IRVINE — There were 26 seconds left in overtime. Too much to start celebrating but close enough to start imagining UC Irvine could secure a spot in the semifinals of the National Invitation Tournament.

All the Anteaters had to do was believe they could advance.

Backed by 1,378 ardent fans and a strong history of winning basketball, the top-seeded Anteaters held off University of Alabama-Birmingham for an 81-77 overtime victory at the Bren Events Center to advance to the NIT Final Four for the first time in school history.

With the score tied at 77, guard Myles Che found center Bent Leuchten, the team’s leading scorer, inside for the go-ahead basket in the quarterfinal game with 51 seconds left. Forward Devin Tillis then made two foul shots with .02 remaining to secure the victory.

“I’m just super impressed with my guys’ continued belief really all year that we could find a way because of the defensive excellence that we’ve committed,” UCI coach Russ Turner said.

UCI (31-6) will play North Texas (27-8) in the semifinals to be played at Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis on April 1. North Texas advanced with a victory against Oklahoma State on Tuesday.

“I think this is a further validation for our program of what we’ve built here, of the quality of the players that we have and the belief that we have as a program,” Turner said, choking back emotion. “I feel like we’ve shown that in the postseason each time we’ve made it. ... This NIT has been different for us because we played at home, so to be able to do that here and benefit as we did tonight from the edge that the crowd creates is really special.”

Like their previous game, this was another back-and-forth affair that saw the lead change 13 times, mostly in the second half. But the Anteaters, led by the second-half play of Jurian Dixon, Tillis and Che, eventually got by the Blazers in the final minute.

Tillis scored a game-high 22 points — five in the overtime period — and had 11 rebounds and three assists. After a quiet second half in which he scored just two points, Leuchten posted 18 points — seven in overtime — and 10 rebounds.

Dixon scored 16 points and had five rebounds and Che added 13 points and five assists.

“I had the belief the whole time (that we could win,” Tillis said. “I mean, we’ve had games where we’ve been down by a lot or it’s been close and tight and we’ve earned a win, so being able to have that belief is big. I never once felt like we weren’t going to win that game.”

Said Dixon: “Being able to make the final four of any postseason tournament — it might not be the NCAA Tournament, but the NIT is still a really good tournament — so, being able to put on for our community and represent everybody at UC Irvine is big for us in any way we can. It’s just fun to get a win and keep playing. There’s not a lot of teams going to be playing in April and we can say we’re one of ‘em.”

The Anteaters had a chance to put the game away in regulation but Che’s 3-point attempt at the buzzer hit the side of the backboard, sending the fans back down into their seats and the game into overtime.