NIT 2015: Old Dominion vs. Stanford Semifinals Schedule and Predictions

The NIT semifinals conclude with a clash between No. 1 Old Dominion and No. 2 Stanford, as the winner will move on to face either Temple or Miami in the tournament's championship game.

Old Dominion entered the NIT on a down note after losing to Middle Tennessee in the Conference USA tournament. However, the Monarchs were able to quickly right the ship, downing Charleston Southern, Illinois State and Murray State en route to a semifinal berth.

Stanford's roller-coaster season concluded with a loss to Utah in the Pac-12 tournament, but the team has since caught fire, decisively defeating UC Davis and Rhode Island before fending off a surging Vanderbilt squad for the right to face the Monarchs and a chance to earn a spot in the championship bout.

A clash of styles between these two squads will surely lead to some compelling college hoops, so before these teams return to action, let's take a look at the game's essential viewing information and predict its winner.

No. 1 Old Dominion vs. No. 2 Stanford

When: Tuesday, March 31

Where: Madison Square Garden in New York City

Time: 9 p.m. ET

Channel: ESPN

Live Stream: WatchESPN

Preview and Prediction

Jason Hirschfeld/Associated Press

Old Dominion has one of the nation's best defenses, ranking 10th and allowing an average of just 56.8 points per game. The Monarchs began the NIT with solid performances on that end of the court, allowing just 56 and 49 points to Charleston Southern and Illinois State, respectively. Although, that wasn't quite the case against Murray State in the quarterfinals.

The Racers were able to accumulate 69 points against the Monarchs; although, many of them came from the free-throw line. While Murray State's shooters were held in check—the team shot 37.7 percent from the floor—23 Old Dominion personal fouls led to 35 free-throw attempts for Murray State, and the Monarchs were lucky only 24 of them found the target.

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Another aspect that kept Murray State in the game was Old Dominion's inability to control the interior. The Racers' larger starting five took advantage of the Monarchs' smallish rotation, accumulating 33 rebounds, including 15 offensive boards. Allowing that many second-chance opportunities could be devastating for Old Dominion going forward.

Still, the Monarchs prevailed due to some stellar play on the offensive end of the court. The team shot 52.8 percent from the floor and hit seven of 16 attempts from downtown. Guard Trey Freeman led the way with 25 points, adding three rebounds and four assists. He received help from forward Jonathan Arledge and guard Jordan Baker, who scored 12 and 11 points, respectively.

That offense will have to continue clicking against a Cardinal team that finished the regular season ranked 56th in the nation, scoring an average of 72.3 points per game, and has kept that trend alive during its run in the NIT.

Stanford's playmakers produced nicely against a Vanderbilt defense that had been playing well of late. As a team, the Cardinal shot 47.3 percent from the floor, bucketed 6-of-17 from downtown and 20-of-27 from the foul line en route to a 78-point effort.

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Guard Anthony Brown stole the show with 26 points, eight rebounds and four assists, and he was complemented nicely by the always dangerous Chasson Randle, who scored 16 points of his own. Big 6'11" center Stefan Nastic dominated the inside, scoring 12 points and adding seven rebounds.

Stanford kept the Commodores offense in check, allowing it to hit 40.4 percent of its shots from the floor; however, a red-hot Matthew Fisher-Davis kept Vanderbilt in the game, as he was the catalyst that led the team to hit an impressive 12 of 25 attempts from behind the arc. Old Dominion shoots 33.1 percent from downtown, so the Cardinal will have to improve their perimeter defense going forward.

The Monarchs are the more well-rounded team in this contest, as they've been getting it done on both ends of the court on a consistent basis, but in a game that should see plenty of jumpers from guards, second-chance opportunities will be at a premium. Due to Stanford's size advantage and prowess down low, it gets the nod here.

Prediction: Stanford 67, Old Dominion 63