USF men earn postseason berth

The USF men are headed to the postseason for the first time in seven years.

Bypassed for the 32-team NIT, the Bulls (19-13) received an invitation Sunday evening to the 16-team College Basketball Invitational (CBI). USF opens play at home Wednesday against Stony Brook (24-8).

Tip-off is at 7 p.m. The game can be seen via live stream at www.GoUSFBulls.com, and can be heard on 820-AM and the Bulls Unlimited channel on iHeartRadio.

“We’re excited to have the opportunity to play in the postseason and continue to build upon what we’ve already accomplished this year,” USF coach Brian Gregory said in a school news release.

“Our players have worked extremely hard from the outset of the season to compete in postseason play. This tournament is a quality step in our process and will provide our team with valuable experience that we can use in years to come, and we can’t wait to get back in front of our fans on Wednesday at the Yuengling Center.”

An 11-year-old tournament traditionally geared toward mid-major programs, the CBI’s 2019 field includes two other teams (West Virginia, DePaul) from a major basketball conference.

The tournament has a single-elimination format until the finals, when the last two teams compete in a best-of-three format April 1, 3 and 5 (if necessary). The finals will be televised on ESPNU.

Stony Brook finished second in the America East Conference, but fell to Binghamton, 78-72, in the opening round of the league tournament. The Seawolves, who own a NET ranking of 156 (57 spots below the Bulls), defeated South Carolina, 83-81, in their second game of the season.