Former Caldwell County standout Eli Pepper and his Lipscomb teammates did not hear their name called during the NCAA Tournament Selection Show on Sunday. However, the Bisons’ 2018-19 season will continue in the Postseason NIT.
Lipscomb has earned a No. 5 seed in the NIT and will travel to North Carolina on Tuesday to face fourth-seeded Davidson in a first round contest. That game will tip off at 6 p.m. Central time and will be streamed on ESPN3.
The Bisons are 25-7 this season. They earned an automatic bid to the NIT as the regular-season champions of the ASUN Conference. The Wildcats were selectedas an at-large selection after posting a 23-9 record.
This is the first matchup ever between the two programs.
It is the second NIT appearance in Lipscomb program history. The previous bid came in 2006 when Lipscomb fell at UTEP 85-66.
Pepper, a senior, enters Tuesday’s contest with 908 career points and 984 rebounds as a Bison.
Pepper has controlled the glass on the year for the Bisons, ranking sixth in the ASUN at 7.4 boards a contest. When he pulls down double-digit boards in a game, the Bisons are 8-0.
The Lipscomb-Davidson winner will advance to face either No. 1-seeded UNC Greensboro or No. 8 Campbell.