NIT 2015: Odds and Predictions for All Opening-Round Games

Whenever your consolation prize potentially involves playing in Madison Square Garden, you have a pretty good consolation prize on your hands.

So don't be too upset, Colorado State. Buck up, Temple and Murray State and Old Dominion. The National Invitation Tournament, which holds its championship rounds at the venerable New York City arena, still garners its share of intrigue and prestige.

Is it as good as the Big Dance? No. But everyone knows that. No need to dwell on the negative. Let's instead accentuate the positive: lots of big schools in this field; lots of power conferences represented; and lots of good basketball to be played.

What follows are odds, breakdowns and predictions for every first-round game in each of the NIT's four regions, all of which will go down Tuesday and Wednesday. Let's get it on.

Statistics courtesy of ESPN.com. Betting odds courtesy of OddsShark.com. 

Region 1

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Temple's Will Cummings

(1) Temple vs. (8) Bucknell

Odds: Temple (-13)

Prediction: If Temple can shake off the disappointment of being passed over on Selection Sunday, they have a very good chance to win the 2015 NIT. 

As they have been for years, the Owls' calling cards are defense and rebounding. And if it wasn't for one of the few teams in the nation that does it better—Larry Brown's SMU Mustangs—Temple would be a winner in 13 of its past 14 and would have reached the finals of the American Athletic Conference tournament.

Here's guessing they'll take their frustrations out on Bucknell, another Pennsylvania school that will bring plenty of fans into Philly. The 19-14 Bison just won't have the strength to outscore the Owls.

(4) Pittsburgh vs. (5) George Washington

Odds: Pittsburgh (-3.5)

Prediction: George Washington had a respectable season. They even beat Wichita State at one point. If the season had ended on January 24, when the Colonials were 16-4, it would have been outstanding.

But the wheels came off after that point, with GW losing eight of its final 13. That's not what you want. 

Pittsburgh's uptempo style will contrast with George Washington's more blue-collar approach. Jamel Artis will get loose for the Panthers and bring his team a win in the 'Burgh.

(3) Louisiana Tech vs. (6) Central Michigan

Odds: Louisiana Tech (-5)

Prediction: Louisiana Tech won Conference USA's regular-season title before losing in the tournament final to UAB. They were even good enough to make some noise in the big tournament.

It didn't pan out that way, as you know. But their hyper-aggressive defense spells trouble for anyone. And it will spell the season's end for Central Michigan, a team that can score in bunches (78.2 points per game, good for 15th in the nation) but hasn't had to contend with the kind of pressure the Bulldogs will lay on them.

(2) Texas A&M vs. (7) Montana

Odds: Texas A&M (-12)

Prediction: Texas A&M is hard to figure out. The same team that took Kentucky to double overtime and beat LSU also lost four of its last five, including an SEC tournament defeat to a bad Auburn team.

"Our guys practiced well yesterday and we are excited we are in the NIT, playing a very good Montana team, an experienced veteran team that creates a lot of problems offensively and knows how to score,” Texas A&M coach Billy Kennedy said, via The Bryan-College Station Eagle. 

That about sums it up. Montana is laden with seniors, including guard Jordan Gregory. Sound the upset alarms for this one. The Aggies have been too inconsistent this season and may have trouble getting up for a team that probably won't have much trouble getting up for them.

Region 2

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Ryan Boatright

(1) Richmond vs. (8) St. Francis, Brooklyn

Odds: Richmond (-12)

Prediction: Richmond never quite separated from a tough Atlantic 10 pack. Still, any team with two wins over VCU on its record are to be respected.  

The Spiders will bring a strong, opportunistic defense to their home court when they welcome St. Francis, Brooklyn (Brooklyn in the house! All right). The Northeast Conference regular-season champs are led by forward Jalen Cannon. But that won't be enough against a battle-tested Richmond group.

(4) Connecticut vs. (5) Arizona State

Odds: Connecticut (-4.5)

Prediction: Ryan Boatright led Connecticut to the American Athletic Conference tournament and the doorstep of the Big Dance before the Huskies came up short against SMU in the conference title game. But they still bring some nice momentum into this matchup against the Sun Devils, who were bounced from the first round of the Pac-12 tourney by lowly USC. 

Boatright will be the best player on the floor for either team. Guard Shaquielle McKissic and forward Savon Goodman provide a one-two punch for Arizona State, but the loss to a shorthanded Trojans team is not exactly a confidence booster, especially since it was their third defeat in five games. Connecticut should emerge.

(3) Illinois vs. (6) Alabama

Odds: Illinois (-2.5)

Prediction: This is one of the more high-profile matchups of the round. Illinois quietly amassed some very good wins in the Big 10 over the likes of Maryland and Michigan State. Still, they came out flat as a board in the conference tourney and lost to Michigan, and here they are.

The Crimson Tide might be something even worse than flat when the two teams play. They might be downright concave after the firing of head coach Anthony Grant, which was announced Sunday. That's not good. In fairness, neither is losing four of your last six, as Alabama did. Illinois regroups and takes an easy win.

(2) Miami vs. (7) North Carolina Central

Odds: Miami (-8)

Prediction: Miami wound up in the middle of the field in the ACC. Nevertheless, Jim Larranaga teams know something about how to win in the postseason (he helmed the magical George Mason Final Four run of about a decade ago).

Miami surrenders only about 63 points per game on average. North Carolina Central, however, allows only 54. If you like defensive battles, this one's for you. Guard Sheldon McClellan and the Hurricanes will do just enough to move on after a low-scoring affair.

Region 3

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Hassan Martin

(1) Colorado State vs. (8) South Dakota State 

Odds: Colorado State (-10)

Prediction: The Rams' attack begins with do-it-all forward J.J. Avila, who leads the team in points (16.6 per game) and rebounds (7.3). 

Offensively, Colorado State does just about everything well, and smoothly, too. Their 14.7 team assists per game speak to that.

And they should be able to run the Jackrabbits off the floor. South Dakota State is certainly not terrible, but the second-best team from the Summit League probably won't be able to give the third-best team in the Mountain West much trouble.

(4) St. Mary's vs. (5) Vanderbilt

Odds: St. Mary's (-1.5)

Prediction: As the odds indicate, this should be a close contest. Vanderbilt clogs the middle with Damian Jones and James Siakam. That sets up a tough post battle between the Commodores and the Gaels, whose best player is big man Brad Waldow.

Will St. Mary's be able to get its shooting game going? We're guessing no, at least not enough to win. Vanderbilt should notch the slight upset.

(3) Rhode Island vs. (6) Iona

Odds: Rhode Island (-7)

Prediction: This might be the best game of the NIT's first round: offense vs. defense, right here.

The NIT lever-pullers didn't do Rhode Island many favors. Iona has one of the most potent offenses in the country, averaging about 80 points and 17 assists per game as a group. It's why they were the best in the MAAC for most of the season.

But the Rams should still emerge. They were in the running for an at-large Big Dance selection, and though they lost three of their last six, all of those losses came to either Davidson or Dayton, both of which are in the larger tournament. 

Rhode Island and its stifling D (it's allowing only 59.3 points per game) should carry the day, but not before an exciting, back-and-forth battle.

(2) Stanford vs. (7) UC Davis

Odds: Stanford (-8.5)

Prediction: Oof. This is not a super-exciting matchup on paper. Stanford dropped four of its last five. Sure, they were competitive and played against good teams, but it was not exactly a great momentum-builder.

UC Davis knows how to make shots (with a 49 percent field-goal percentage) but they don't nearly have the strength of schedule of Stanford. The Cardinal should roll here, but almost by default.

Region 4

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Daishon Knight

(1) Old Dominion vs. (8) Charleston Southern

Odds: Old Dominion (-11)

Prediction: For a while there, it looked like Old Dominion was the lock to represent Conference USA in the Big Dance. On the back of some heavy-duty defense and a rugged scoring attack, they racked up wins over VCU, Richmond and Louisiana Tech.

Bad conference losses ultimately did them in, but they should still have more than enough talent and motivation to knock off Charleston Southern, which has a good attack behind guard Saah Nimley but won't have enough to dethrone the Monarchs.

(4) Illinois State vs. (5) Green Bay

Odds: Illinois State (-3)

Prediction: Illinois State plays a high-speed sort of game on both ends of the floor, led by guard Daishon Knight.

Green Bay was the second-best team in the Horizon League behind eventual champion and Big Dancer Valparaiso. Since mid-January, they've only lost to Valpo and Cleveland State, the conference's third-best team. 

That sort of consistency can't be overlooked. But Illinois State still gets the slight nod for getting it done in the difficult Missouri Valley Conference.

(3) Murray State vs. (6) UTEP

Odds: Murray State (-5)

Prediction: This is what Murray State gets for going 16-0 in the Ohio Valley Conference? A Big Dance snub, an NIT No. 3 seed and only five points against UTEP?

It's gotta hurt, bro. Gotta hurt. Here's guessing they put that hurt on to the Miners, bringing that 79.1-point scoring average and 48.4 percent shooting average right down on UTEP's head. UTEP was solid in Conference USA; they're just in the wrong place at the wrong time.

(2) Tulsa vs. (7) William & Mary

Odds: Tulsa (-6)

Prediction: The William & Mary Tribe have four players who score at least 11 points per game. They also shoot 49 percent as a team. So this is a group that knows what it's doing on the offensive side of the court.

Tulsa's 60 points allowed and 26 team rebounds per game demonstrate how well it operates defensively. Something has to give here in the No. 2-No. 7 matchup of Region 4. I swing the advantage to Tulsa, which has a much tougher strength of schedule coming out of the American Athletic Conference.