NIT 2022: Top Storylines and Players to Watch in Quarterfinals Bracket

Eight teams are one win away from playing in the men's NIT semifinals at Madison Square Garden.

The basketball programs left in the postseason tournament come with an intriguing mix of storylines.

The Xavier Musketeers made the final eight without an active head coach on their bench. Travis Steele was fired after the team's first-round victory. Sean Miller was announced as his replacement, but the assistants left over from Steele's staff are guiding the NIT run.

Xavier is one of six seeded teams still alive in the NIT. The Texas A&M Aggies are the only No. 1 seed in the final eight.

The two unseeded teams still alive will face each other in the quarterfinal round after the St. Bonaventure Bonnies and Virginia Cavaliers combined to eliminate all four seeds in their bracket.

The quarterfinal round will be played Tuesday and Wednesday. The four winners will meet in the semifinals at MSG on March 29.

Top Storylines

Xavier Trying to Win NIT Under Bizarre Circumstances

Xavier has experienced an unconventional NIT run.

The Musketeers defeated the Cleveland State Vikings in the first round and then Steele was fired.

The Big East program has a replacement lined up in former Arizona head coach Miller, who coached at Xavier before his leap to the Pac-12.

Interim head coach Jonas Hayes, who was an assistant under Steele, stepped in for the second-round win over the Florida Gators, who also lost their head coach in the past two weeks.

Xavier advanced to the quarterfinal round at a cost, as star guard Paul Scruggs suffered a knee injury. The Musketeers come into their clash with the Vanderbilt Commodores short-handed and with an interim head coach in tow.

If Xavier makes it back to Madison Square Garden, where it lost in the Big East tournament first round, it will go down as one of this year's best postseason accomplishments given the circumstances.

Virginia Making Run as Unseeded Team 

Virginia is the most recognizable men's basketball program in the NIT final eight.

We are usually talking about the Cavaliers playing in the NCAA men's basketball tournament, but they came up short in an average-at-best ACC this season.

Virginia channeled the energy from its late-season push toward the bubble into back-to-back road wins in the NIT.

Tony Bennett's team knocked off the Mississippi State Bulldogs and North Texas Mean Green to set up an all-unseeded clash with St. Bonaventure.

Virginia holds the advantage of playing Tuesday's quarterfinal at home inside John Paul Jones Arena.

The Cavaliers could use the home-court advantage in their favor, as well as the postseason experience gained from previous NCAA tournaments, to get past St. Bonaventure.

A Virginia win would extend a terrific postseason for the ACC. The conference has two teams in the NIT quarterfinals and three in the NCAA tournament Sweet 16.

Players to Watch

Quenton Jackson, G, Texas A&M

Quenton Jackson produced 27 points in Texas A&M's first two NIT wins.

Jackson was a vital piece of the Aggies' run to the SEC tournament final, which left them right outside of the NCAA tournament bubble.

Texas A&M earned one of the four No. 1 seeds in the NIT as one of the first four teams out of the field of 68.

Jackson leads Texas A&M with 14.5 points per game, and he is one of the most dynamic players left in the tournament. He is good for a highlight dunk or two when he gets the opportunity.

The A&M guard has one single-digit point performance dating back to January 22 and will be a key reason why the Aggies land in New York if they beat the Wake Forest Demon Deacons on Wednesday.

Gideon George, F, BYU 

Gideon George has been one of the most surprising players through two rounds.

The BYU forward averages 8.9 points per game. He eclipsed that total easily with his point totals against the Northern Iowa Panthers and Long Beach State. George produced 27 points and six rebounds in the second-round win over Northern Iowa and began the tournament with 16 points versus LBSU.

He provided a boost to the BYU scoring lineup, which is led by Alex Barcello, and it is one of the reasons why the Cougars are one win away from New York.

BYU plays host to the Washington State Cougars on Wednesday and may view a trip to New York as a nice consolation in a season when it barely missed out on the NCAA tournament.

The Cougars were in the mix with the Gonzaga Bulldogs, San Francisco Dons and Saint Mary's Gaels in the West Coast Conference this season. All of those battles in the WCC appear to be helping George and his teammates in the NIT.