This Time, UCLA Accepts the NIT Bid

At UCLA, an old dream died Sunday and a new one was born. The Bruins were passed over by the NCAA for its 64-team field, but accepted by the National Invitation Tournament, as one of the next-best 32.

This was the Bruins’ second NIT bid and quickly became the first one they have accepted. They’ll play Thursday night (7:35) in Pauley Pavilion against Montana (22-7), the Big Sky runner-up.

With the NCAA expanding its field almost annually, by 11 teams this season, the NIT has become so much of an afterthought that it is going to hold a preseason tournament next season, in addition to its normal post-season one.

However this tournament includes some big names: Louisville, which lost Milt Wagner; Indiana, which lost its way; and the Bruins, who may have been within one loss of the NCAAs.

And it may not be the post-season tournament the Bruins wanted, but it’s the only one they’ve got.

They saw it coming, too. Even as they held out hope for the NCAA, Bruin officials conceded privately late Saturday night that their best shot was the NIT.

UCLA, accustomed to making the NCAA as a matter of course, turned down its first NIT bid a year ago. Hazzard wanted it, though. He thought his players deserved it and he feared the recruiting consequences of another refusal. The Bruin turn-down last season was criticized as arrogant and another sign of the incredible pressure a player would have to endure in the UCLA program.

Hazzard’s athletic director, Peter Dalis, began pushing for it quietly. Dalis met with the faculty committee on athletics Friday and was given the go-ahead. Hazzard told the Bruins before Saturday night’s victory at Oregon that if they won, they’d go “somewhere.”

“We’re in post-season,” Hazzard said Sunday, “and I’m loving it . . .

“I think we did the very best we could do with this team, considering the schedule. . . . I think it’s a major accomplishment for us this year, as coaches at UCLA. I’m really happy for our seniors. They’ve worked hard. They’ve suffered at times. They haven’t had really easy careers here. . . . I talked to Brad Wright and Nigel Miguel today. They called me right after they saw the NCAA pairings. . . . One thing I know, we’ll have a great practice tomorrow . . . “I think what really hurt us was SC getting defeated yesterday at home by Oregon State. If they’d have beaten Oregon State, that would have eliminated Oregon State (the Beavers were one of the four Pacific 10 teams to make the NCAA). It would have given us a third-place tie with Arizona. SC would have been the champions, Washington would have been runners-up. Arizona and UCLA would have been the top four teams in the conference.

“The NCAA’s final conclusion was that Oregon State’s record (22-9) was better than ours (16-12) overall. As well as Arizona’s . . .

“If (Larry) Friend makes those free throws, we’re talking about something else. We did what we could do to help them win the title. (UCLA’s Thursday victory over the Beavers clinched a tie for USC). But I’m not pointing fingers. We had a lot of opportunities . . . We had the situation in our hands and didn’t take the cheese.”

The Bruins were 17-11 last season under Larry Farmer, then lost Farmer, leading scorer Kenny Fields, captain and point guard Ralph Jackson and center Stuart Gray. They started 3-6 under Hazzard, but won 13 of their final 19. Of the six losses, five were either by one point or came in overtime.

They took a four-game losing streak that started with their double-overtime loss to USC, then won seven of their last eight games, The only loss was the four-overtime loss to USC.

For Bruins’ fans who have no idea how the NIT works, here’s the setup:

The 32 teams play at sites around the country for the first three rounds. Then the surviving four teams meet at Madison Square Garden March 27 in the semifinals and March 29 for the final.

Requests for ticket information should be directed to the UCLA ticket office.

The NIT starts Tuesday when Texas A&M; (18-11) plays at New Mexico (18-12). Canisius (20-8) plays at Nebraska (15-13) on Wednesday.

Seven games are scheduled for Thursday. They are Montana (22-7) at UCLA (16-12); Alcorn State (23-6) at Louisville; Virginia (15-15) at West Virginia (20-8); Bradley (17-12) at Marquette (18-10); Tennessee (18-14) at Tennessee Tech (19-9); Florida (18-11) at Southwestern Louisiana (16-13) and Kent State (17-12) vs. Cincinnati (16-13) at Riverfront Coliseum in Cincinnati; St. Joseph’s, Pa. (18-11) at Missouri (18-13).

On Friday, it’s Houston (16-13) at Lamar (19-11); Butler (19-9) at Indiana (15-13); Clemson (16-12) at Tennessee Chattanooga (22-7); Fordham (19-11) at Richmond (20-10); Santa Clara (20-8) at Fresno State (21-8) and Wake Forest (15-13) at South Florida (17-11).