Stanford Basketball's Path in the NIT Begins with CSU Northridge

Mar 12, 2025; Charlotte, NC, USA; Stanford Cardinal guard Jaylen Blakes (21) brings the ball up court against the California Golden Bears during the second half at Spectrum Center. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images | Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images

Stanford basketball is back in action this week.

After a long, nervous wait, the Cardinal are not only playing in the postseason, but able to host, and stay close to home for almost the entire tournament. The Cardinal landed the two seed in the San Francisco Region, and will host CSU Northridge in the first round on Tuesday.

The entire region is seeded: 1. San Francisco, 2. Stanford, 3. St. Bonaventure, 4. San Jose State, 5. Loyola Chicago, 6. Kent State, 7. CSU Northridge, and 8. Utah Valley.

Realistically, Stanford only has one team to look out for in their region: The USF Dons.

Bay Area archrivals San Francisco are the top seed in the region, and one of the best teams in the tournament. Their guard play consists of Malik Thomas and Marcus Williams, two of the top guards in the country. The best win the Dons have is when they beat Saint Mary’s 65-64, earlier this season. If the Dons get hot, they will be a tough team to beat, especially on the hilltop.

This season, Stanford is 20-13, and finished 11-9 in conference play. In their 33 games, they faced four teams in the NIT bracket: No. 1 seeded SMU, No. 2 seed Santa Clara, No. 4 seed Georgia Tech, and No. 8 seed Utah Valley.

In those four games, they took down SMU, Santa Clara, and Utah Valley, with their only loss on the road to Georgia Tech. Clearly, the Cardinal know how to beat this level of teams, the question is just if they will be able to do it again.

Their first round game against CSU Northridge should be a victory. The Matadors went 22-10 overall, finishing 14-6 in Big West conference play. Their most notable win is UC Irvine on the road, which was a very impressive victory.

Despite that, they have 10 losses, none of which came against notable programs, outside of UC San Diego, Montana, and UC Irvine.

Stanford enters the game as the favorites, and will looking to make an early statement in the first round of the tournament.

Stanford is looking for their fourth NIT title, and looks like they may be a favorite to do so this season.