The Stanford and Santa Clara men’s basketball teams opened a busy week for Bay Area schools participating in the National Invitational Tournaments and the WBIT with blowout home victories on Tuesday night.
Stanford, led by Maxime Raynaud’s 22 points, advanced in the 32-team men’s field by routing CSU Northridge 87-70, and Tyeree Bryan helped power Santa Clara to a 101-62 win over UC Riverside.
San Jose State and USF play first-round home games tonight. The Stanford women missed the NCAA women’s tournament for the first time in 37 years and makes its WBIT debut Thursday night at Maples Pavilion. Saint Mary’s plays its WNIT opener earlier Thursday at Texas Southern.
Here is a look at what happened to Bay Area teams in the NIT on Tuesday and what’s coming next.
NIT
Stanford 87-CSU Northridge 70
Raynaud, who earlier in the day was named AP honorable mention All-American, had 22 points, 11 rebounds and five blocks to help send the Cardinal into a second-round game against Kent State on Thursday at Maples Pavilion. Game time will be announced after the completion of Wednesday night’s game.
Stanford improved to 20-6 all-time in 10 appearances in the NIT. The Cardinal is 12-2 at home in the NIT, including 10 straight wins at Maples Pavilion.
Oziyah Sellers added 20 points and Benny Gealer scored 13 for the Cardinal (21-13), which was playing in its first postseason game since 2018.
Raynaud recorded his nation-leading 24th double-double of the season and also moved up in the Stanford record books. He became the school’s single-season rebounding leader (breaking Adam Keefe’s 33-year-old record of 355 from 1991-92) and moved into the top-10 on Stanford’s all-time scoring list, moving past John Revelli and Howard Wright into ninth place. He is the third Stanford player in program history to reach 1,600 career points and 900 career rebounds, along with Keefe and Kim Belton.
Stanford led 46-29 at halftime, with Raynaud racking up 15 points. Sellers scored a team-high 13 points in the final half.
Santa Clara 101, UC Riverside 62
Bryan made five 3-pointers and finished with 17 points for the Broncos, who were 16 of 27 (59%) from beyond the arc in the opening win. Jake Ensminger added four 3-pointers for the Broncos (21-12), who are playing in the NIT for the third time in the past four seasons.
SCU will play Saturday or Sunday against the winner of Wednesday’s Alabama/Saint Joseph’s first-round game.
Elijah Mahi added 15 points for SCU, which set the single-season school and West Coast Conference record for 3-pointers in a season during the victory.
Santa Clara, which beat UC Riverside by 42 points in mid-November, led 44-33 at halftime, with Bryan racking up 11 points. Santa Clara pulled away with a 15-3 run in the second half to lead by 26 points. Carlos Stewart led the way with a team-high eight second-half points.
Today’s NIT games
San Jose State vs. Loyola Chicago, 8 p.m. at the Event Center. Broadcast on ESPN.
The Spartans (15-19) are set to host a postseason game for the first time in school history and are in the post season for the seventh time. It is their second appearance in the NIT, losing to UTEP in the opening round in 1981. The Spartans’ lone postseason victory came in the first round of the CBI in 2023 against Southern Indiana.
ATLANTA, GA – MARCH 24: Sister Jean Dolores Schmidt celebrates with the Loyola Ramblers after defeating the Kansas State Wildcats during the 2018 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament South Regional at Philips Arena on March 24, 2018 in Atlanta, Georgia. Loyola defeated Kansas State 78-62. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
SJSU faces a Loyola Chicago team (22-11) made famous by its colorful 105-year-old booster — and San Francisco native — Sister Jean when the Ramblers reached the Final Four of the NCAA Tournament in 2018
Related Articles
March Madness & media rights: Do wins equal cash for Pac-12, Mountain West?
BYU in NCAA Tournament: Will the real Cougars stand up, or bow out?
NCAA Tournament March Madness bets: UCLA, Oregon roll; Arizona struggles
March Madness: How to watch the women’s NCAA Tournament and what to watch for
How to watch March Madness: What to know about men’s NCAA Tournament
USF vs. Utah Valley, 8 p.m. at War Memorial. Broadcast on ESPNU.
The Dons (24-9) enter their second straight NIT as a No. 1 seed. A win over Utah Valley (25-8) would advance USF into a second-round game against the winner of the San Jose State/Loyola Chicago game. USF is playing in the NIT for the eighth time overall, with the 1949 Pete Newell-led Dons winning the championship at Madison Square Garden.
Thursday
— The Stanford women (16-13) play host to Portland (29-4) in the WBIT at 7 p.m. at Maples Pavilion. The Cardinal has never lost in four previous meetings against the Pilots, including an 81-51 rout last season at Maples Pavilion.
— The Saint Mary’s women (14-16) play their first-round WNIT game at 4:30 p.m. at Texas Southern (16-15).
