NCAA buys NIT...

Now EVERYBODY gets to go to the NCAA Tournament in March...only not really.

NCAA purchases NIT for $56.5 million to end legal fight
By JIM O'CONNELL, AP Basketball Writer
August 17, 2005

NEW YORK (AP) -- The NCAA owns college basketball's postseason. Really.

The organization that made March mad with the 65-team national championship tournament, purchased the rights to the preseason and postseason National Invitation Tournaments as part of a settlement that ends a four-year legal fight between the two parties.

The 40-team postseason NIT, which is a year older and was once the bigger event, will now be run by the NCAA.

But who will select which teams get to play in what is truly the grand-daddy of all postseason basketball tournaments? NCAA President Myles Brand...

Brand said the committee which selects and seeds the field of 65 will not be involved with the postseason NIT.

Oh. So, basically, once you've been screwed by them, earn the lucky consolation prize of a place in the official loser's bracket of March Madness.