If you eat, sleep, and breathe college basketball but find that the NCAA’s March Madness tournament still isn’t enough to satisfy your obsession with the sport, swing over to the National Invitational Tournament (NIT) for some more drama on the hardwood. Also operated by the NCAA, the second-tier NIT might not be as prestigious as the March Madness tournament, but there are plenty of exciting storylines happening there, too. Such is the case with No. 1 seeded Indiana State and its sophomore center, Robbie Avila.
Avila, who has Mexican roots on his father’s side, has led the Sycamores to the NIT semifinals (the equivalent of the March Madness Final Four). They stamped their ticket to the semifinals with an exciting 85-81 win over the No. 2 Cincinnati Bearcats on Tuesday night (March 26). Avila had 22 points, five rebounds, and six assists in the win.
Along with Avila’s solid play on the court, the 20-year-old, goggles-wearing baller is receiving a lot of attention on social media because of the nicknames that have been given to him. They include “Cream Abdul-Jabbar,” “Larry Nerd,” “Steph Blurry” and “Milk Chamberlin.” Fans also call him “College Jokić” because his slow albeit impactful play is reminiscent of the NBA’s MVP, Nikola Jokić.
Many college basketball fans believe Indiana State should’ve been invited to the March Madness tournament instead of the NIT.
Either way, Indiana State is still competing for a title. Their next game is on April 2, against either Virginia Commonwealth or Utah. If they win that game, Robbie Avila and his fellow Sycamores will head to the NIT Championship Game on April 4.