1979 National Invitation Tournament

The 1979 National Invitation Tournament was the 1979 edition of the annual NCAA college basketball competition. Indiana University defeated their rival Purdue University 53–52 in the championship game. Purdue appeared in the 1980 NCAA Men's Final Four while Indiana won the national championship at the 1981 NCAA Men's Final Four.

Selected teams
Below is a list of the 24 teams selected for the tournament.


 * Alabama
 * Alcorn State
 * Central Michigan
 * Clemson
 * Dayton
 * Holy Cross
 * Indiana
 * Kentucky
 * Maryland
 * Mississippi State
 * Nevada
 * New Mexico
 * Northeast Louisiana
 * Ohio State
 * Old Dominion
 * Oregon State
 * Purdue
 * Rhode Island
 * Saint Joseph's
 * St. Bonaventure
 * Texas A&M
 * Texas Tech
 * Virginia
 * Wagner

Brackets
Below are the three first round brackets, along with the four-team championship bracket.


 * Indiana and Ohio State received byes to the Semifinals.