North Texas, UC Irvine collide in the NIT semifinals. ...

Loyola Chicago, Chattanooga clash in the NIT semifinals. ...

Both squads will tip off minus a key player. Georgetown’s absentee is its headliner, Thomas Souter, the Hoyas’ scoring and rebounding leader. G-Town closed the season with a single outright win in six games — a two-pointer over Villanova, which fired its coach. Wash State finished on a better note: on a three-game roll before falling to San Francisco, which landed an NIT berth. It plays up-tempo, an ideal style for this loosey-goosey tournament. The scheduled 11 p.m. (ET) start favors the west coast school over the one from D.C.

Defections are affecting several teams in this tournament, perhaps none more so than Arizona State. The Sun Devils are expected to take the floor without three of their top six scorers and could be down to seven scholarship players. They surely assumed the season was over with a defeat on March 11, their 11th in the past dozen outings. Nebraska also closed poorly with five straight-up setbacks in a row. But with a decent 18-15 SU record, in contrast to ASU’s pathetic 13-19, the Cornhuskers likely anticipated their season was not over.

Two defensive-oriented teams, neither of which shoot threes accurately, have collaborated on a slightly too-high total. George Washington yields 68 points per game, Boise State 66. The Revolutionaries operate at a moderate pace — yet quicker than the Broncos, whose games generated the 321st most possessions. Each squad is 15-18 on Overs this season. These off-Broadway tournaments tend to spit out higher-than-usual scores. This matchup shapes up as an exception, with a long layoff between games possibly impacting the shooting.

Each team is 4-1 on Unders since the regular season ended, so why stop now? Both sides perform at a reasonable, not outrageous, pace. Auburn's defense is the eighth most efficient in Division I, according to KenPom. Going farther back into Michigan State's schedule, the Spartans have gone Under in 14 of the past 17 outings. Coach Tom Izzo might prefer a grinding game and will try to muck it up with a patient offense and rugged defense.

This total is a hair below the sky-high one for Alabama-BYU. Makes no sense. The difference between these scenarios is, Duke plays dogged defense, unlike the Cougars. The Blue Devils rank fifth in KenPom for defensive efficiency. Their games on average contain the 274th most possessions in Division I, lower than nearly three-fourths of all teams. The Devils should not allow Mark Sears to go off as he did Thursday, and their tree-tall front line should keep the Crimson Tide from scoring much in the paint.

Tennessee boasts the third most efficient defense in Division I, according to KenPom. Its games average the 47th fewest possessions. The Volunteers will ramp up the D and exercise patience on offense in an effort to knock off high-flying Kentucky for the first time this season in three meetings. The second encounter ended with 139 points on the board. The Wildcats recently have displayed some defense, which was largely absent for much of the year. Whoever wins is unlikely to reach the mid-70s.

The Over has gone 6-1 at the shooter-friendly gym for the CBI. The exception was FGCU’s 68-65 win over Army, which landed 20 points south of the total. Look for the Eagles to resume their scoring pace from late in the regular season, whey they closed with three games in the 80s themselves. Cleveland State contributed to the tournament’s Over trend with a 161-point outing Monday. The Vikings average 73 ppg this season. In a seemingly defense-optional event, hitting that number here all but assures an Over. 

Spotting an underdog this many points can be dicey in these quirky tournaments where motivation is difficult to gauge. Illinois State holds a fitness advantage, as UIW and its short rotation engages in its third game in three days. Two starters played every minute Sunday and Monday, while the three others averaged in the low-to-mid 30s. The favored Redbirds shed two weeks of rust with a so-so win Monday as none of its regulars logged enough time to be spent. They pulled away with a 45-point outburst in the second half. It is difficult to back a team like the Cardinals with a negative points differential this season.

Queens busted loose Sunday in its CBI opener for 85 points, winning by seven to improve to 5-1 ATS in its last half-dozen games. The Royals mixed in eight players, with just one working at least 30 minutes, so they should not be subjected to tired legs, especially with no travel involved in the tournament. Cleveland State last played two weeks ago and could be at a disadvantage in the early going. The Vikings dropped five of their last eight straight-up. Their offensive efficiency ranking by KenPom is 222nd. Queens need not score 85 again for a cover.

Army played Sunday. FGCU has not played in forever (March 3). In fact, the Eagles have squeezed in one game into the last four weeks. The Black Knights broke out of a slump by beating Elon on Sunday. Better yet, minutes were distributed among nine players who saw decent action, so fatigue should be no concern. No travel is involved, with the CBI unfolding in one gym. The Eagles are 2-5 ATS in their last seven outings. Though the better team, they spot Army too many points here.

Teams in the first round of the CBI on Sunday had no trouble finding the range with a four-game sweep of the Over. Bettors seeking action on Monday’s opener might steer away from an ATS or ML pick, given that three Incarnate Word starters logged heavy minutes and Jacksonville is shaking off 18 days of rust from its last outing. Though the Cardinals play at a languid pace, their games average 143 points, same as the Dolphins’. IUW’s win Sunday came with 177 points, soaring over the betting total of 144.

Draw a line through its league tournament finals against slow-mo San Diego State, and UC Irvine has scored in the 80s or 90s four games in a row. The Anteaters’ NIT opener wound up with 154 points. They operate at a quick pace, with possessions per outing averaging 87th in Division I. For Jacksonville State’s part, its 81 points in the initial NIT test hints that this total is easily reachable. Defense tends to take a backseat in this tournament, as the Overs’ 14-5 record through Saturday suggests.

Kent State is on a scoring heater. Its prior 10 games averaged 154 points. The Golden Flashes’ shooters are doing their part. They have scored in the 70s in six consecutive outings.The three previous efforts, they landed twice in the 90s and once in triple digits. Stanford operates at a modest pace but is capable of big numbers. The Cardinal notched 87 points in their NIT opener, with the game generating 157. Overs have gone 13-5 in the NIT through Saturday, and the trend should continue here.