Baylor appeared to be headed to the NCAA Tournament before dropping six of its last eight games. The Bears will instead start play in the NIT on Wednesday against visiting Long Beach State. Baylor is the second seed in its bracket and comes into the event with one of the most potent offenses, led by guard Pierre Jackson. The Bears have a chance to go far if they can duplicate their effort from an 81-58 victory against Kansas on March 9.Long Beach State won the Big West regular-season title before losing to UC Irvine in the tournament semifinals. The 49ers reached the NCAA Tournament last season and lost to New Mexico in the first round. They are making their seventh appearance in the NIT, and are led by conference player of the year James Ennis.TV: 9 p.m. ET, ESPN2.ABOUT LONG BEACH STATE (19-13): The 49ers have lost four of their last six, scoring 60 or fewer points in three of the defeats. If Long Beach is to make a run as a seventh seed, though, it must play better defense. The 49ers have allowed an average of 70.2 points and 43.1 percent shooting - both in the lower half of the Big West. Ennis, a 6-7 swingman, leads the team in scoring (16.7) and rebounding (6.9) and shoots 49.3 percent. Mike Caffey (12.3 points, 3.8 assists) was also named to the Big West's first team, while DePaul transfer Tony Freeland made an impact after joining the team in late December.ABOUT BAYLOR (18-14): The Bears could be a tough out with improved defense as well, because they have plenty of offensive weapons. Jackson averages 19.8 points (27 over the last three games) and 6.5 assists for Baylor, which made the NCAA Elite Eight in 2010 and 2012. Isaiah Austin, a 7-1 freshman, is second in scoring (13.2) and leads the team in rebounding (8.6). Austin has 10 double-doubles to tie Cory Jefferson (12.1 points, 8.3 rebounds) for the team lead. Guard Brady Heslip could be the key. He drained 100 3-pointers last season but has only 68 this season.TIP-INS1. The last time Baylor played in the NIT, the Bears lost in the 2009 championship game.2. These teams are meeting for the first time since 1979, when Baylor evened the series 2-2.3. Coach Dan Monson has 104 wins, third behind Jerry Tarkanian (122) and Seth Greenberg (105) at Long Beach. PREDICTION: Baylor 78, Long Beach State 70