# 2007 National Invitation Tournament

The 2007 National Invitation Tournament was a single-elimination tournament of 32 National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I teams which did not participate in the 2007 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament. The West Virginia University Mountaineers won the 2007 NIT.
The participating teams were selected by the National Invitation Tournament (NIT) selection committee using numerous resources such as computer rankings, results (head-to-head, chronological, last 10 games played, non-conference), and polls. The first round, second round, and quarterfinal games are held at the home court of the higher seed. The semifinal and final round are played at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York. The 32 participating teams were announced on March 11, 2007. This is the first time since the NIT began seeding that all of the #1 seeds made the Final Four. Not only that, but both of the semifinal matches between the #1 seeds were one point games.

## Selected teams
### Automatic qualifiers

The following teams were automatic qualifiers for the 2007 NIT field after losing in their respective conference tournaments; by virtue of winning their conferences' regular season championship and not qualifying for the NCAA tournament.
| Team | Conference | Record | Appearance | Last bid |
| Austin Peay | Ohio Valley | 21–11 | 2nd | 2004 |
| Delaware State | MEAC | 21–12 | 2nd | 2006 |
| East Tennessee State | Atlantic Sun | 24–9 | 2nd | 1983 |
| Marist | MAAC | 24–8 | 2nd | 1996 |
| Mississippi Valley State | SWAC | 18–15 | 1st | Never |
| South Alabama | Sun Belt | 20–11 | 5th | 2001 |
| Toledo | MAC | 23–9 | 7th | 2004 |
| Vermont | America East | 25–7 | 1st | Never |
Thirty-two NCAA Division I teams participated in the 2007 NIT, reduced from the prior years' 40. Teams are chosen by the NIT selection committee based on numerous resources, including "computer rankings, head-to-head results, chronological results, Division I results, non-conference results, home and away results, results in the last 10 games, polls and the coaches' regional advisory committee's rankings". The teams are then seeded according to the NIT's procedures for seeding teams. The teams are then placed into four regions: East, South, West, and North.
East Region :
| Seed | School | Conference | Record | Berth type |
| 1 | West Virginia | Big East | 22–9 | At-large bid |
| 2 | Oklahoma State | Big 12 | 22–12 | At-large bid |
| 3 | Drexel | CAA | 23–8 | At-large bid |
| 4 | UMass | A-10 | 23–8 | At-large bid |
| 5 | Alabama | SEC | 20–11 | At-large bid |
| 6 | NC State | ACC | 18–15 | At-large bid |
| 7 | Marist | MAAC | 24–8 | Automatic |
| 8 | Delaware State | MEAC | 21–12 | Automatic |
South Region :
| Seed | School | Conference | Record | Berth type |
| 1 | Clemson | ACC | 21–10 | At-large bid |
| 2 | Syracuse | Big East | 22–10 | At-large bid |
| 3 | Missouri State | MVC | 22–10 | At-large bid |
| 4 | Ole Miss | SEC | 20–12 | At-large bid |
| 5 | Appalachian State | SoCon | 25–7 | At-large bid |
| 6 | San Diego State | MWC | 21–10 | At-large bid |
| 7 | South Alabama | Sun Belt | 20–11 | Automatic |
| 8 | East Tennessee State | A-Sun | 24–9 | Automatic |
West Region :
| Seed | School | Conference | Record | Berth type |
| 1 | Air Force | MWC | 23–8 | At-large bid |
| 2 | Kansas State | Big 12 | 22–11 | At-large bid |
| 3 | DePaul | Big East | 18–13 | At-large bid |
| 4 | Georgia | SEC | 18–13 | At-large bid |
| 5 | Fresno State | WAC | 22–9 | At-large bid |
| 6 | Hofstra | CAA | 22–9 | At-large bid |
| 7 | Vermont | America East | 25–7 | Automatic |
| 8 | Austin Peay | OVC | 21–11 | Automatic |
North Region :
| Seed | School | Conference | Record | Berth type |
| 1 | Mississippi State | SEC | 18–13 | At-large bid |
| 2 | Florida State | ACC | 20–12 | At-large bid |
| 3 | Michigan | Big Ten | 21–12 | At-large bid |
| 4 | Bradley | MVC | 21–12 | At-large bid |
| 5 | Providence | Big East | 18–12 | At-large bid |
| 6 | Utah State | WAC | 23–11 | At-large bid |
| 7 | Toledo | MAC | 19–12 | Automatic |
| 8 | Mississippi Valley State | SWAC | 18–15 | Automatic |

## First round

The first round took place on March 13, 2007, and March 14, 2007. The higher-seeded team hosted each game.
March 13, 2007 :
| Region | Home Team | Score | Away Team | Venue |
| North | Mississippi State Bulldogs | 82–63 | Mississippi Valley State Delta Devils | Humphrey Coliseum – Starkville, MS |
| North | Michigan Wolverines | 68–58 | Utah State Aggies | Crisler Arena – Ann Arbor, MI |
| North | Florida State Seminoles | 77–61 | Toledo Rockets | Donald L. Tucker Center – Tallahassee, FL |
| East | West Virginia Mountaineers | 74–50 | Delaware State Hornets | WVU Coliseum – Morgantown, WV |
| East | Massachusetts Minutemen | 89–87 | Alabama Crimson Tide | Mullins Center – Amherst, MA |
| East | Drexel Dragons | 56–63 | NC State Wolfpack | Daskalakis Athletic Center – Philadelphia, PA |
| East | Oklahoma State Cowboys | 64–67 | Marist Red Foxes | Gallagher-Iba Arena – Stillwater, OK |
March 14, 2007 :
| Region | Home Team | Score | Away Team | Venue |
| North | Bradley Braves | 90–78 | Providence Friars | Carver Arena – Peoria, IL |
| West | Air Force Falcons | 75–51 | Austin Peay Governors | Clune Arena – Colorado Springs, CO |
| West | Georgia Bulldogs | 88–78 | Fresno State Bulldogs | Stegeman Coliseum – Athens, GA |
| West | DePaul Blue Demons | 83–71 | Hofstra Pride | McGrath Arena – Chicago, IL |
| West | Kansas State Wildcats | 59–57 | Vermont Catamounts | Bramlage Coliseum – Manhattan, KS |
| South | Clemson Tigers | 64–57 | East Tennessee State Buccaneers | Littlejohn Coliseum – Clemson, SC |
| South | Ole Miss Rebels | 73–59 | Appalachian State Mountaineers | Tad Smith Coliseum – Oxford, MS |
| South | Missouri State Bears | 70–74 | San Diego State Aztecs | Hammons Student Center – Springfield, MO |
| South | Syracuse Orange | 79–73 | South Alabama Jaguars | Carrier Dome – Syracuse, NY |

## Second round

The second round took place March 15, 2007, through March 19, 2007. The higher-seeded team hosted the game.
Second Round :
| Date | Region | Home Team | Score | Away Team | Venue |
| 3/15 | North | Florida State Seminoles | 87–66 | Michigan Wolverines | Donald L. Tucker Center – Tallahassee, FL |
| 3/15 | East | West Virginia Mountaineers | 90–77 | Massachusetts Minutemen | WVU Coliseum – Morgantown, WV |
| 3/16 | East | NC State Wolfpack | 69–62 | Marist Red Foxes | Reynolds Coliseum – Raleigh, NC* |
| 3/17 | North | Mississippi State Bulldogs | 101–72 | Bradley Braves | Humphrey Coliseum – Starkville, MS |
| 3/19 | West | Air Force Falcons | 83–52 | Georgia Bulldogs | Clune Arena – Colorado Springs, CO |
| 3/19 | West | Kansas State Wildcats | 65–70 | DePaul Blue Demons | Bramlage Coliseum – Manhattan, KS |
| 3/19 | South | Clemson Tigers | 89–68 | Ole Miss Rebels | Littlejohn Coliseum – Clemson, SC |
| 3/19 | South | Syracuse Orange | 80–64 | San Diego State Aztecs | Carrier Dome – Syracuse, NY** |
*Under normal circumstances, the RBC Center would be used as NC State's home court, but a concert was scheduled that night at that facility, forcing the Wolfpack to use their older arena (still regularly in use for women's basketball), Reynolds Coliseum.
**A new attendance record for a NIT game was set at the Syracuse–San Diego State game in the Carrier Dome. Syracuse won the game 80–64 with the attendance total of 26,752.The old record of 23,522 was set by Kentucky in 1979.

## Quarterfinals

The quarterfinals round took place March 20, 2007, and March 21, 2007. (March 22 was reserved as a backup date in case of scheduling conflicts, but none arose.) The higher-seeded team hosted each game.
Quarterfinals :
| Date | Region | Home Team | Score | Away Team | Venue |
| 3/20 | East | West Virginia Mountaineers | 71–66 | NC State Wolfpack | WVU Coliseum – Morgantown, WV |
| 3/20 | North | Mississippi State Bulldogs | 86–71 | Florida State Seminoles | Humphrey Coliseum – Starkville, MS |
| 3/21 | West | Air Force Falcons | 52–51 | DePaul Blue Demons | Clune Arena – Colorado Springs, CO |
| 3/21 | South | Clemson Tigers | 74–70 | Syracuse Orange | Littlejohn Coliseum – Clemson, SC |

## Semifinals

The semifinals round took place March 27, 2007 at Madison Square Garden.
Semifinals :
| Date | Winner | Score | Opponent | Venue |
| 3/27 | West Virginia Mountaineers | 63–62 | Mississippi State Bulldogs | Madison Square Garden – New York, NY |
| 3/27 | Clemson Tigers | 68–67 | Air Force Falcons | Madison Square Garden – New York, NY |

## Finals

The finals round took place March 29, 2007 at Madison Square Garden.
Championship :
| Date | Winner | Score | Opponent | Venue |
| 3/29 | West Virginia Mountaineers | 78–73 | Clemson Tigers | Madison Square Garden – New York, NY |
The post-tournament celebration by the Mountaineers was overshadowed by a typographical error on the championship T-shirt, on which the school name was rendered as WEST VIRGINA. The vendor, 6th Man Sportswear, apologized for this mistake, and corrected the spelling for all T-shirts except those 25 printed for the team in preparation for a victory.

## Bracket
### East Region

| First Round | First Round | First Round | Second Round | Second Round | Second Round | Quarterfinals | Quarterfinals | Quarterfinals |
| 1 | West Virginia | 74 | | | | | | |
| 8 | Delaware State | 50 | | | | | | |
| 8 | Delaware State | 50 | 1 | West Virginia | 90 | | | |
| | | | 4 | Massachusetts | 77 | | | |
| 4 | Massachusetts | 89 | 4 | Massachusetts | 77 | | | |
| 5 | Alabama | 87 | | | | | | |
| 5 | Alabama | 87 | | | | 1 | West Virginia | 71 |
| | | | | | | 6 | North Carolina State | 66 |
| 3 | Drexel | 56 | | | | | | | 6 | North Carolina State | 66 |
| 6 | North Carolina State | 63 | | | | | | |
| 6 | North Carolina State | 63 | 6 | North Carolina State | 69 | | | |
| | | | 7 | Marist | 62 | | | |
| 2 | Oklahoma State | 64 | 7 | Marist | 62 | | | |
| 7 | Marist | 67 | | | | | | |

### South Region

| First Round | First Round | First Round | Second Round | Second Round | Second Round | Quarterfinals | Quarterfinals | Quarterfinals |
| 1 | Clemson | 64 | | | | | | |
| 8 | East Tennessee State | 57 | | | | | | |
| 8 | East Tennessee State | 57 | 1 | Clemson | 89 | | | |
| | | | 4 | Mississippi | 68 | | | |
| 4 | Mississippi | 73 | 4 | Mississippi | 68 | | | |
| 5 | Appalachian State | 59 | | | | | | |
| 5 | Appalachian State | 59 | | | | 1 | Clemson | 74 |
| | | | | | | 2 | Syracuse | 70 |
| 3 | Missouri State | 70 | | | | | | | 2 | Syracuse | 70 |
| 6 | San Diego State | 74 | | | | | | |
| 6 | San Diego State | 74 | 6 | San Diego State | 64 | | | |
| | | | 2 | Syracuse | 80 | | | |
| 2 | Syracuse | 79 | 2 | Syracuse | 80 | | | |
| 7 | South Alabama | 73 | | | | | | |

### West Region

| First Round | First Round | First Round | Second Round | Second Round | Second Round | Quarterfinals | Quarterfinals | Quarterfinals |
| 1 | Air Force | 75 | | | | | | |
| 8 | Austin Peay | 51 | | | | | | |
| 8 | Austin Peay | 51 | 1 | Air Force | 83 | | | |
| | | | 4 | Georgia | 52 | | | |
| 4 | Georgia | 88 | 4 | Georgia | 52 | | | |
| 5 | Fresno State | 78 | | | | | | |
| 5 | Fresno State | 78 | | | | 1 | Air Force | 52 |
| | | | | | | 3 | DePaul | 51 |
| 3 | DePaul | 83 | | | | | | | 3 | DePaul | 51 |
| 6 | Hofstra | 71 | | | | | | |
| 6 | Hofstra | 71 | 3 | DePaul | 70 | | | |
| | | | 2 | Kansas State | 65 | | | |
| 2 | Kansas State | 59 | 2 | Kansas State | 65 | | | |
| 7 | Vermont | 57 | | | | | | |

### North Region

| First Round | First Round | First Round | Second Round | Second Round | Second Round | Quarterfinals | Quarterfinals | Quarterfinals |
| 1 | Mississippi State | 82 | | | | | | |
| 8 | Miss. Valley State | 63 | | | | | | |
| 8 | Miss. Valley State | 63 | 1 | Mississippi State | 101 | | | |
| | | | 4 | Bradley | 72 | | | |
| 4 | Bradley | 90 | 4 | Bradley | 72 | | | |
| 5 | Providence | 78 | | | | | | |
| 5 | Providence | 78 | | | | 1 | Mississippi State | 86 |
| | | | | | | 2 | Florida State | 71 |
| 3 | Michigan | 68 | | | | | | | 2 | Florida State | 71 |
| 6 | Utah State | 58 | | | | | | |
| 6 | Utah State | 58 | 3 | Michigan | 66 | | | |
| | | | 2 | Florida State | 87 | | | |
| 2 | Florida State | 77 | 2 | Florida State | 87 | | | |
| 7 | Toledo | 61 | | | | | | |

### Semifinals and Finals

| Semifinals | Semifinals | Semifinals | Finals | Finals | Finals |
| 1 | West Virginia | 63 | | | |
| 1 | Mississippi State | 62 | | | |
| 1 | Mississippi State | 62 | 1 | West Virginia | 78 |
| | | | 1 | Clemson | 73 |
| 1 | Clemson | 68 | 1 | Clemson | 73 |
| 1 | Air Force | 67 | | | |