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OREM — Utah Valley’s nearly unprecedented run in the Western Athletic Conference tournament ended with the longest tourney game in the league’s history, and coach Mark Pope expressed dismay at the end of play for his three seniors.
But they aren’t finished yet.
The Wolverines will open the 2017 College Basketball Invitational at Georgia Southern at 5 p.m. MDT Wednesday, the third-tier national tournament announced Sunday.
The winner will face the winner of Rice and San Francisco, a team that has plenty of experience against Beehive State sides with three total games against BYU and Utah.
"It's another tremendous step for the growth of our program," Pope said in a statement. "I couldn't be more excited for our guys. To have an opportunity to play in a national postseason tournament is our goal. We're excited to continue our season."
Utah Valley’s first entry into the CBI marks the third foray into the postseason in Division I history, and first since the WAC regular-season champion Wolverines lost at Cal in the opening round of the 2014 NIT.
Top seeds in the 16-team CBI include George Mason, Wyoming and reigning NIT champion George Washington. Utah Valley’s WAC rival Missouri-Kansas City will host Green Bay in the tournament’s opening round.
Utah Valley has never played Georgia Southern, and is 0-3 all-time against teams from the state of Georgia (all three meetings were against Georgia State).
Weber State primed for CIT
After a loss to North Dakota in the title game of the Big Sky Tournament in Reno, Weber State accepted an invitation to the CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament.
The Wildcats (19-13) will play at Cal State Fullerton in Thursday’s first round. The game, which is being called the Riley Wallace Classic, will be streamed live at facebook.com/2017cit.
Randy Rahe’s squad has advanced to the postseason 10 times in the past 11 seasons, including two other trips to the CIT. The Wildcats lost in the second round of the 2012 tournament and advanced to the championship game in 2013.
Cal State Fullerton (17-14) was the third-place team in the Big West, losing to UC Davis in overtime of the Big West tournament semifinals last week. The Wildcats lead the all-time series 4-1, with the most recent contest occurring in 2009.
