Georgia Tech to host NIT game Tuesday

The Georgia Tech men’s basketball team will continue its season at 7 p.m. Tuesday when it faces Jacksonville State in the first round of the National Invitation Tournament.

The Yellow Jackets (17-16) went 1-1 last week at the ACC tournament.

Tech is 14-9 in its history playing in the NIT and last played in the event in 2017, when it reached the championship and lost to TCU in Madison Square Garden in New York. The NIT is a 32-team tournament that runs through April 3 with semifinals and finals being played at Hinkle Fieldhouse on the campus of Butler University in Indianapolis.

The postseason appearance is the first for Tech since it made the 2021 NCAA Tournament. It is the first for Damon Stoudamire in his second season as Tech’s coach.

“We have had a lot of injuries this year, a lot of setbacks. But a lot of us fought this year, regardless of what was going on, whether it was physical or mental,” Tech senior guard Lance Terry said Thursday after the Jackets lost to Duke. “Just proud of our team, just how we fought and everything, and that’s a lot of credit to (Stoudamire), as well. He pulled that energy and pulled that grit out of us.

Jacksonville State (22-12) finished third in Conference USA this season and lost Saturday in the conference tournament title game to Liberty. The Gamecocks had a NET ranking of 122 and only played two Quadrant 1 opponents, losing both.