 before losing to Alabama in the first round of the Southeastern Conference tournament. Florida (21-11) is the second seed in the upper right half of the bracket, and will host seventh-seeded San Diego State (20-12) in the first round on Wednesday. "We're extremely happy with the opportunity we have to continue our season in the NIT," Donovan said. "We look forward to continuing to develop and grow as a team."

On the other end of the bracket, Ohio State (19-13) in the top seed in the upper half. The Buckeyes were left with a big hole in the middle of their lineup after center Greg Oden moved on to the NBA, becoming the draft's top pick last June. Ohio State appeared to be in line for an at-large bid for the NCAA Tournament after ending the regular season with consecutive wins over ranked teams Purdue and Michigan State. However, the Buckeyes lost to the Spartans in the first round of the Big Ten Conference tournament.

In a first-round matchup, top-seeded Ohio State will host UNC Asheville (23-9) on Tuesday. The Bulldogs finished tied with Winthrop in the Big South Conference in the regular season. "In postseason play every team is a quality opponent," Buckeyes coach Thad Matta said. "UNC Asheville will be another difficult test for our basketball team. We are fortunate to keep playing and have another chance to play on our home court at Value City Arena."

Due to the fact that Florida and Ohio State are on the opposite of the bracket, the two teams could meet in another title game for the second straight year. The other three first seeds in the bracket are Syracuse (19-13), Arizona State (19-12) and Virginia Tech (19-12).

The top seed in the lower right half of the bracket, the Orange will host Robert Morris (26-7) on Wednesday. The Colonials won the Northeast Conference during the regular season. One of the top teams snubbed by the NCAA Selection Committee despite twice beating Arizona during the regular season, Arizona State faces Alabama State (20-10) on Wednesday.

The Sun Devils are the top seed in the same half of the bracket at Florida. Virginia Tech will host Morgan State (21-10), which won the Mid-Eastern Conference regular-season title, on Wednesday. Defending champion West Virginia earned a berth into the NCAA Tournament.

Aztecs Earn NIT Bid

SAN DIEGO (SDSU) -The San Diego State men's basketball team will be participating in postseason play for the third consecutive year after it received an invitation to the 32-team 2008 MasterCard NIT on Sunday evening. The Aztecs will play their first-round game at Florida on Wednesday, March 19, at 6 p.m. PDT. The contest will be televised nationally on ESPN2.