NIT Bracket 2015: Schedule and Odds Advice for Semifinals in New York

Need a college basketball fix during the wait for the Final Four?

The NIT bracket features just four teams left standing and goes down Tuesday night. While it doesn't feature legendary coaches and future top-five NBA draft selections like its big brother, the games from Madison Square Garden promise to deliver.

Even better, Las Vegas doesn't seem rather confident about how each contest will play out, meaning there's coin available for the taking for those bettors who take the time to dig deep and come away with a pick for both games. 

Let's do so below.

NIT Semifinals

Date	Time (ET)	Matchup (Odds)
March 31	7 p.m.	No. 1 Temple vs. No. 2 Miami (Fla.) (-1)
March 31	9 p.m.	No. 2 Stanford (-2) vs. No. 1 Old Dominion

A printable NIT bracket is also available on NCAA.com. Odds courtesy of Odds Shark as of March 31 at 1 p.m. ET.

No. 1 Temple vs. No. 2 Miami (Fla.) (-1)

Matt Slocum/Associated Press

Now this is an interesting line.

The Miami Hurricanes are a strong team, but it might be best not to just roll with the more recognizable school and call it a night.

To be fair, the Hurricanes took down sixth and seventh seeds before besting top-seeded Richmond. Against the Spiders, center Tonye Jekiri put on a show, as he always does, scoring eight points and grabbing 10 boards to help his team win the rebounding battle 47-32.

Team	ADJ OFF	ADJ DEF
Temple	124	22
Miami (Fla.)	39	96

It's worth noting, though, Miami ranks 62nd in ESPN's RPI rankings, whereas the Temple Owls come in at 34th. Adjusted efficiency numbers at KenPom.com point out an interesting tale of the tape, too.

So far, teams just can't score enough on Temple to secure anything close to a victory. In fact, the Owls' first three opponents scored 67, 77 and 59 points. 

Then there is senior Will Cummings, who has scored 30, 21 and 15 points over the first three games of the bracket. Right now, he's a man on a mission, not wanting his collegiate career to come to an end.

“I’m still not satisfied at all,” he said, per Donald Hunt of The Philadelphia Tribune. “I still got two more games of college basketball in my career.”

While Miami boasts better size down low to win the battle on the glass, it matters little if Cummings comes out firing again and doesn't give the Hurricanes' big men anything to rebound. 

Better defense and guard play will make the difference in crunch time.

Prediction: Temple 68, Miami 65

No. 2 Stanford (-2) vs. No. 1 Old Dominion

Ethan Miller/Getty Images

Call Tuesday's late game a war of contrasting styles.

Top-seeded Old Dominion wins thanks to impressive size and an ability to shut down most teams. Second-seeded Stanford pours it on early and often to overwhelm opponents. Both approaches have worked thus far in the bracket.

KenPom.com's efficiency numbers tell the story:

Team	ADJ OFF	ADJ DEF
Stanford	30	100
Old Dominion	132	37

It's hard not to love what the Monarchs have accomplished to date. Their first three opponents scored 56, 49 and 69 points, the last total being quite a low number for the explosive Murray State Racers.

Yet Las Vegas seems to lean with Stanford for good reason, and it's not just because the Cardinal are the bigger school.

Stanford touts experience in this whole shindig and a potent offense capable of matching Old Dominion blow for blow. Thank senior Chasson Randle—he helped lead the Cardinal to a 2012 NIT triumph and is one of the nation's most explosive players.

He posted a respectable 18 points against UC Davis, hit on a career-high 35 points when it mattered most to outgun third-seeded Rhode Island and poured in 16 more to move past Vanderbilt.

"I just come in every single game focused. I'm always thinking attack when I'm out there on the floor," Randle said, Janie McCauley of The Associated Press. "I don't think anybody can guard me, in my head. I'm just always trying to stay aggressive."

Old Dominion won't be able to keep pace with an offense averaging 72.3 points per game and cleaning up the boards well at 36.6 rebounds per game. With the game on the line, it doesn't make sense to bet against the experienced, potent Randle and the Cardinal.

Prediction: Stanford 60, Old Dominion 57 

Stats and info are courtesy of ESPN.com unless otherwise specified.