Big East Conference member Georgetown originally was among the teams selected , but declined to take part . Hoyas head coach Craig Esherick explained that Georgetown ′ s home court , the MCI Center in Washington , D.C. , was booked to host the East Regional of the 2002 NCAA Men 's Division I Basketball Tournament , meaning that accepting the NIT invitation would have required the Hoyas to play on the road in the West for two weeks , forcing his players to miss many of their classes . After playing a similar schedule the previous season during the 2001 NCAA Tournament , Esherick had concluded that missing so many classes to play in the NIT , a tournament which did not offer a chance for a national championship , was not in the best interest of Georgetowns players
Big East Conference
Big East Conference (1979–2013)
2002 National Invitation Tournament