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IOWA CITY, Iowa (Ticker) -- Two teams who went deep in their respective conference tournaments square off on Wednesday when Iowa hosts Louisiana State in the first round of the National Invitation Tournament. Iowa (19-15) reached the finals of the Big Ten Conference tournament but lost to Ohio State, 81-64, in its fourth game in as many days. The Hawkeyes had defeated Purdue, Indiana and Wisconsin to reach the championship game. But after starting the season 11-3, they went 5-11 in the Big Ten regular season. LSU (18-14) had a four-game winning streak snapped by Mississippi State in the semifinals of the Southeastern Conference tournament, 57-51. But the Tigers played well to reach the semis, defeating Vanderbilt before upsetting Georgia, 78-76, in the quarterfinals. Freshman guard Antonio Hudson became the first Tiger to make the All-SEC tournament team since 1993 by averaging 21 points and four rebounds a game at the Georgia Dome. The teams have played twice before. LSU won, 92-81, during an in-season tournament in Portland, Oregon, in 1963. They met again during the consolation semifinal of the Maui Invitational in 1996, and LSU posted a 70-60 triumph. But the victory was later forfeited by the NCAA because of rules violations. Iowa most recently played in the NIT in 1998, losing at home to Georgia, 100-93. LSU has not played in the tournament since 1983, when it lost in the first round to New Orleans. |
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