Virginia to host Mississippi State in NIT on Wednesday

By Jerry Ratcliffe

Virginia will host Mississippi State in the opening round of the NIT on Wednesday at 7 p.m. The game will be televised on ESPN2.

The Cavaliers (19-13) were not seeded by the NIT selection committee, while Mississippi State (18-15) was the No. 3 seed in the bracket. While MSU is seeded, Virginia will host the game due to hosting issues at MSU.

Virginia lost a lopsided ACC Tournament quarterfinal game to North Carolina in Brooklyn this past week, while Mississippi State was eliminated in the quarterfinals of the SEC by No. 2 seed Tennessee. The Bulldogs were the No. 10 seed in the SEC.

While veteran Ben Howland will coach Mississippi State in the NIT, the school has not yet determined if he will be invited back for an eighth season with the Bulldogs. Mississippi State finished as runner-up in the NIT to Memphis last season.

The NIT is a 32-team tournament with four, eight-team brackets. Madison Square Garden will host the semifinals and finals this season after not doing so the past two seasons due to the pandemic.

Fans can purchase tickets and prepaid parking at UVATIX.com. Tickets are $14 for lower-level reserved seats and $12 for upper-level general admission seats. 

Parking is available at the JPJ West lot as well as the attached garage for $10 prepaid online and $15 on Wednesday.