Men’s hoops continues postseason roll into NIT quarterfinals

If you’ve been following Baylor men’s basketball the last few years, you’ve probably picked up on two things.

One, the Bears have an interesting pattern going. 2008, 2010, 2012 — NCAA tournament appearances. 2009 (NIT), 2011 (nothing, following Perry Jones’ suspect suspension), 2013 (NIT) — elsewhere.

Secondly, head coach Scott Drew’s team has a pretty impressive record in the postseason. Over the past five seasons (including this year), Baylor has a combined NCAA/NIT record of 12-3, including two NCAA Elite Eight finishes (2010, 2012) and a run to the NIT championship game (2009). And you’ll have to go back to 2008 to find the last time the men were knocked out of the postseason by a team that didn’t end up winning the tournament.

The Bears are working on another such run, having defeated Big West Conference regular season champ Long Beach State (112-66!) and Pac-12 at-large bid Arizona State (89-86) in the first two rounds of the 2013 NIT. Baylor will host the winner of tonight’s Robert Morris/Providence game on at 8 p.m. Wednesday night. [Check out BaylorBears.com’s digital postseason guide for a pretty sweet preview, complete with video links and more.]

Win or lose, that will be the final game in the Ferrell Center for seniors Pierre Jackson, A.J. Walton and Jacob Neubert; the loser of that quarterfinal match will go home, while the winner will move on to New York City and Madison Square Garden for the NIT semifinals and finals, April 2-4.

Got your tickets? Got your gear? Then I’ll see you at the Ferrell Center Wednesday night!

Sic ’em, Bears!