NEW YORK — North Carolina and UConn are lending some serious star power to the NIT.

The Tar Heels were a No. 4 seed in the bracket released Sunday, the second time in the past three years that the defending national champion missed the NCAA tournament. Florida also played in the NIT in 2008 after winning the title.

It was the first time that North Carolina (16-16) missed out on the big party since 2003, but it certainly wasn’t unexpected. The Tar Heels lost 10 out of 12 games during a midseason swoon, and were beaten by Georgia Tech in the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament.

Connecticut (17-15) is the other blueblood relegated to the NIT, also picked as a fourth seed after making the Final Four last season.

Three teams from Conference USA made the field, but Marshall was not one of them. The Thundering Herd (23-9) had its best season in 10 years, but was defeated by Tulsa in the league tournament after earning a first-round bye.

Memphis, UAB and Tulsa will play in the tournament.

Instead, Marshall will host Western Carolina in the second CollegeInsider.com Tournament. The Herd is a No. 1 seed in the tournament and will host the Catamounts at 7 p.m. Tuesday.

It will be the Herd’s first postseason game since falling to Virginia Commonwealth in the first round of the 1988 NIT.

“We are excited to have the opportunity to play in our first postseason tournament in 22 years,” Marshall coach Donnie Jones said.  “We are looking forward to playing a postseason game in front of our fans in the Henderson Center and we hope that a large crowd will come out and support our team.”

Tickets are $20 for lower reserved seats, $11 for upper-level reserved and $10 for general admission. Marshall student tickets are $4 with a valid student ID. Tickets are on sale now and can be purchased online at www.herdzone.com.

The Marshall ticket office will be open from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday and fans can purchase tickets over the phone by calling 1-800-THE-HERD or 304-696-HERD during business hours. Fans who purchase tickets online or over the phone can pick up their tickets at will call on Tuesday.

Regular season ticket holders who pre-ordered postseason tickets can pick them up starting at noon today at the ticket office.

Current Marshall forward Camden Miller sat out the 2008-09 season after transferring from Western Carolina.

The Huskies had a trying season in which coach Jim Calhoun missed several games with an undisclosed medical condition. They made a run in February to renew their NCAA tournament hopes, but head into their NIT opener against Northeastern coming off four straight losses, including a 73-51 rout by St. John’s in the Big East tournament.

“With a quick glance at the bracket, it looks like the field is remarkably tough,” Calhoun said. “There are plenty of teams that were in position to make the NCAA tournament, and I think that with all of the parity in the field, it will be very difficult to win and advance.”

The NIT begins Tuesday on campuses with the championship April 1 at Madison Square Garden.

The No. 1 seeds were Illinois, Arizona State, Virginia Tech and Mississippi State, all teams that spent Sunday hoping for NCAA tournament bids.

The Bulldogs may have had the most emotional afternoon. They blew a five-point lead with 2:28 left in the Southeastern Conference championship game against Kentucky, eventually losing 75-74 in overtime — and with the game, their NCAA tournament berth.

“We had our opportunities to close it out. That’s part of the game,” Mississippi State coach Rick Stansbury said. “And I can promise you, there’s not one ounce left in them.”

Mississippi State will open the tournament against in-state rival Jackson State, which got an automatic berth to the NIT by winning the Southwestern Athletic Conference regular-season title.

— On the Internet: www.collegeinsider.com/tournament