UCI in NIT

The UC Irvine men’s basketball team will visit Illinois State to open the NIT on Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. Pacific Time in Normal, Ill.

The Anteaters (21-14) won the Big West Conference regular-season title, but lost in the conference tournament final to UC Davis, 50-47, on Saturday to miss out on the conference’s lone bid into the NCAA Tournament.

Illinois State (27-6) shared the Missouri Valley Conference regular-season crown and lost to fellow co-champ Wichita State, 71-51 in the conference tournament final on Sunday.

It’s the fifth straight national postseason appearance for UCI, which has posted five consecutive 20-win seasons. The Anteaters are led by Big West Player of the Year Luke Nelson, a 6-foot-3 senior guard.

UCI also relies heavily upon senior guard Jaron Martin, a first-team all-conference honoree, and senior Ioannis Dimakopoulos, a 7-2 center who earned second-team All-Big West recognition.

Nelson and Martin were both named to the Big West All-Tournament team.

Coach Russell Turner’s ‘Eaters reached the championship game of the CollegeInsider.com tournament last season.

It’s the sixth trip to the NIT for UCI, which is 2-5 in the tournament. It last won an NIT game in 1986, when it won at UCLA, 80-74.

— From staff reports