NIT 2018: Tuesday's Quarterfinals Scores, Updated Bracket and Wednesday Schedule

The quarterfinals of the 2018 National Invitation Tournament tipped off with two games Tuesday.

In the first matchup, the second-seeded Marquette Golden Eagles hosted the fourth-seeded Penn State Nittany Lions. The fourth-seeded Mississippi State Bulldogs concluded the night by hitting the road to take on the second-seeded Louisville Cardinals.

Here's a look at the results from Tuesday and the schedule for Wednesday's quarterfinal clashes. An updated bracket is available on NCAA.com.

Tuesday Results

No. 4 Penn State def. No. 2 Marquette, 85-80

No. 4 Mississippi State def. No. 2 Louisville 79-56

Wednesday Schedule

No. 4 Western Kentucky vs. No. 2 Oklahoma State (8 p.m. ET)

No. 2 Utah vs. No. 1 Saint Mary's (10 p.m. ET)

Tuesday Recap

Penn State def. Marquette 85-80

Marquette's comeback attempt fell short in the fourth quarter, as Penn State advanced to the NIT semifinals with an 85-80 victory at Al McGuire Center.

The Golden Eagles trailed by 12 points, 63-51, entering the final frame. Marquette slowly chipped away at the deficit, and Andrew Rowsey made it a four-point game, 82-78, after hitting a three-pointer with 15 seconds remaining.

Following a made free throw by Tony Carr to give Penn State a little breathing room, Rowsey responded with a layup to bring Marquette to within three, 83-80, with seven seconds left.

The Golden Eagles had no choice but to send Carr back to the charity stripe, though, and he sank two more free throws to seal the win for Penn State.

The sophomore guard finished with 25 points, six rebounds and seven assists. Lamar Stevens scored a game-high 30 points for the Nittany Lions as well, and Shep Garner chipped in with 19 points.

Rowsey's Marquette career ended in defeat, but the senior guard did the best he could to get the Golden Eagles through to the next round. He led the team with 29 points and eight assists.

Mississippi State def. Louisville 79-56

Mississippi State cruised to a 79-56 win over Louisville on Tuesday at KFC Yum! Center.

According to ESPN Stats & Info, Mississippi State's 23-point margin of victory was the biggest for a road team against Louisville since February 2001.

The Bulldogs defense smothered the Cardinals all game. Louisville shot 35 percent from the field and went 7-of-24 from beyond the arc. Ray Spalding finished with a double-double (13 points, 11 rebounds), while Deng Adel scored 11 points. Beyond those two, though, Louisville had little offense to speak of. Quentin Snider, in particular, struggled, scoring six points on 2-of-10 shooting.

The Cardinals also provided the Bulldogs with a helping hand by turning the ball over 16 times, above their season average of 11.7.

Quinndary Weatherspoon played a starring role for Mississippi State, scoring 19 points and grabbing 14 rebounds. Aric Holman stepped up to provide 16 points and eight rebounds off the bench.

Mississippi State will meet Penn State in the NIT semifinals, which begin March 27 at Madison Square Garden in New York City.