The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) established in 1940, is a college athletics association for colleges and universities in North America. Most colleges and universities in the NAIA offer athletic scholarships to their student athletes. $1.3 billion in athletic scholarship financial aid is awarded to student athletes annually. For the 2023–24 season, it had 241 member institutions, of which two are in British Columbia, one in the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the rest in the continental United States, with over 83,000 student-athletes participating. The NAIA, whose headquarters is in Kansas City, Missouri, sponsors 28 national championships. CBS Sports Network, formerly called CSTV, serves as the national media outlet for the NAIA. In 2014, ESPNU began carrying the NAIA Football National Championship.
The NAIA women's basketball tournament has been held annually by the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics since 1981 to determine the national champion of women's college basketball among its members in the United States and Canada.
The 2006 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament involved 65 teams playing in a single-elimination tournament to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball as a culmination of the 2005–06 basketball season. It began on March 14, 2006, and concluded with the championship game on April 3 at the RCA Dome in Indianapolis, Indiana.
The 1986 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament involved 64 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. It began on March 13, 1986, and ended with the championship game on March 31 in Dallas, Texas. A total of 63 games were played.
The 1999 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament involved 64 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. It began on March 11, 1999, and ended with the championship game on March 29 at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida. A total of 63 games were played. This Final Four was the first—and so far, only—to be held in a baseball-specific facility, as Tropicana Field is home to the Tampa Bay Rays.
The 2004 National Invitation Tournament was the 2004 edition of the annual NCAA college basketball competition. Michigan defeated Rutgers in the final game to capture their third NIT Championship.
The 2003 National Invitation Tournament was the 2003 edition of the annual NCAA college basketball competition. St. John's tournament victory was later vacated due to use of an ineligible player. Marcus Hatten's tournament Most Valuable Player award was also vacated. This would be the last NIT in which a third-place game would be played until 2021.
The 2008 National Invitation Tournament was a single-elimination tournament of 32 National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I teams that did not participate in the 2008 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament. The 71st annual tournament began on March 18 on campus sites and ended on April 3 at Madison Square Garden in New York City. Each regular season conference champion that did not receive a bid to the NCAA Tournament received an automatic bid to this tournament. The remaining slots were filled by the NIT Selection Committee. The first, second, and third rounds were played on the higher seeded team's home court, with the semi-finals and finals played at Madison Square Garden.
The Alabama–Huntsville Chargers are the athletic teams that represent the University of Alabama in Huntsville, located in Huntsville, Alabama, in intercollegiate sports at the Division II level of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). The Chargers have primarily competed in the Gulf South Conference since the 1993–94 academic year.
The 2012 National Invitation Tournament was a single-elimination tournament of 32 NCAA Division I teams that were not selected to participate in the 2012 NCAA tournament. The annual tournament began on March 13 on campus sites and ended on March 29 at Madison Square Garden. Stanford defeated Minnesota in the final game, by a score of 75–51 to become NIT champions for second time.
The 2014 National Invitation Tournament was a single-elimination tournament of 32 NCAA Division I teams that were not selected to participate in the 2014 NCAA tournament. The annual tournament started on campus sites for the first three rounds, with the Final 4 and championship game being held at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The tournament began on Tuesday, March 18 and ended on Thursday, April 3. Minnesota won this tournament after being the third Big Ten team in a row to make the NIT Finals.
The 2015 National Invitation Tournament was a single-elimination tournament of 32 NCAA Division I teams that were not selected to participate in the 2015 NCAA tournament. The annual tournament is being 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 17 and ended on Thursday, April 2. On February 6, the NCAA announced the 2015 NIT will use a 30-second shot clock and a 4-foot (1.2 m) restricted-area arc as experimental rules for the 2015 tournament. On March 4, the NCAA announced teams that are marked as the first four teams left out of the 2015 NCAA tournament field will be the top-seeded teams in the 2015 NIT.
The 2015 NCAA Division III women's basketball tournament was a single-elimination tournament that involved 64 teams playing to determine the winner of the NCAA Division III Women's Basketball Championship. It began on March 6, 2015, and concluded with the championship game on March 21, 2015, at the Van Noord Arena in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
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.
The 2016 NCAA Division II women's basketball tournament involved 64 teams playing in a single-elimination tournament to determine the NCAA Division II women's college basketball national champion. It began on March 10, 2016, and concluded with the championship game on April 4, 2016.
The 2018 NAIA Division II Men’s Basketball national championship was held from March 7–13 at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, SD. The 27th annual NAIA basketball tournament featured thirty-two teams playing in a single-elimination format. In a rematch of the 2016 Championship game, the outcome was the same. The championship game was won by the Indiana Wesleyan Wildcats of Marion, Indiana over the Saint Francis Cougars of Fort Wayne, Indiana by a score of 84 to 71.
The 1986 NCAA Division II women's basketball tournament was the fifth annual tournament hosted by the NCAA to determine the national champion of Division II women's collegiate basketball in the United States.
The 1982 NAIA women's basketball tournament was the second annual tournament held by the NAIA to determine the national champion of women's college basketball among its members in the United States and Canada.
The 1988 NAIA women's basketball tournament was the eighth annual tournament held by the NAIA to determine the national champion of women's college basketball among its members in the United States and Canada.
The 1999 NAIA Division I women's basketball tournament was the tournament held by the NAIA to determine the national champion of women's college basketball among its Division I members in the United States and Canada for the 1998–99 basketball season.
