NIT 2012: Updated Bracket and Schedule for March 15

The 2012 NIT Tournament will take a little break on Thursday while the second round of the NCAA Tournament gets underway, but that doesn't mean there hasn't been plenty to talk about already. 

The top-seeded Arizona Wildcats were upset in the first round on Wednesday night by Bucknell. The Bison played a perfect game, hitting shots early and making the Wildcats get out of the rhythm of what they want to do. 

With the Sweet 16 set after Wednesday's action, the games will start heating up. There are no warm-up teams in this tournament, as everyone is so evenly matched up that you have to bring your A-game right away. 

Here is a look at the bracket for the NIT Sweet 16, and the matchups that you need to watch when games resume on Friday. 

MATCHUP	DATE, TIME	NETWORK
No. 1 Washington vs. No. 4 Northwestern	March 16, 10 p.m. ET	ESPNU
No. 1 Seton Hall vs. No. 4 UMass	March 17, 11 a.m. ET	ESPN
No. 3 Drexel vs. No. 7 UNI	March 18, 11 a.m. ET	ESPN
No. 4 Nevada vs. No. 8 Bucknell	March 18, 3 p.m. ET	ESPNU
No. 3 Oregon vs. No. 7 Iowa	March 18, 5 p.m. ET	ESPNU
No. 1 Tennessee vs. No. 4 Middle Tennessee	March 19, 7 p.m. ET	ESPN
No. 2 Miami vs. No. 6 Minnesota	March 19, 9 p.m. ET	ESPN
No. 3 Stanford vs. No. 7 Illinois State	March 19, 11:30 p.m. ET	ESPN2

Best Second-Round Game: Washington vs. Northwestern

Both of these teams had strong NCAA Tournament credentials. Washington was the best team in the Pac-12 during the regular season. It has three stars who will play in the NBA and could coast through the NIT.

Northwestern can't match the Huskies in the talent department, but the Wildcats do pass the ball as well as any team in the NIT. They are going to move around to find the open man, and then they are going to take high-percentage shots. 

Sleeper Game: Nevada vs. Bucknell

This is a matchup of size against speed.

Bucknell is an underrated team, but the Bison have good speed on the floor. Even though they don't have the one star who can carry them when they need a shot, they are going to run you up and down the court for 40 minutes. 

On the flip side, Nevada is going to use it's size advantage to pound the Bison into submission. Mike Muscala is one of the most underrated big men in the country, and his muscle in the paint will be the difference in the game. 

Follow @adamwells1985