03/15/2010
Defending champion Oregon State is back in the College
Basketball Invitational, despite a losing record.
Coached by Craig Robinson, the brother-in-law of President Barack Obama, the
Beavers (14-17) open the tournament at home Wednesday against Boston University
(19-13), which lost at Vermont in the championship game of the America East
Conference tournament.
The 16-team CBI bracket was released Sunday night and is made up of schools
that were left out of the NCAA tournament and the NIT. Oregon State is the only
squad in the field without a winning record, but the Beavers were invited back
to defend their title.
Oregon State beat UTEP two games to one in the best-of-three championship
series last year. The inaugural CBI was won by Tulsa in 2008.
The tournament begins Tuesday, with coach Rick Majerus and Saint Louis
hosting Indiana State, and Virginia Commonwealth visiting George Washington.
All games are played at campus sites. The championship series runs from
March 29 to April 2.