1959 National Invitation Tournament

The 1959 National Invitation Tournament was the 1959 edition of the annual NCAA college basketball competition.

1959 National Invitation Tournament

Season	1958–59
Teams	12
Finals site	Madison Square Garden New York City
Champions	St. John's Redmen (3rd title)
Runner-up	Bradley Braves (3rd title game)
Semifinalists	NYU Violets (3rd semifinal) Providence (1st semifinal)
Winning coach	Joe Lapchick (2nd title)
MVP	Tony Jackson (St. John's)
National Invitation Tournaments «1958 1960»

Selected teams

Below is a list of the 12 teams selected for the tournament.

Team	Conference	Overall record	Appearance	Last bid
Bradley	Missouri Valley	23–3	8th	1958
Butler	Independent	18–8	2nd	1958
Denver	Skyline	14–9	1st	Never
Fordham	Metro New York	17–7	3rd	1958
Manhattan	Metro New York	14–6	7th	1957
NYU	Metro New York	12–7	5th	1952
Oklahoma City	Independent	20–6	1st	Never
Providence	Independent	18–5	1st	Never
St. Bonaventure	Independent	20–2	5th	1958
St. John's	Metro New York	16–6	14th	1958
Saint Louis	Missouri Valley	20–5	8th	1956
Villanova	Independent	18–6	1st	Never

Bracket

Below is the tournament bracket.

	First round					Quarterfinals					Semifinals					Finals
		Butler	94
		Fordham	80
							Butler	77
							Bradley	83
												Bradley	59
												NYU	57
							Oklahoma City	48
							NYU	63
		NYU	90
		Denver	81
																	Bradley	71
																	St. John's	76
		Providence	68
		Manhattan	66
							Providence	75
							Saint Louis	72
												Providence	55
												St. John's	76
							St. Bonaventure	74
							St. John's	82
		St. John's	75
		Villanova	67

	Third place game
	NYU		71
	Providence		57

See also

• 1959 NCAA University Division basketball tournament
• 1959 NCAA College Division basketball tournament
• 1959 NAIA Division I men's basketball tournament