Handicapping the teams that are going to get into the NCAA Tournament is tough as it is, but here at Bankroll Sports, we are taking aim at some NIT Bracketology as well. Check out the teams that could be in the NIT and get a 2012 NIT Tournament preview with our March Madness picks!

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Before we begin, here’s how the NIT works. There are 32 teams that make it into the field, and before there are any other teams that are put into place, any team that won its conference regular season crown but didn’t make it into the NCAA Tournament gets an automatic spot. That’s what makes NIT Bracketology so tricky, is that we never know who is really going to be in the field of 65 in terms of the bubble, and we don’t know how many spots are going to be available for the tournament. Top seeds in conference tournaments didn’t fare all that well last year, and as a result, there were only about half the spots in the NIT to fill with other teams.

In order to do NIT Bracketology, we have to assume that we are going to see the top seeds in each of the conference tournaments earn bids to the NCAA Tournament, leaving all 32 slots open, though we know in actuality, that won’t be the case.

Last Six Teams In NCAA Tournament
Xavier Musketeers
Seton Hall Pirates
NC State Wolfpack
South Florida Bulls
Texas Longhorns
Miami Hurricanes

Note: These are the last six teams that we have in the NCAA Tournament, and we figure if they are bounced out of the dance that they will automatically drop into the NIT

And now, we will go by conference to show who is on the bubble and who is in good shape right now in each of the conferences. We are also skipping leagues that won’t have a team make it to the NIT unless there is a regular season conference winner that fails to make the NCAA Tournament.

Atlantic 10
Likely NIT Bound Right Now: Massachusetts Minutemen, St. Joseph’s Hawks
NIT Bubble: La Salle Explorers, Dayton Flyers, Duquesne Dukes
The Atlantic 10 is almost certainly going to put UMass and St. Joe’s in this field, and we wouldn’t be all that surprised if this tournament field stays wide open if teams like La Salle and Dayton are in as well. Duquesne is a lot more of a stretch at this point, but wins of late over the Minutemen and Flyers have to at least count for something.

ACC
Likely NIT Bound Right Now: Maryland Terrapins, Virginia Tech Hokies
NIT Bubble: Clemson Tigers
Virginia Tech is going to be left out of the field of 68 once again, and once again, it is going to be a decent seed here in the NIT again. Maryland looks good, while Clemson suddenly is really a stretch to make it into this field. Heck, it might not even qualify to be eligible for the field if the Tigers finish with a losing record.

Atlantic Sun
Likely NIT Bound Right Now: None
NIT Bubble: None
We continue to list the A-Sun even though there aren’t any teams that are in the NIT field right now. Belmont will get a bid regardless of whether it wins the A-Sun regular season title or not, and obviously, the Bruins will drop into the field if they don’t make it to the dance if they do hold on and win the regular season.

Big 12
Likely NIT Bound Right Now: None
NIT Bubble: Oklahoma Sooners, Texas A&M Aggies, Oklahoma State Cowboys
The Big XII might actually fall out of the NIT Bracketology all together soon. We just don’t know if these three teams are even going to finish above .500, and if none of them do and the middling three teams in this conference all qualify for the dance, there won’t be a team in the NIT from the Big XII.

Big East
Likely NIT Bound Right Now: Connecticut Huskies
NIT Bubble: Pitt Panthers
Knowing that the NIT loves taking teams from the Big East, perhaps U-Pitt is in a bit better shape than we have it as a bubble team for the NIT. UConn is a tourney team by a lot of accounts, but we just don’t think so. If we turn out to be right, the defending national champs are going to be in the NIT. This is a very similar position that the Huskies were in last year, though having Kemba Walker made a huge difference to the epic run that Head Coach Jim Calhoun and company made last season.

Big 10
Likely NIT Bound Right Now: Northwestern Wildcats, Minnesota Golden Gophers
NIT Bubble: Iowa Hawkeyes, Illinois Fighting Illini
We really just aren’t all that sure that Illinois is going to even be in the NIT or whether it would even take a bid to the NIT if it really ends up firing Head Coach Bruce Weber. Iowa is playing well right now and does have a bunch of somewhat surprising results against some decent teams in this conference. Northwestern has solid computer numbers and will end up in the NIT because of it if it doesn’t finally get to go dancing. This is also the same situation for Minnesota, which right now, with a 5-9 record in conference, is on the wrong side of the NCAA Tournament bubble.

Colonial
Likely NIT Bound Right Now: VCU Rams, George Mason Patriots
NIT Bubble: Georgia State Panthers, Old Dominion Monarchs
Hanging on to George State and ODU probably is a stretch, but there is no doubt that VCU and George Mason had better be in the NIT if they don’t end up in the dance. (The same will go for Drexel, which is currently the CAA leader. The Dragons are in the NIT regardless of where they finish in the CAA regular season standings.)

Conference USA
Likely NIT Bound Right Now: UCF Knights
NIT Bubble: Marshall Thundering Herd, Tulsa Golden Hurricane
There isn’t a lot of change right now in the C-USA. UCF is still a fringe tourney team, and if that’s the case, the Knights will be in the NIT. Marshall and Tulsa are in position to potentially make the NIT, though Tulsa has the better resume for the NIT with a 9-4 record in conference, just a half game behind both Southern Miss and Memphis, both of which are probably going to the dance.

Horizon League
Likely NIT Bound Right Now: None
NIT Bubble: Cleveland State Vikings, Butler Bulldogs
Cleveland State is still a fringe NIT team, but we are about set to let the Vikings go after they were absolutely smacked at home on BracketBusters. Butler’s run to the last two Final Fours might be good enough to get a look from the NIT, though its resume for this year just isn’t really all that great.

Missouri Valley Conference
Likely NIT Bound Right Now: Northern Iowa Panthers
NIT Bubble: Illinois State Redbirds, Missouri State Bears
The Valley is a conference that usually has a lot of teams in the NIT, but this year, we just aren’t all that sure. We tend to think that Northern Iowa will get in, but it is nowhere near a lock at this point. Illinois State and some of the other teams that have 15-18 wins in this conference are all at least going to be considered for the NIT if the bubble doesn’t get shrunk all that much.

Mountain West
Likely NIT Bound Right Now: Colorado State Rams
NIT Bubble: Wyoming Cowboys
Colorado State’s case for the NCAA Tournament is getting a bit stronger, though it certainly needs to make some noise in the MWC Tournament. Wyoming has a lot of wins, but in conference play, the Cowboys just haven’t been able to compete with the top teams. We drop the Cowboys into the NIT bubble, but we still think at least right now, they would be okay.

Pac-12
Likely NIT Bound Right Now: Oregon Ducks, Colorado Buffaloes
NIT Bubble: Stanford Cardinal, UCLA Bruins
With the added bids that the Pac-12 might get to the NCAA Tournament, the bids to the NIT might be slashed. Oregon still feels like it could be a tourney team, and Colorado, one of the successful teams last year in the NIT, might have a case as well. Still, these two teams are probably on the wrong side of the bubble right now and should be in the NIT without much question. Stanford has the wins and UCLA has the name, but neither one of these teams are certainly in good shape for the NIT bubble right now.

SEC
Likely NIT Bound Right Now: Arkansas Razorbacks, LSU Tigers
NIT Bubble: Ole Miss Rebels, Tennessee Volunteers
The NIT bubble has shrunk a bit for the SEC. Arkansas and LSU could be dancing still, but neither has a great resume for a spot on the floor. Tennessee and Ole Miss both have some decent NIT prospects, though neither one is going to be even remotely in the NCAA Tournament discussion. The Rebels’ loss to Vandy at home really almost certainly did them in without an epic run through the SEC.

West Coast Conference
Likely NIT Bound Right Now: Loyola Marymount Lions
NIT Bubble: San Francisco Dons
Both Loyola Marymount and San Francisco have logged some big time wins of late. Loyola trashed Valpo in BracketBusters and has a win against St. Mary’s, while San Francisco knocked off Gonzaga. Both might at least have some thoughts about dancing, though neither is probably there at this point. The Lions have the better resume though, and they are clearly an NIT at this point in our eyes if the bubble doesn’t shrink too much.

WAC
Likely NIT Bound Right Now: None
NIT Bubble: New Mexico State Aggies
With the way that the mid major conferences are going this year, New Mexico State is going to have a gripe with 20+ wins to get into the NIT, though we don’t think that it is ultimately going to happen. Nevada, the conference’s leader and soon to be regular season conference champ would drop in when push comes to shove, if the Aggies did pull off the upset, though.

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