After Sun Belt commissioner Keith Gill and NCAA senior vice president of basketball Dan Gavitt extended South Alabama an invite to the NIT [National Invitation Tournament] late Sunday night, it was rescinded an hour later in an embarrassing moment for the NCAA and a heartbreaking one for the South Alabama players.

South Alabama was Sun Belt regular-season co-champions this season, finishing in a four-way tie with Troy, James Madison and Arkansas State, but earning the No. 1 seed for the conference tournament. The Jaguars (21-11) lost in the semifinals of the Sun Belt tournament, with Troy winning and claiming the league’s sole “March Madness” bid.

Coach Richie Riley slammed an apology given by the NIT, which dropped his Jaguars after learning that UC Riverside was spurning the CBI tournament.