In their nine seasons under head coach Chuck Orsborn in the '50s and '60s, Bradley was the NIT champs three times and runner-up once, and went to the NIT three other times - but they did not make the NCAA even once during that period, despite seven 20-win seasons.

(03-30-2021 08:26 PM)MICHAELSPAPPY Wrote:  In their nine seasons under head coach Chuck Orsborn in the '50s and '60s, Bradley was the NIT champs three times and runner-up once, and went to the NIT three other times - but they did not make the NCAA even once during that period, despite seven 20-win seasons.

The NIT used to be considered "bigger" than the NCAA tournament. That supposedly changed sometime in the 1950's, but I wonder if that had something to do with this.

From Wikipedia-

In its early years, the NIT offered some advantages over the NCAA tournament:

There was limited national media coverage of college basketball in the 1930s and '40s, and playing in New York City provided teams greater media exposure, both with the general public and among high school prospects in its rich recruiting territory.
The NCAA tournament selection committee invited only one team each from eight national regions, potentially leaving better quality selections and natural rivals out of its field, which would opt for the NIT.[5][6]
Preeminence
From its onset and at least into the mid-1950s, the NIT was regarded as the most prestigious showcase for college basketball.