New York City Sports Commissioner Kenneth J. Podziba announced today that the Preseason NIT men’s collegiate basketball tournament is set to kick off its championship week at Madison Square Garden with doubleheader action to take place on Wednesday, November 24th and Friday, November 26th.

“I am delighted to welcome back the premier early season college basketball tournament to New York City,” said Commissioner Podziba. “This is the 20th year that our city has hosted this great tournament and it always a thrill to watch the nation’s finest basketball programs compete against each other in the ‘Mecca of College Basketball’--Madison Square Garden.”

The original field of 16 teams has been whittled down to four as #1 Wake Forest tips off against Providence College in the first half of the doubleheader and #18 Arizona squares off against the 2004 Post Season NIT Champion Michigan Wolverines.

“The preseason NIT has established itself as one of the nation’s most prestigious early season tournaments since 1985, when three of our finalists participated in the Final Four the following March,” said John J. Powers, now in his 16th year as the Executive Director of the NIT. “Last year’s tournament featured a preview of the 2003 NCAA National Championship game as Georgia Tech upset top-ranked Connecticut in a thrilling semifinal match-up. This year we look forward to the same competitive, high quality basketball that has become synonymous with this great tournament.”

Game times for the semifinals are 7:00 p.m. and 9:00 p.m. on the 24th, while the consolation game tips off at 4:30 p.m. and the championship game commences at 7:00 p.m. on the 26th.

Tickets can be purchased at the Madison Square Garden box office, or through Ticketmaster either by calling (212) 307-7171 or by visiting www.ticketmaster.com.

The New York City Sports Commission ensures the continuation and growth of a healthy environment for professional, amateur and scholastic sports activities in New York City. In recent years, the Sports Commission has played a role in attracting or creating many new sporting events, including the NFL Kickoff Live from Times Square, the BMC Software NYC Cycling Championship, the NYC Fiesta Cup, the Ford NYC Triathlon, Senior Men's Tennis Championship, Let Freedom Run and The Wild Onion Urban Adventure Race. The agency is also working with NYC2012 to bring the Olympic Games to The World's Second Home™.

Contacts:

Jeff Mohl (NYC Sports Commission) (212) 487-6627
Christine Fallon (NIT) (845) 548-2707