Tulsa opened its run in the NIT with a victory over William & Mary in Tuesday’s lone game in The American.
 
G Marquel Curtis scored a career-high 21 points, while G James Woodard added 15 points and 10 rebounds, as the Golden Hurricane held off a Tribe comeback bid for a 70-67 win. Tulsa led by as much as 21 in the second half before William & Mary whittled the Golden Hurricane advantage down to two. Tulsa would make stops on its final two defensive possessions to secure the victory, which improved the Golden Hurricane to 23-10. Tulsa will host Murray State in its next game, with the date and time to be determined.
 
There are two games on Wednesday’s schedule involving teams from The American in the NIT.
 
UConn will host Arizona State (7 p.m., ESPN2) in a meeting of the No.4 and 5 seeds in the Huskies’ part of the bracket. It is the first meeting between the programs since 1997 and just the third all-time. The winner will take on the winner of the game between No. 1 seed Richmond and No. 8 seed St. Francis Brooklyn.
 
Temple – the No. 1 overall seed in the NIT – will host in-state and former conference foe Bucknell (7 p.m., ESPN3) to open its run in the tournament. The NIT appearance is the first for head coach Fran Dunphy, who has 15 NCAA tournament appearances under his belt. The winner will face another former conference opponent of the Owls, as No. 5 seed George Washington won at No. 4 seed Pittsburgh Tuesday night.