STILLWATER, Okla. (KWCH) - The Wichita State University men’s basketball season appeared to be over following the Shockers’ heartbreaking loss to Memphis in the quarterfinal round of the American Athletic Conference Tournament. A day later, an unexpected turn of events has WSU in its first postseason since 2021. WSU (19-14) tips off at Oklahoma State (15-17) at 8 p.m. Tuesday in the first round of the National Invitational Tournament, the secondary postseason honor usually consisting of competitive teams that fall a few wins short of getting into the Big Dance.

The Shockers finished eighth in the AAC but turned around a season that included a 1-6 start in the conference. Wichita State rebounded to finish 8-10 in the league and down the stretch, looked the part of a club that was capable of winning the AAC Tournament. Accomplishing that goal would’ve landed the Shockers in the NCAA Tournament. It was believed that the slow start to conference play and relatively low ranking in the metrics that go toward determining postseason selections would have Wichita State beginning to look ahead to next year.

But the Shockers’ play ramped up in the season’s final weeks, especially during February and the team that saw its ultimate goal lost with the three-point setback to nationally ranked Memphis on March 8 didn’t have long to grieve. Wichita State is in the 48-team NIT field for the first time since 2019 when the Shockers advanced to the NIT semifinal round in Madison Square Garden. Wichita State won the NIT Tournament in 2011, catapulting a run that included a Final Four appearance two years later and an undefeated regular season in 2014.