Ole Miss snubbed for NIT bid as LSU opts to end its season early

Published 8:53 am Monday, March 14, 2016

The National Invitation Tournament will have plenty of teams from the Southeastern Conference competing for college basketball’s consolation prize.

Ole Miss and LSU will not be among them.

Ole Miss was left out of the 32-team field announced Sunday evening, while LSU announced a few hours earlier that it had decided not to participate in any postseason tournaments.

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Ole Miss had made the NCAA Tournament in 2013 and 2015. This will be just the third time in 10 seasons under head coach Andy Kennedy — but the second time in three years — that it did not receive a postseason bid.

The Rebels finished the season with a 20-12 record, but a midseason swoon and no wins against teams in the top 50 of the Ratings Percentage Index rankings proved costly.

An 81-73 loss to Alabama in the second round of the Southeastern Conference Tournament, when the Rebels needed a deep run or to win it all to improve their standing, was the final nail in the coffin.

Ole Miss had a final RPI of 96, and its strength of schedule ranked 169th in the country.

While Ole Miss was disappointed on Selection Sunday, LSU decided on its own to bring the season to an end.

The Tigers (19-14) lost 71-38 to Texas A&M in the SEC Tournament semifinals on Saturday and were one of a number of teams on the bubble for the NCAA Tournament.

When the 68-team bracket for the Big Dance was announced and LSU wasn’t in it, the school issued a statement saying it would skip the postseason altogether.

“We will be able to utilize this time to get better and start preparations for next season,” LSU coach Johnny Jones said in the release. “We fell short of the mark of getting to the NCAA Tournament; I take full responsibility for this team, and will do the things necessary to make sure we are able to reach one of our main goals at LSU in the future.”

NIT committee chairman Reggie Minton told ESPN that LSU was “definitely under consideration” for a bid.

LSU would have gone into the postseason without starting guard Keith Hornsby, who had surgery for an internal injury last week. Freshman guard Antonio Blakeney has also been battling an illness and would have been questionable for any games this week.

“That also factored into our decision, but it is primarily now my responsibility to begin working and preparing our players for the prospects that lie ahead,” Jones said.

LSU’s decision not to play could bring an end to the college career of Ben Simmons. The SEC’s Freshman of the Year averaged 19.2 points and 11.8 rebounds per game, and is expected to be one of the first picks in the NBA draft. Simmons has not yet announced whether he’ll return for another season at LSU.

While the Rebels’ and Tigers’ seasons are done, a total of seven Southeastern Conference teams received postseason bids.

Vanderbilt, Texas A&M and Kentucky all got invitations to the NCAA Tournament.

South Carolina, Alabama, Florida and Georgia will play in the NIT. South Carolina (24-8) earned a No. 1 seed and will host High Point in the first round.

Alabama (18-14) will play at Creighton in the first round, Florida (19-14) will face North Florida, and Georgia (19-13) will host Belmont.

Florida is a No. 2 seed in the tournament, but will have to go on the road for its NIT opener because renovations have begun to its on-campus arena.

Alabama will be making its fourth NIT appearance in six seasons.

“We’re excited for the opportunity to participate in the NIT,” first-year Alabama coach Avery Johnson said in a school release. “Obviously, coming into this season, there weren’t many people picking us to participate in any postseason. We defied the odds all year.”

About Ernest Bowker

Ernest Bowker is The Vicksburg Post's sports editor. He has been a member of The Vicksburg Post's sports staff since 1998, making him one of the longest-tenured reporters in the paper's 140-year history. The New Jersey native is a graduate of LSU. In his career, he has won more than 50 awards from the Mississippi Press Association and Associated Press for his coverage of local sports in Vicksburg.

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