BALTIMORE, Md. (Oct. 6, 2023)--Morgan State Vice President/Director of Athletics Dena Freeman-Patton has been appointed as one of the newest members of the National Invitational Tournament's (NIT) eight-person committee. Freeman-Patton's term of service on the committee will begin immediately and conclude on August 31, 2027.
 
With her selection, Freeman-Patton, who in June of 2022 became the first woman to lead Morgan State's athletics department, becomes the first African-American female from an Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) to serve on the NIT committee.
 
"I am looking forward to serving on the NIT Committee. As an administrator, I experienced the NIT with my team all the way to the Final Four at Madison Square Garden," said Freeman-Patton. "This should be an exciting basketball season."
 
Freeman-Patton will join the NIT committee, which will be chaired by New Orleans Vice President of Athletics and Recreation Tim Duncan. Other members of the 2023-24 NIT Committee are Western Athletic Conference Commissioner Brian Thornton, former Virginia Director of Athletics Craig Littlepage and former Division I men's basketball coaches Rick Byrd, Bob McKillop, Gary Waters and Bob Williams.
 
NIT committee nominees were nominated by their peers throughout the NCAA membership. The nominations were then presented to the NIT Board of Managers. The NIT Board then selected the new committee members from the pool of nominees.
  
Beginning in 2015-16, NIT Committee members were appointed to serve a maximum four-year term, and the committee features a mix of current athletic administrators who are actively working at NCAA institutions or conferences, former collegiate head men's basketball coaches and former athletics administrators. Prior to 2015-16 the committee only consisted of former coaches and administrators.
 
The committee is responsible for the selection, seeding and bracketing of the teams for the 2024 NIT postseason field. The committee will then provide oversight and guidance for the NIT throughout the event.
 
The 2024 NIT will be the 86th for the nation's oldest postseason tournament, which began in 1938. Selections, pairings and the bracket will be announced March 17, with games beginning Tuesday, March 19. The NIT semifinals and championship will be hosted by Butler University at Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana for the first time on April 2 and 4, 2024.
 
 
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ABOUT MORGAN
Morgan State University, founded in 1867, is a Carnegie-classified doctoral research institution offering more than 100 academic programs leading to degrees from the baccalaureate to the doctorate. As Maryland's Preeminent Public Urban Research University, Morgan serves a multiethnic and multiracial student body and seeks to ensure that the doors of higher education are opened as wide as possible to as many as possible. For more information about Morgan State University, visit www.morgan.edu.