NIT 2016: Wednesday Round 1 Scores, Updated Bracket and 2nd-Round Schedule

The first round of the NCAA tournament gets underway Thursday, but college basketball fans looking for action between high-profile schools needed to look no further than the NIT on Wednesday.    

Teams such as St. Bonaventure, Georgia, Belmont, Virginia Tech, BYU, Georgia Tech and Monmouth (and its celebrating bench) all took the floor Wednesday with dreams of Madison Square Garden for the NIT semifinals and finals. 

With that in mind, here is a look at Wednesday's scores, as well as a second-round schedule and a link to an updated bracket.

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Wednesday's Scores

Matchup	Result
St. Bonaventure vs. Wagner	79-75, Wagner
Georgia vs. Belmont	93-84, Georgia
Monmouth vs. Bucknell	90-80, Monmouth
Virginia Tech vs. Princeton	86-81, Virginia Tech (OT)
George Washington vs. Hofstra	82-80, George Washington
Georgia Tech vs. Houston	81-62, Georgia Tech
BYU vs. UAB	97-79, BYU

Second-Round Schedule and Bracket

Date	Time (ET)	TV	Matchup
March 17	7 p.m.	ESPNEWS	Florida State at Valparaiso
March 18	9:30 p.m.	ESPN U	Virginia Tech at BYU
March 19	12 p.m.	ESPN	Wagner at Creighton
March 20	12 p.m.	ESPN	Florida at Ohio State
March 20	7:30 p.m.	ESPN U	Georgia at Saint Mary's
March 21	7 p.m.	ESPN	George Washington at Monmouth
March 21	9 p.m.	ESPN	Georgia Tech at South Carolina
March 21	11:30 p.m.	ESPN 2	Washington at San Diego State

An updated bracket can be found here, courtesy of NCAA.com. The second-round schedule and broadcast information is courtesy of NESN.com. 

Wednesday Action

Wagner 79, St. Bonaventure 75

The No. 1 seeds may be safe in the NCAA tournament against the No. 16s, but that is not the case in the NIT when they face the No. 8 seeds. Top-seeded St. Bonaventure lost to Wagner, 79-75, and didn't exactly send a message to the selection committee that it belonged in the Big Dance.  

Romone Saunders played a leading role for the victors off the bench with 21 points, seven rebounds and four assists and connected on four shots from deep.

As for the Bonnies, they turned it over 12 times and only hit 9-of-31 from three-point range. Marcus Posley (18 points) and Jaylen Adams (24 points) led the offensive effort, but they were also far from shy from downtown and combined to shoot 9-of-27 between the two of them from long range.

Georgia 93, Belmont 84 

The Georgia Bulldogs put on an offensive display Wednesday and outpaced Belmont, 93-84. 

Yante Maten, Charles Mann and J.J. Frazier spearheaded the effort on that side of the ball and helped the Bulldogs flex their muscles as the power-conference squad in this matchup. Maten posted 33 points and 10 rebounds on 14-of-17 shooting from the field, while Mann tallied 23 points and four assists.

Frazier directed the offense with 16 points and eight assists. 

The team as a whole drilled 11-of-21 from downtown and converted 22 critical free throws in the victory. Seth Emerson of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution noted the scoring outburst was somewhat out of character for Georgia:

Monmouth 90, Bucknell 80

The Monmouth Hawks may not have the chance to entertain America with their celebrations in the NCAA tournament, but they lived to see another day in the NIT with a 90-80 victory over Bucknell. 

Justin Robinson was one of three Monmouth players to score in double figures with 23 points, six rebounds and five assists, and the entire team connected on 11 three-pointers. 

Bucknell was impressive on the offensive end as well with four of five starters finishing in double figures, but it couldn't keep up with the Hawks' shooting for the entire game.

Virginia Tech 86, Princeton 81 (OT)

It took overtime, but the Virginia Tech Hokies held off Princeton, 86-81. 

It was essentially a two-man show for the Hokies with Zach LeDay and Jalen Hudson leading the way. LeDay poured in 29 points and grabbed 11 rebounds, while Hudson chipped in 28 points and eight boards. Writer Dick Weiss pointed to LeDay's play and called Virginia Tech a future tournament team in the making:

Princeton received 22 points from Steven Cook but couldn't overcome its woes from three-point territory (11-of-39 as a team).

George Washington 82, Hofstra 80

George Washington and Hofstra also played a thriller Wednesday, and the Colonials held on for dear life in the second half and walked away with the 82-80 victory.

George Washington established control early and took a 49-38 lead into the halftime locker rooms but stumbled in the second half and almost lost the game. Fortunately for the victors, Tyler Cavanaugh saved the day with a double-double with 20 points and 11 rebounds. 

Hofstra could have come away with the win, especially because Juan'ya Green scored 26 points and dished out 10 assists, but the team committed 20 costly turnovers in the loss.

Georgia Tech 81, Houston 62

Georgia Tech gave the ACC its second win during Wednesday's NIT action with an 81-62 beating of Houston. 

The Yellow Jackets' backcourt set the pace, as Adam Smith scored 20 points and Marcus Georges-Hunt chipped in 19 points and five assists. The two also combined to make five three-pointers and dictated the tempo throughout the contest against the overmatched Cougars. 

Houston was an abysmal 2-of-13 from three-point range.

BYU 97, UAB 79

The BYU Cougars were simply too much for UAB on the offensive side and notched a 97-79 victory in Wednesday's NIT action.

Despite the high point total, only four Cougars scored in double figures. However, Kyle Collinsworth's effort alone swung the tide in the game, as he finished with a triple-double with 19 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds. Chase Fischer (27 points, six rebounds and four assists) and Nick Emery (22 points, five assists and four rebounds) were also impressive. 

UAB received 29 points from Robert Brown, but it was far from enough against a dominant Cougars squad.