NIT 2018: Schedule, Live Stream and Bracket Predictions for Semifinals

For the second straight year, all four No. 1 seeds failed to make the men's National Invitation Tournament semifinals. The magic number this year was four, as three No. 4 seeds (Western Kentucky, Mississippi State and Penn State) made it to Madison Square Garden in New York City alongside No. 2 Utah.

Here's a look at the remaining NIT schedule alongside some live-stream information and predictions.

Schedule and Live-Stream Information

Tuesday, March 27 at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN and WatchESPN: No. 4 Western Kentucky vs. No. 2 Utah

Tuesday, March 27 at 9 p.m. ET on ESPN and WatchESPN: No. 4 Penn State vs. No. 4 Mississippi State

Thursday, March 29 at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN2 and WatchESPN: Western Kentucky/Utah winner vs. Penn State/Mississippi State winner

Preview and Predictions

Penn State vs. Mississippi State

The Penn State Nittany Lions are ranked 26th in the latest Pomeroy College Basketball Ratings and have three wins against Ohio State (a No. 5 seed in this year's NCAA tournament) on their resume. They posted three impressive NIT victories, taking down No. 5 Temple before upsetting No. 1 Notre Dame (the first team out of the NCAA tournament field) and No. 2 Marquette.

PSU, which has won 24 games this year, has done well lately in part because of a deep and balanced scoring attack. Five players average double digits, led by sophomore guard Tony Carr's 19.8 points per game. On the boards, 6'9" forward Mike Watkins leads the way with 8.9 rebounds a night. The sophomore big man also paces the team in blocks with 2.3 per game.

The Mississippi State Bulldogs posted perhaps the most impressive win of the entire NIT, as they crushed Louisville on the road, 79-56. The Weatherspoon brothers (junior Quinndary and freshman guard Nick) are one and two on the team in scoring, posting 14.7 and 11 points per game, respectively. Three players average six or more rebounds a night, led by junior forward Aric Holman and his 6.8 on average.

PSU is a 2.5-point favorite in most sportsbooks, according to OddsShark, and that number seems about right. Carr is going to be hard for the Bulldogs to stop, while Watkins will be able to hang with the Bulldogs' talented group of rebounders. Look for PSU to win a close one.

Western Kentucky vs. Utah

Western Kentucky posted three wins against power-conference teams to get to the NIT semifinals, beating Boston College at home before going on the road and taking down USC and Oklahoma State. Five players average 11.1 or more points per game, led by Justin Johnson with his 15.4 per outing. The 6'7" senior forward also leads the team in rebounds (9.4) and three-point percentage (41.5).

As a team, the Hilltoppers make nearly half of their field-goal attempts (49.7 percent) and rank eighth out of 351 Division I teams in that department. They also rank 45th overall in the Pomeroy Ratings, ahead of NCAA tournament teams such as North Carolina State, Arizona State and Oklahoma.

A 3-6 stretch in Pac-12 play likely sabotaged the Utah Utes' NCAA tournament chances, but they've done fairly well otherwise, going 19-5 in 24 games. They posted an impressive overtime victory at Saint Mary's to make the NIT semifinals, thanks in part to 19 points in 44 minutes from junior guard Sedrick Barefield.

Senior guard Justin Bibbins leads the team with 14.7 points per game, while senior forward David Collette is second in points (12.5) and first in field-goal percentage (the 6'10" big man makes an eye-popping 64.0 percent of his shots). Another 6'10" forward (senior Tyler Rawson) posts 10.8 points and a team-leading 6.9 boards per game.

OddsShark lists the Hilltoppers as a one-point favorite in a game that seems like a coin flip on paper. It's difficult to pick between the two, but WKU has been on fire of late, and its earlier-round wins were undoubtedly impressive. It also beat Purdue, a No. 2 seed in this year's NCAA tournament, earlier this year.

Like PSU, Western Kentucky will win a nail-biter.