North Texas (0-1) vs. Alabama-Huntsville (1-0)
NIT Season Tip-Off, Midwest Regional Opening Round
Manhattan, Kan. • Bramlage Coliseum (12,528)
Nov. 12, 2012 • 9:30 p.m.
Radio: MGRN - 88.1 KNTU-FM, 95.3 KHYI-FM
TV: None
Webcast: None
Series: First Meeting
NIT Season Tip-Off Bracket
GAME NOTES
MANHATTAN, Kan. – North Texas is making its first appearance in the prestigious NIT Season Tip-Off on Monday, and it will be doing so against a squad looking to make a little history if its own in Alabama-Huntsville – the first Division II program to ever play in the tournament.
On the line is a trip to the second round on Tuesday to face the winner of Lamar and Kansas State in the Midwest Regional final. The winner of that final moves onto the NIT Season Tip-Off semifinals in Madison Square Garden next week.
The game will be NT’s first ever meeting with Alabama-Huntsville, which runs a Princeton Offense similar to the Mean Green’s former Sun Belt Conference mate Denver. The Chargers are the No. 3 team in the NABC/Division II Coaches Poll, and are coming off back-to-back trips to the NCAA Division II Elite Eight. They’ve been in the national poll for 30 straight weeks, which is the third longest streak in the country. The Chargers are picked to repeat as Gulf South Conference champs in 2012-13.
Zane Campbell and Jaime Smith are getting tons of preseason buzz for Alabama-Huntsville. Campbell ranked 12th in the country in field goal percentage (60.7 percent) last season, and was an All-Gulf South and NABC All-District selection. Smith led all of Division II with a 48.6 three-point percentage, nailing 107-of-220 attempts from deep. He was named to the All-Region team as well as the Gulf South Honor Roll.
The Mean Green, led by Preseason All-American Tony Mitchell, is coming off a 71-51 loss at No. 16 Creighton on Friday. Mitchell led NT with 18 points and a pair of blocks, and will be looking to get new head coach Tony Benford his first career win against the Chargers.
