South Alabama men’s basketball will begin its National Invitation Tournament (NIT) campaign against Auburn on March 17 at Neville Arena, according to a March 15 announcement. The game is scheduled for a 9 p.m. Central Time tip-off and will be broadcast on ESPN2.
This marks South Alabama’s first appearance in the NIT since 2007 and its first postseason berth since 2022. The Jaguars enter the tournament with a 21–11 overall record, having achieved back-to-back seasons with at least 20 wins for the first time since the 2008–09 season.
The team is led by Chaze Harris, who was named Sun Belt Player of the Year after leading the conference in scoring with an average of 18.9 points per game and increasing that figure to 22.0 points per game during league play. Harris scored in double figures in 29 games this season, recorded three games with at least 30 points—the most in the conference—and had twelve games with at least twenty points.
Adam Olsen also contributed significantly, earning Second Team All-Sun Belt honors by scoring a total of 502 points and averaging 16.7 points per game. Olsen led the Sun Belt Conference with 102 made three-pointers, shooting nearly forty percent from beyond the arc and ranking among national leaders in three-pointers per game.
Auburn enters the matchup with a record of seventeen wins and sixteen losses. Keyshawn Hall leads Auburn with an average of nearly twenty points per game, while Tahaad Pettiford has averaged over fifteen points this season.
The upcoming contest will be the thirteenth meeting between South Alabama and Auburn, but their first encounter since December of 2020. Fans seeking ticket information are directed to contact the South Alabama Athletics Ticket Office or visit USAJaguars.com for details.
