The 1970 National Invitation Tournament was the 1970 edition of the annual NCAA college basketball competition. It was unique in that coach Al McGuire of 8th ranked Marquette University, unhappy with his team's NCAA tournament placement in the Midwest rather than the closer Mideast regional, turned down that bid and elected to play in the NIT instead.Al McGuire, 72, Coach, TV Analyst and Character, Dies - New York Times His Marquette Warriors went on to claim the championship, and as a result the NCAA now forbids its members from playing in other postseason tournaments if offered an NCAA bid.
This tournament represented the final college games for LSU great Pete Maravich, the Men's NCAA all-time leading scorer. Maravich finished his three-year career with 3,667 points, 44.2 per game, records which stand through the 2024-25 season, despite the reinstitution of freshman eligibility (1972–73) and the introduction of the shot clock (1985–86) and 3-point shot (1986–87). It was LSU's only postseason appearance between 1954 and 1979. The Tigers were coached by Pete's father, Press Maravich.
Selected teams Sixteen teams were selected for the 1970 NIT. TeamConferenceOverall recordAppearanceLast bidIndependent 19–5 7th 1969Missouri Valley 21–5 4th 1957DukeACC 17–8 3rd 1968DuquesneIndependent 17–6 13th 1968GeorgetownIndependent 18–6 2nd 1953Independent 16–9 1st NeverMissouri Valley 18–8 8th 1969LSUSEC 20–8 1st NeverIndependent 17–7 10th 1966MarquetteIndependent 22–3 4th 1967MAC 16–7 1st NeverNorth CarolinaACC 18–8 1st NeverBig Eight 18–8 1st NeverSt. John'sIndependent 18–7 19th 1966Yankee 18–6 1st NeverWAC 17–9 6th 1957
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See also 1970 NCAA University Division basketball tournament 1970 NCAA College Division basketball tournament 1970 NAIA Division I men's basketball tournament 1970 National Women's Invitational Tournament
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