The Redbirds, with a 27-6 record, were not selected as an at-large team to the NCAA Tournament when pairings were revealed Sunday afternoon. They were hoping to break the school's 19-year NCAA tourney drought.
Instead, ISU settled for a spot in the 32-team National Invitation Tournament. As one of the first four teams left out of the NCAA, the Redbirds were given a No. 1 seed in the NIT and will face UC Irvine (21-14) at 8:30 p.m. Wednesday at Redbird Arena.
Earlier this week, ISU coach Dan Muller admitted his players “would be crushed if we don't make” the NCAA tourney.