Season | 2015–16 | ||||
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Teams | 32 | ||||
Finals site | Madison Square Garden New York City | ||||
Champions | George Washington Colonials (1st title) | ||||
Runner-up | Valparaiso Crusaders (1st title game) | ||||
Semifinalists |
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Winning coach | Mike Lonergan (1st title) | ||||
MVP | Tyler Cavanaugh (George Washington) | ||||
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The 2016 National Invitation Tournament was a single-elimination tournament of 32 NCAA Division I teams that were not selected to participate in the 2016 NCAA tournament. The annual tournament was played on campus sites for the first three rounds, with the Final Four and championship game being held at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The tournament began on Tuesday, March 15 and ended on Thursday, March 31. An experimental rule allowing players six personal fouls instead of five was approved for use in all national postseason tournaments except for the NCAA Tournament. The NIT Selection Show aired at 8:30 PM EDT on Sunday, March 13, 2016, on ESPNU. George Washington were the champions over Valparaiso 76–60. The Colonials victory was their first-ever NIT title.