George Mason’s run to the Colonial Athletic Association final last week helped rekindle some of the magic the Patriots enjoyed during last season’s miraculous Final Four run. But it wasn’t enough to earn a bid to the National Invitational Tournament.
“I think if we had been invited to the NIT, we could’ve done very well,” said Patriots head coach Jim Larranaga. “But there were other teams whose success throughout the season put them in a better position to be invited.”
The Patriots’ 18 wins would match the fewest wins and their 15 losses the most defeats of any of the NIT’s 32 teams, a field reduced this season from 40 in past years.
A number of teams earned automatic invitations by winning regular-season conference titles but failing to advance to the NCAA Tournament, and George Mason’s RPI (120) also was lower than all but three.
Larranaga said he plans to do some interviews this week and will continue to tell Mason’s story, but aside from some work last weekend for CSTV, he won’t be a television analyst for the NIT or NCAAs.
“That’s not where I want to spend my time,” said Larranaga. “I’m going to go back out on the road recruiting.”
