FGCU returns to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since pulling off two huge upsets to reach the Sweet 16 three years ago as it faces Fairleigh Dickinson on Tuesday in the First Four at Dayton, Ohio. Florida Gulf Coast is back after winning the Atlantic Sun tournament while the Knights rebounded from a 2-6 start to win the Northeast Conference.

Florida State has landed in the NIT for the third time in four seasons and the fourth-seeded Seminoles look to begin a deep tourney run when they host fifth-seeded Davidson on Tuesday. The Seminoles' youth caught up to them during ACC play but star freshmen guards Dwayne Bacon and Malik Beasley may be ready to build off their experiences.

South Carolina was one of the final teams left out by the selection committee for the NCAA Tournament and will instead have to make a run at an NIT championship. The Gamecocks earned the top seed in Region 3 and will begin their NIT run by hosting High Point on Tuesday.

Thad Matta has established himself as one of the most successful coaches in the country during his 12-year stay at Ohio State, but the three-time Big Ten Coach of the Year had yet to begin his career when the Buckeyes last received a visit from Akron. Two in-state rivals square off for the first time since 1989 - the year before Matta became a college assistant - when the Buckeyes host the Zips in the first round of the NIT on Tuesday.

Avery Johnson looks to add to a solid debut season as coach at Alabama when the Crimson Tide visit Creighton in the first round of the NIT on Tuesday night. Johnson can pass Wimp Sanderson (1980-81) as the winningest first-year coach in Alabama history with a 19th victory against the Bluejays, who have dropped five of their last six contests.

Washington had designs on reaching the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2011 but a late-season swoon shut the door on that opportunity. Instead, the third-seeded Huskies are part of the NIT and will host sixth-seeded Long Beach State on Tuesday as they attempt to recover from a deep slide.

Florida attempts to reach 20 victories for the 17th time in 18 years when it visits neighbor North Florida in the first round of the NIT on Tuesday. The Gators went 2-5 down the stretch to end their NCAA Tournament hopes and are in the NIT for the first time since 2009 while North Florida won the Atlantic Sun regular-season title before losing in the conference tournament semifinals.

Wichita State will make its fifth consecutive appearance in the NCAA Tournament when it takes on Vanderbilt in the First Four at Dayton, Ohio on Tuesday night. Wichita State struggled to a 5-5 start, due in part to injuries, and won 19 of 21 before losing to Northern Iowa in the Missouri Valley Conference semifinals while the Commodores earned their first bid since 2012.