NIT 2012: UCLA and Biggest Omissions from the Second-Tier Tournament

It's one thing for a team on the bubble to be left out of the NCAA tournament. You can usually make a pretty good argument in favor of those that ended up in the 68-team field, even if those left out were still deserving of inclusion in some form or fashion.

It's another entirely for a program—especially one with big, fancy, famous letters on the front of its uniforms—to miss out on the NIT. At that point, you pretty much know you've hit rock bottom, and it's about time for a fresh start.

These three schools all had cases to be made for postseason play, though frankly they're probably better off opting for no reward than for gratification in a subpar competition.

UCLA

Apparently, reputation alone isn't enough to get a team into the NIT, nor are 19 wins or an 11-7 conference record.

Just ask UCLA, which had all of those things going for it before the NIT field was announced. The Bruins came into the 2011-12 campaign as the favorites to win the Pac-12, but swiftly fell into disarray amidst the exit of Reeves Nelson, a preseason all-league performer and noted head case.

A late-season expose by Sports Illustrated didn't do anything to help the program, though it did serve to ratchet up the temperature a few degrees on Ben Howland's already hot seat.

As much as Howland underhandedly lobbied for inclusion in the NIT, his team's probably better off not partaking.

After all, this is friggin' UCLA we're talking about here, the same school with 11 national championship banners hanging in the rafters and names like "Alcindor" and "Walton" etched into its hallowed halls. Chances are, even a strong run through the NIT would've been greeted with disdain back on campus. 

Illinois

It's been a tough year for Illinois, to say the least. After a promising 15-3 start, the Fighting Illini promptly dropped 12 of their final 14 games of the season, thereby costing longtime head coach Bruce Weber his job.

Of course, Weber's departure is hardly shocking. He rode the stock of talent that Bill Self left behind (i.e. Deron Williams, Dee Brown, Luther Head) to a Sweet 16 in 2004 and the Final Four in 2005, but was ultimately undone when he failed to lure native Chicagoans like Sherron Collins, Derrick Rose and Anthony Davis to Champaign.

In any case, Illinois will be in for a long period of darkness to begin the post-Weber era, especially if sophomore center Meyers Leonard takes his talents to the NBA. 

Maryland

As far as college basketball blue bloods are concerned, Maryland may not be in the same category as Duke or North Carolina, but the Terrapins are no slouches, either.

Which is, in part, why it's so surprising to see Maryland left out of the NIT field, especially after topping two NCAA tournament teams (Colorado, Notre Dame) and an NIT entrant (Miami).

Then again, a 6-10 record in the top-heavy ACC isn't exactly something for the Terps to write home about. You can be sure that Mark Turgeon's job will be in jeopardy if Maryland finds itself scrapping for a secondary tourney bid this time next year.

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