Wichita State tops Alabama in NIT final
Wichita State alumni J.D. Helms, center, and Ryan Gash, left, celebrate as Wichita State defeated Alabama 66-57 to win the NIT college basketball tournament. (March 31, 2011) Credit: AP
Both teams had something to prove to the NCAA Tournament selection committee. Wichita State just happened to make the stronger case on basketball's biggest stage.
The fourth-seeded Shockers claimed their first NIT trophy with a 66-57 win over top-seeded Alabama Thursday night at the Garden.
Graham Hatch, who scored all 12 of his points on three-pointers, was named Most Outstanding Player, and J.T. Durley chipped in 12 for Wichita State (29-8).
Alabama (25-12) led only once in the second half, at 41-40 on a free throw by Chris Hines with 15:06 to go. Wichita State closed the game on a 23-12 run, spurred by momentum-stealing threes, including a back-to-back pair by Hatch in a little more than a minute.
"When he shot those two baskets late in the second half, the ball was in the air forever," Wichita State coach Greg Marshall said.
"It literally seemed to me it took five seconds for the ball in its arc. It was a majestic rotation and it just found the bottom of the net.''
Hatch, a 6-4 senior guard, was 4-for-4 from beyond the arc. He said he had never felt so confident shooting. "I can die a happy man,'' Hatch said, "just knowing that we were able to cut nets down as a team."
The Shockers, whose 29 wins are a school record, finished by knocking off a big-name SEC program that defeated Final Four team Kentucky in January.
"It's something our team's going to have for the rest of our lives," Garrett Stutz said of cutting down the nets. "The memory of winning at Madison Square Garden."
