The National Invitational Tournament saw two future Pac-12 teams advance to the semi-final round in New York’s Madison Square Garden. However, both Washington State and Colorado saw their runs end there, with losses to Wichita State and Alabama, respectively.
The Cougars and Shockers squared off in Tuesday’s first semi-final matchup, but Wichita State quickly took control of the game and won the game 75-44. The Cougars scored just 19 first-half points en route to a 17-point halftime deficit. From there it only got worse for the suddenly offensively stagnant Cougars.
Washington State failed to find its offensive rhythm early against a Wichita State team that was able to abuse the Cougars and take them out of their offensive game plan. Much of the Cougars struggles can be attributed to leading scorer Klay Thompson’s foul trouble- the junior wing had three fouls in the game’s first 10 minutes and was forced to sit the rest of the half.
For its part, Wichita State dominated the Cougars on both the offensive and defensive boards. The Shockers outrebounded Washington State by an astonishing 27 boards. Garrett Stutz came off the bench to lead Wichita State with 24 points and 11 rebounds, simply overpowering the Cougars undersized frontline.
The Cougars now head into the offseason awaiting word from several of its top players as to whether they will return for next season.
Colorado suffered a similar fate as the Cougars, albeit in much more competitive fashion. Sophomore guard and the Buffaloes’ leading scorer Alec Burks’ game-winning shot attempt hit back iron and Colorado fell 62-61 to the University of Alabama.
Trailing 61-60 with 12 seconds left to play, freshman guard Trevor Releford drove down the left baseline for a go-ahead lay up. That set up Burks’ shot attempt the caught the rim as time expired to preserve the Alabama victory and send the Crimson Tide into the NIT championship game against Wichita State.
Junior forward JaMychal green paced the Crimson Tide with 22 points and five rebounds in just 26 minutes of play before fouling out. Releford chipped in 13 points, six assists and four steals to go along with his game-winning basket.
Alabama and Wichita State will play for the NIT Championship title Thursday in Madison Square Garden.
Colorado, for its part, looks poised to make some noise as it transitions to the Pac-12 next year under head coach Tad Boyle.
No comments:
Post a Comment