1998 National Invitation Tournament

1998 National Invitation Tournament
Season	1997–98
Teams	32
Finals site	Madison Square Garden,; New York City
Champions	Minnesota Golden Gophers (Vacated) (2nd title)
Runner-up	Penn State Nittany Lions (1st title game)
Semifinalists	Georgia Bulldogs (2nd semifinal); Fresno State Bulldogs (2nd semifinal);
Winning coach	Clem Haskins (2nd title)
MVP	Kevin Clark (Vacated) (Minnesota)
National Invitation Tournaments
«1997	1999»

The 1998 National Invitation Tournament was the 1997 edition of the annual NCAA college basketball competition. Minnesota's tournament victory was vacated as a result of numerous NCAA violations, including academic fraud, that took place under coach Clem Haskins. Kevin Clark also vacated his tournament Most Valuable Player award.

Selected teams

Below is a list of the 32 teams selected for the tournament.^[1]

School	Conference	Record	Appearance	Last bid
Arizona State	Pac-10	18–13	6th	1994
Auburn	SEC	15–13	4th	1996
Ball State	MAC	21–7	3rd	1992
Colorado State	WAC	20–8	5th	1996
Creighton	Missouri Valley	18–9	6th	1990
Dayton	Atlantic 10	20–11	18th	1986
Florida	SEC	14–14	7th	1993
Fresno State	WAC	18–11	6th	1997
Georgetown	Big East	15–14	6th	1993
Georgia	SEC	16–14	8th	1995
Georgia Tech	ACC	17–13	5th	1994
Gonzaga	West Coast	23–9	3rd	1996
Hawaii	WAC	19–8	6th	1997
Iowa	Big Ten	20–10	2nd	1995
Kansas State	Big 12	17–11	4th	1994
LIU Brooklyn	NEC	21–10	10th	1982
Marquette	C-USA	18–10	12th	1995
Memphis	C-USA	16–11	13th	1997
Minnesota	Big Ten	15–15	8th	1996
Missouri	Big 12	17–14	5th	1996
NC State	ACC	16–14	7th	1997
Pacific	Big West	23–9	1st	Never
Penn State	Big Ten	15–12	7th	1995
Rider	MAAC	18–9	1st	Never
Seton Hall	Big East	15–14	12th	1995
Southern Miss	C-USA	22–10	7th	1995
St. Bonaventure	Atlantic 10	17–14	13th	1995
UAB	C-USA	20–11	7th	1997
UNC Wilmington	Colonial	20–10	1st	Never
Vanderbilt	SEC	18–12	7th	1996
Wake Forest	ACC	15–13	3rd	1985
Wyoming	WAC	19–8	5th	1991

Bracket

Below are the four first round brackets, along with the four-team championship bracket.^[1]

First Round		Second Round		Quarterfinals

Wake Forest	56

UNC Wilmington	52
		Wake Forest	68

		Vanderbilt	72
Vanderbilt	73

St. Bonaventure	61
				Vanderbilt	65

				Georgia	79
Georgia	100

Iowa	93
		Georgia	61

		NC State	55
NC State	59

Kansas State	39

First Round		Second Round		Quarterfinals

Penn State	82

Rider	68
		Penn State	77

		Dayton	74
Dayton	95

LIU	92
				Penn State	77

				Georgia Tech	70
Georgetown	71

Florida	69
		Georgetown	79

		Georgia Tech	80
Georgia Tech	88

Seton Hall	70

First Round		Second Round		Quarterfinals

Hawaii	90

Arizona State	73
		Hawaii	78

		Gonzaga	70
Gonzaga	69

Wyoming	55
				Hawaii	83

				Fresno State	85
Fresno State	73

Pacific	70
		Fresno State	83

		Memphis	80
Memphis	90

Ball State	67

First Round		Second Round		Quarterfinals

Marquette	80

Creighton	68
		Marquette	75

		Auburn	60
Auburn	77

Southern Miss	62
				Marquette	71

				Minnesota	73
Minnesota	77

Colorado State	65
		Minnesota	79

		UAB	66
UAB	93

Missouri	86