NIT 2012 Bracket: NCAA Tournament Snubs That Will Make Deep Runs

There are few things more devastating in sports than a college basketball team working all winter to make the NCAA tournament, only to narrowly miss making the field. Some teams never recover and get knocked out of the NIT quickly, while others use it as fuel for a deep run.

Here are three teams that had a legitimate case to be in the field of 68 that will instead have good showings in college basketball's secondary tournament. For a complete look at the bracket, visit the official NCAA site.

Washington

Washington became the first team from a power conference to win a regular-season title and not get selected to the Big Dance. The Huskies suffered a surprising loss to Oregon State in the Pac-12 tournament, and apparently that was enough to leave them out.

The guard trio of Tony Wroten, Terrence Ross and C.J. Wilcox gives Washington more than enough offensive firepower to make a run. They are combining to average 46 points and nearly 15 rebounds, which will give them a matchup advantage over every other team in the tourney.

As long as they are able to get some type of production in the paint from Aziz N'Diaye or Darnell Gant, the Huskies should be heading to Madison Square Garden.

Drexel

No selection committee decision received more outrage than leaving Drexel out even though Iona got a bid. The Dragons had won 19 of their last 20 games, losing only to VCU in their conference tournament, but weren't rewarded.

It could turn out to be a blessing in disguise, though. Since Drexel only has one senior on the roster, it can use the NIT as a learning experience. Instead of likely getting knocked out in the first round of the NCAA tourney, they can make an NIT run.

That will help the Dragons as they prepare for next season, which is shaping up to be even better than this one.

Oral Roberts

I'm surprised Oral Roberts didn't receive more Selection Sunday love. When talking about snubs, the Golden Eagles were widely overlooked despite a 27-6 record. They even had a marquee victory over Xavier on their résumé.

The lack of respect is just something else Oral Roberts can use to motivate itself before an opening-round clash with Nevada. Life isn't easy for mid-major teams because schedule of strength is always an issue, as several teams found out the hard way.

Dominique Morrison, a senior forward averaging 20 PPG, deserved a chance to showcase his skills on a national stage, but MSG is a nice consolation prize. There's no reason the Golden Eagles can't make it that far.