This was pretty much an NIT season from the start, even when there were some hopes at times for an NCAA berth. The Utes learned their fate on Sunday afternoon, as they were picked as a No. 2 seed in the 2018 NIT tournament, and will host Cal Davis at the Huntsman Center on Wednesday night at 7 pm. The Utes are coming off of a disappointing loss to Oregon in the Pac-12 tournament, where they lead for much of the game. Fortunatley, the Utah seniors will get another chance to suit up, and at the Huntsman Center, for at least one more game.
Utes draw the No. 2 seed in the NIT and will host No. 7 seed UC Davis. #GoUtes pic.twitter.com/phBEzDpIxL
— Utah Basketball (@UtahMBB) March 12, 2018
Cal Davis finished first in the Big West Conference regular-season, going 22-10 overall and 12-4 in league-play. The Aggies went 1-1 in its conference tournament, falling to eventual tournament champion, Cal State Fullerton, in the semifinals.
Utah and Cal Davis will meet for just the third time in both program’s history. Utah is 2-0 all-time, with its last meeting coming back in 2013. The first-ever meeting took place back in 1990. Both games against UCD have been played in Salt Lake City.
The encouraging thing for the Utes is that David Collette looked great in his return from his ankle injury. but was limited with foul trouble against the Ducks. On paper, the Utes should handle Cal Davis, but as stated above, they’re a good team and they know how to win. Hopefully it doesn’t turn into a repeat of the NIT last season, where Utah choked away a win against Boise State at the Huntsman Center.
The Utes are one of five Pac-12 teams in the NIT bracket, joining USC, Stanford, Washington and Oregon. Washington is actually in the same quadrant as Utah, and could face off in the quarter finals. Washington takes on Boise State in their opened, and Saint Mary’s is the 1-see in this section of the bracket.