NIT 2015: Bracket, Schedule and Tournament's Top Teams Heading into Round 2

As the nation of hoop heads collectively holds it breath in anticipation for the NCAA tournament to kick into high gear, the NIT is already off and running.

The first round ended Wednesday night with top-seeded Colorado State, a notable NCAA snub, getting upset by South Dakota State, 86-76. The underdogs were understandably pumped after knocking off a team that seemed more concerned with the opportunity it missed out on rather than the opportunity right before it.

Murray State, one of the Madness’ more mind-blowing rejects, throttled UTEP in the opening round and will move on to face Tulsa in the tourney’s second tier. With CSU bounced, MSU would figure to have a clearer path to a championship.

The second-round schedule is outlined on the chart below, and also feel free to hit the link for an updated version of the NIT bracket.

Bracket

The full 2015 NIT bracket can be found at NCAA.com.

Schedule

Date	Time / How to watch	Matchup
3/20	9:30 p.m. / ESPNU	(8) SDSU vs. (5) Vanderbilt
3/21	11 a.m. / ESPN	(6) Alabama at (2) Miami
3/22	11 a.m. / ESPN	(5) George Washington vs (1) Temple
3/22	7:30 p.m. / ESPNU	(5) Arizona State vs. (1) Richmond
3/22	9:30 p.m. / ESPNU	(3) Rhode Island at (2) Stanford
3/23	7 p.m. / ESPN	(3) Louisiana Tech at (2) Texas A&M
3/23	8 p.m. / ESPNU	(1) Old Dominion vs. (4) Illinois State
3/23	9 p.m. / ESPN	(3) Murray State at (2) Tulsa

Contenders

Murray State

Led by superstar point guard Cameron Payne, the Racers are a fierce, high-scoring machine that went undefeated in the Ohio Valley-West’s regular season and lost by a point to Belmont in the conference final.

It was outrageous that Murray State didn’t get into the NCAA tournament. But what’s done is done and there’s no point crying about it now.

The team has shifted its focus from anger to hunger.

After knocking around the Miners for 21 points, senior T.J. Sapp talked about the team’s current mindset.

"It could be our last game any game," Sapp said, as reported by The Associated Press (via the Washington Post). "We have to be focused. We have to come out with the right mentality that we have a chip on our shoulder. We feel like people aren't hearing us right now."

With Sapp hitting shots and making plays alongside his sophomore PG, Murray State will be a tough out.

Payne, a flashy sophomore floor general, is a smack-talking, highlight-making star. He plays with a fire that doesn’t seem extinguishable—and he’s unbelievably clutch.

Murray State’s leading scorer has garnered a ton of NBA interest, and it will be interesting to see how Payne handles it. Will he see an opportunity and bolt for the pros, or will he stick around with a second chance at March Madness in mind?

Mark Humphrey/Associated Press

Evan Daniels, director of basketball recruiting at Scout.com, tweeted just how real Payne’s pro prospects are during the conference tournament:

That’s a storyline for another day, though.

"It's just the beginning to the rest of this roll," Payne said earlier in the month, per Michael Grant of The Courier-Journal. "We're going to keep working. We ain't done nothing yet. We have to keep pushing forward."

The second-seeded Tulsa Golden Hurricanes are fresh off a win over William & Mary, but it's hard to imagine them taking down the Racers. Tulsa scores just 64.3 points per game, which puts them behind 255 other programs around the country. Murray State, by comparison, scores 79.1, 11th-most in the nation.

Expect the Racers to keep on winning and making fans wish that the NCAA selection committee got this one right.

Stanford

USA TODAY Sports

What a difference a year makes.

Last season, Stanford was one of the best stories in basketball. A 10th-seeded underdog slipped past New Mexico in the first round and then dethroned Kansas, a No. 2 seed, in the round of 32. In a matchup of complete surprises, Dayton beat Stanford, 82-72, and advanced to the Elite Eight.

This year, the Cardinals were…OK. They finished fifth in the Pac-12 behind Arizona, Utah, Oregon and UCLA and had a nice win against Washington, then-21st in the nation, back in early January.

Stanford pushed a few good teams—Oregon, Arizona and UCLA, for example—but also had its fair share of absolute thrashings at the hands of superior squads.

Chasson Randle, one of the heroes of last year’s March Madness, leads the Cardinals attack with 18.9 points per game. Anthony Brown (14.9) and Stefan Nastic (13.6) are the team’s other top offensive weapons.

A Rhode Island team that ranks 22nd in points allowed and 12th in blocks won’t be an easy task for the Cardinals, but they should be able to space out the stocky Rams, whose tallest player is 6’8”. If Brown, who shoots 44.1 percent from downtown, can hit some shots, Randle and the 6’11” Nastic will have room to work.

Assuming Stanford can get by URI, the winner of Vanderbilt/South Dakota State will be the only roadblock in the way of playing in the semifinals at Madison Square Garden.

Sure, it’s not the most wonderful alternative, especially for guys like Randle, Brown and Nastic, who have experienced the magic of March.

But playing meaning basketball at MSG in the spring wouldn't be all that bad.