BYU gets 'great opportunity' in NIT, hosts Washington


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PROVO — Seven years after BYU last played in the NIT, the Cougar hoopsters are back in that tournament field.

Sunday night, almost three hours after the NCAA Tournament bids were handed out, BYU was awarded an NIT berth and a valued home game as a three seed, matched up with the University of Washington. BYU will host the sixth-seeded Huskies Tuesday night at 7:30 p.m. MT, in the Marriott Center.

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In a statement released by BYU on Sunday evening, head coach Dave Rose said "We're very excited to be playing in the NIT."

"It's a great opportunity for our team to keep playing and finish the season strong," said Rose. "This will be so good for our younger players to gain postseason tournament experience but I'm especially excited that our seniors get to play another game in the Marriott Center."

BYU comes into the NIT at 21-11 on the season, with an RPI in the mid-to-high 60s; 18-15 Washington has an RPI in the high 80s. Both teams were knocked out in the quarterfinals of their respective conference tournaments; BYU fell to sub-.500 San Diego in the WCC tournament, while the Huskies took eventual Pac-12 tourney champ Oregon to overtime in defeat.

"Washington has a great basketball tradition," Rose said on Sunday night. "They have a nationally respected coach in Lorenzo Romar and compete in one of the top leagues in the country. Our staff and players are really looking forward to Tuesday."

If BYU is able to advance to the NIT's Second Round, the Cougars would host either second-seeded Tennessee or seventh-seeded Mercer. Although a favored seed, the Volunteers have an upcoming venue conflict and would travel west, were they to advance to round two.

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BYU and Washington last met on Dec. 9, 1997, in Provo; the Huskies won 83-68, in the seventh game of Steve Cleveland's tenure as BYU head coach, with Rose serving as Cleveland's lead assistant.

Washington leads the all-time series 10-8; the Cougars and Huskies have split eight games played in Provo. One of those meetings was an NIT First Round game in 1982, as Washington defeated BYU 66-63 at the Marriott Center.

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BYU's NIT ticket info is as follows:

Legacy 1-5 reserved seat tickets

Tickets are on sale now by logging into your BYUtickets.com account. Legacy priority ordering period will go until Monday morning at 11:00 am MT. Tickets are $10.

Reserved Seat Tickets

All other fans may buy $10 reserved tickets beginning at 11:30 am MT on Monday morning at BYUtickets.com or by calling the Marriott Center Ticket Office at 801.422.BYU1 (2981).

Courtside Cougars

Courtside Cougars wishing to purchase tickets may call the Marriott Center Ticket Office on Monday morning beginning at 9:00 am MT at 801.422.2981 to buy their seat for $50 per ticket. Courtside Cougars will have until Monday 5:00 pm MDT to purchase their reserved tickets.

Student Section General Admission Tickets

Students will receive FREE admission with the Student All-Sport Pass or $4 without an All-Sport pass. The NW Marriott Center doors will open at 6:00 pm MST on Tuesday evening.

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2013 will mark BYU's 11th NIT appearance; the Cougars have a 12-8 NIT record, having won the tournament in 1951 and 1966.

BYU's last turn in the NIT came seven seasons ago, as BYU was on the traveling end of a 3-6 matchup, visiting and losing at Houston. Dave Rose's program went on to play in six consecutive NCAA Tournaments since that NIT appearance in 2006.

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