NCAAB: Colorado, Seton Hall eager to get going in NIT

Date:

Share post:


Whether it’s to give older players a final round of applause or allow a young team the chance to grow, coaches for Seton Hall and Colorado both say they’re “excited” to participate in the National Invitation Tournament.

The 17-win teams will meet Tuesday night in Boulder, Colo., with Colorado entering the contest as a No. 3 seed.

Buffaloes coach Tad Boyle talked about “an opportunity for young players to grow and continue to develop.”

“I look at Xavier, who won (the NIT) last year, and now they’re a 3-seed in the NCAA Tournament (this season). And they’ve got a lot of the players they had on that team back. I’m excited that we’re in it.”

Colorado (17-16) finished eighth in the Pac-12 during the regular season, then, without its second-leading scorer, lost 80-69 to powerhouse UCLA in the quarterfinals of the conference tourney.

Seton Hall coach Shaheen Holloway is also enthusiastic, although wary of making the trip from New Jersey to Colorado on a day’s notice.

“We’re excited to keep playing for the seniors and all of us. It’s a blessing to lace them up and let these guys showcase their talent on a different stage, in front of a different audience,” Holloway told the Asbury Park Press.

“In a perfect world, if they’re going to send us there, they’d let us play Wednesday so we have a day to get used to the altitude. This is not going to be an easy trip.”

The Pirates (17-15) finished the regular season tied for sixth in the Big East, then fell 66-65 to DePaul in the first round of the conference tournament.

Seton Hall’s top two scorers are seniors, although only 2.9 points per game separate leading scorer Al-Amir Dawes and fourth-best scorer Dre Davis.

In his first season at Seton Hall after three at Clemson, Dawes, a Newark, N.J., native, is averaging 12.6 points. Forward Tyrese Samuel finished at 10.9 points on 55.5 percent shooting from the floor and added 5.8 rebounds per game.

Colorado’s scoring load is more top-heavy. Junior forward Tristan da Silva averaged 16.0 points, easily a career high, and 4.9 rebounds. He has made 50.6 percent of his shots from the field, including 40.2 percent of his 3-point attempts.

Sophomore guard KJ Simpson was right behind da Silva at 15.9 points and 4.3 boards per game. However, he missed the Buffaloes’ past three games with mononucleosis and was to be reevaluated on Monday.

–Field Level Media

spot_img

Related articles

NCAAB: Top 25 roundup: Cooper Flagg, No. 12 Duke down No. 17 Arizona

Cooper Flagg scored 24 points and No. 12 Duke picked up its first victory against a power-conference team...

NCAAB: No. 10 North Carolina breezes to victory at Hawaii

RJ Davis scored 18 points, Elliot Cadeau notched 12 of his 17 points in the second half and...

NCAAB: Stanford looks to avenge last season’s loss to Santa Clara

Stanford will look to remain undefeated when the Cardinal leave home for the first time this season for...

NCAAB: Tyler Harris scores 27 as Washington tops pesky Alcorn State

Tyler Harris scored a career-high 27 points on 8-of-11 shooting from the field and grabbed a game-high eight...

FREE

Get the most important breaking news and analyses for Free.

Thank you for subscribing

Something went wrong.