Zags will be hosts for NIT Tip-Off

Gonzaga’s basketball presence in the Spokane Arena takes on a higher – and earlier – profile next season.

The Bulldogs will host the West Region of the NIT Season Tip-Off at the Arena on Nov. 14-15 as the event reverts to its original format after 22 years.

Gonzaga will meet Rice University as part of a Nov. 14 doubleheader that will also include Colorado State facing Baylor. The winners play the following night for the right to advance to semifinals at New York City’s Madison Square Garden on Nov. 22, but there will also be a consolation game – guaranteeing all participants two games.

Charlotte, Nashville and Indianapolis will be the other regional sites, with North Carolina, Tennessee and Indiana serving as the host schools.

“Going to regional sites and guaranteeing teams two games levels the playing field and just makes good basketball sense,” said NIT committee chair C.M. Newton.

This will be Gonzaga’s second appearance in the NIT Season Tip-Off after posting a 1-1 record in the 1998 event against Memphis and Purdue on the road.

“This is a great opportunity for our program and the city of Spokane,” said Gonzaga athletic director Mike Roth. “This is something our program has been working on for some time and we are excited about hosting the NIT first rounds in its new format.”

Game times and ticket information will be finalized in the coming weeks. ESPN’s family of networks will telecast the tournament with coverage scheduled for at least 12 games.

In the past, first- and second-round games were played at campus sites with the winners advancing to New York.

The Arena will also be the site of the NCAA tournament first and second rounds March 15 and 17, 2007.