NCAA announces college basketball's NIT is moving from Madison Square Garden
For more than 80 years, the final rounds of college basketball’s National Invitation Tournament have been played at New York City’s Madison Square Garden. The event was hosted in Texas in 2021 amid the COVID-19 pandemic, but in every other year since 1938, the NIT champion has been crowned at MSG.
No more.
The NCAA announced Friday that the semifinals and championship for the tournament will be held in Las Vegas in 2023 and in Indianapolis in 2024.
Both host cities were selected after a nationwide bid process in the spring. Hosted by UNLV, the 2023 semifinals and championship game will be played on March 28 and 30 at Orleans Arena. In 2024, Butler will serve as host with games played at Hinkle Fieldhouse on April 2 and 4.
The 32-team event will retain its format—seeding only the top 16 teams while placing the remaining 16 into the bracket with geography in mind—but a new setting will almost assuredly lead to a new feel.
Washington State advanced to the NIT semifinals last season, falling to Texas A&M.