Sports, Basketball, Men's Basketball

Eagles Earn First NIT Berth in Six Years

After an ACC Tournament quarterfinals run, Boston College men’s basketball has earned a bid to the National Invitation Tournament (NIT) for the first time since the 2017–18 season. 

The Eagles are set to play Providence on March 19 at 7 p.m. in the tournament’s first round.  

Throughout the season, BC head coach Earl Grant said he expected a breakthrough. While the 2023–24 season lacked the headline-making wins of the prior campaign, the Eagles’ 13th NIT berth shows progress. Taking on its former Big East rival Providence for the first time since 2018, BC’s first-round matchup will be the program’s first taste of postseason play in six years. 

The Eagles’ previous NIT appearance resulted in a first-round exit via a 79–62 loss to Western Kentucky—ultimately the high-water mark of the Jim Christian era. 

Following BC’s recent ACC Tournament loss to Virginia, Grant expressed hope that their story wasn’t over.

“I hope our season will continue in the postseason,” Grant said. 

Leading scorer Quinten Post, whose collegiate career is in its final days, also echoed Grant’s hope of playing in the NIT.

“I feel like we deserve a shot to play in the NIT, and I feel like we did enough to put ourselves in that spot,” Post said. “There’s some unfinished business for us.”

With their upcoming matchup against the Friars, the Eagles will get their wish and fight for their first postseason win since 2011 to improve their 17–13 all-time NIT record. 

March 17, 2024