Matchups for 2016 ESPN Events Early Season Basketball Tournaments Revealed
July 14, 2016
Matchups for 2016 ESPN Events Early Season Basketball Tournaments Revealed
ESPN Events has revealed the brackets for its owned and operated early season college basketball tournaments. Featuring more than 40 teams, the tournaments begin in November and continue through Christmas weekend. The six, multi-day, destination events include the Gildan Charleston Classic (Nov. 17, 18 & 20), Puerto Rico Tip-off (Nov. 17, 18 & 20), AdvoCare Invitational (Nov. 24, 25 & 27), DIRECTV Wooden Legacy (Nov. 24, 25 & 27), NIT Season Tip-Off (Nov. 24-25) and Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic (Dec. 22, 23 & 25).
The bracket-format tournaments feature 12 games over three days, with the NIT Season Tip-Off championship rounds taking place over two days with four games during Thanksgiving weekend. The teams compete once per day, advancing with a victory. The two teams that remain undefeated will face off in a championship game.
Gildan Charleston Classic – Nov. 17, 18 & 20
The Gildan Charleston Classic, hosted by the Colonial Athletic Association, will be held at TD Arena in Charleston, S.C. Teams participating in the tournament include NCAA National Champion Villanova, as well as Boise State, Charleston, Mississippi State, UCF, UTEP, Wake Forest and Western Michigan. Additional information, including travel packages, can be found on the Gildan Charleston Classic website.
| Date | Time | Game | Network |
| Thu, Nov 17 | 11:30 a.m. | Western Michigan vs. Villanova | ESPN2 |
| 1:30 p.m. | Wake Forest vs. UTEP | ESPN3 | |
| 5 p.m. | Mississippi State vs. UCF | ESPN2 | |
| 7 p.m. | Boise State vs. Charleston | ESPN3 | |
| Fri, Nov 18 | 1:30 p.m. | Semifinal #1 | ESPN2 |
| 3:30 p.m. | Consolation #1 | ESPN3 | |
| 7 p.m. | Consolation #2 | ESPN3 | |
| 9:30 p.m. | Semifinal #2 | ESPNU | |
| Sun, Nov 20 | 1:30 p.m. | 7th Place Game | ESPN3 |
| 3:30 p.m. | 5th Place Game | ESPN3 | |
| 7 p.m. | 3rd Place Game | ESPNU | |
| 9:30 p.m. | Championship Game | ESPN2 | |
| Wed, Nov 23 | TBD | Charleston at Villanova ^ | TBD |
^ – Non-bracketed game
Puerto Rico Tip-Off – Nov. 17, 18 & 20
The Puerto Rico Tip-Off, played at Coliseo Roberto Clemente, showcases four teams that participated in postseason tournaments last season, including Oklahoma, which advanced to the Final Four, Xavier and Northern Iowa, which both advanced to the second round of the NCAA tournament, and Davidson, which earned an invitation to the postseason NIT. Arizona State, Clemson, Missouri and Tulane will also head to San Juan as participants in the tournament. Additional information, including travel packages, can be found on the Puerto Rico Tip-Off website.
| Date | Time | Game | Network |
| Thu, Nov 17 | 11 a.m. | Clemson vs. Davidson | ESPNU |
| 1 p.m. | Xavier vs. Missouri | ESPNU | |
| 4:30 p.m. | Northern Iowa vs. Arizona State | ESPNU | |
| 7 p.m. | Tulane vs. Oklahoma | ESPN2 or ESPNU | |
| Fri, Nov 18 | 11:30 a.m. | Consolation #1 | ESPNU |
| 1:30 p.m. | Semifinal #1 | ESPNU | |
| 5 p.m. | Consolation #2 | ESPNU | |
| 7 p.m. | Semifinal #2 | ESPNU | |
| Sun, Nov 20 | Noon | 7th Place Game | ESPN3 |
| 2:30 p.m. | 5th Place Game | ESPNU | |
| 5 p.m. | 3rd Place Game | ESPNU | |
| 7:30 p.m. | Championship Game | ESPN2 | |
| Sat, Nov 26 | TBD | Northern Iowa at Xavier^ | TBD |
^ – Non-bracketed game
AdvoCare Invitational – Nov. 24, 25 & 27
The AdvoCare Invitational, played at the HP Field House at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex, will bring three Sweet 16 teams from last year’s NCAA tournament —Gonzaga, Iowa State and Miami — to Orlando, Fla. Joining those teams will be last season’s BIG EAST Champion Seton Hall, Florida, which advanced to the third round of the postseason NIT, Indiana State, Quinnipiac and Stanford. Additional information, including travel packages, can be found on the AdvoCare Invitational website.
| Date | Time | Game | Network |
| Thu, Nov 24 | 12:30 p.m. | Indiana State vs. Iowa State | ESPN2 or ESPNU |
| 2:30 p.m. | Stanford vs. Miami | ESPN2 or ESPNU | |
| 6:30 p.m. | Gonzaga vs. Quinnipiac | ESPN2 | |
| 8:30 p.m. | Seton Hall vs. Florida | ESPN2 | |
| Fri, Nov 25 | 11 a.m. | Semifinal #1 | ESPN2 |
| 1 p.m. | Consolation #1 | ESPN3 | |
| 7:30 p.m. | Consolation #2 | ESPN2 | |
| 9:30 p.m. | Semifinal #2 | ESPN2 | |
| Sun, Nov 27 | 11 a.m. | 7th Place Game | ESPNU |
| 1:30 p.m. | Championship Game | ESPN | |
| 4:30 p.m. | 3rd Place Game | ESPN2 | |
| 7 p.m. | 5th Place Game | ESPNU |
DIRECTV Wooden Legacy – Nov. 24, 25 & 27
The DIRECTV Wooden Legacy will take place Nov. 24, 25 and 27 at Cal State Fullerton in Fullerton, Calif., and the Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif. CSUN, Dayton, Nebraska, New Mexico, Portland, Texas A&M, which advanced to the Sweet 16 in last year’s NCAA tournament, UCLA and Virginia Tech will be participants in this year’s tournament.
Additional information, including travel packages, can be found on the DIRECTV Wooden Legacy website.
| Date | Time (ET) | Game | Network |
| Sun, Nov 13 | TBD | CSUN at UCLA^ | TBD |
| Thu, Nov 24# | 2 p.m. | Texas A&M vs. CSUN | ESPN3 |
| 4:30 p.m. | New Mexico vs. Virginia Tech | ESPN | |
| 8:30 p.m. | Dayton vs. Nebraska | ESPNU | |
| 11 p.m. | Portland vs. UCLA | ESPN2 | |
| Fri, Nov 25# | 3 p.m. | Consolation #1 | ESPNU |
| 5:30 p.m. | Semifinal #1 | ESPN2 | |
| 9:30 p.m. | Consolation #2 | ESPN3 | |
| Midnight | Semifinal #2 | ESPN2 | |
| Sun, Nov 27* | 2 p.m. | 5th Place Game | ESPNU |
| 4 p.m. | 3rd Place Game | ESPNU | |
| 8:30 p.m. | Championship Game | ESPN | |
| 11 p.m. | 7th Place Game | ESPNU |
^ – Non-bracketed game
# – Titan Gym, Fullerton, Calif.
* – Honda Center, Anaheim, Calif.
NIT Season Tip-Off – Nov. 24 & 25
Hosted by ESPN Events, this year’s NIT Season Tip-Off features Florida State, Illinois, Temple and West Virginia, facing off at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y. Temple and West Virginia both played in last year’s NCAA Tournament, while Florida State played in the postseason NIT. Other non-bracketed games will be played at campus sites in November. Matchups and the full schedule will be announced at a later date. Additional information can be found on the NIT Tip-Off website.
| Date | Time (ET) | Game | Network |
| Thu, Nov 24 | 12:30 p.m. | Temple vs. Florida State | ESPN2 or ESPNU |
| 2:30 p.m. | Illinois vs. West Virginia | ESPN2 or ESPNU | |
| Fri, Nov 25 | 12:30 p.m. | 3rd Place Game | ESPNU |
| 3 p.m. | Championship | ESPN2 |
Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic – Dec. 22, 23 & 25
Stephen F. Austin, which caught the attention of fans everywhere with its NCAA tournament performance, is among the teams playing in this year’s Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic. Held at the Stan Sheriff Center in Honolulu, Hawai’i, the tournament also includes Hawai’i, Illinois, San Diego State, Southern Mississippi, San Francisco, Tulsa and Utah. Additional information, including travel packages, can be found on the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic website.
| Date | Time (ET) | Game | Network |
| Thu, Dec 22 | 4:30 p.m. | Tulsa vs. Stephen F. Austin | ESPNU |
| 7 p.m. | San Diego State vs. Southern Mississippi | ESPN2 | |
| 11 p.m. | San Francisco vs. Utah | ESPNU | |
| 1:30 a.m. | Illinois State vs. Hawai’i | ESPN2 | |
| Fri, Dec 23 | 4:30 p.m. | Semifinal #1 | ESPN2 |
| 6:30 p.m. | Consolation #1 | ESPN3 | |
| 10 p.m. | Semifinal #2 | ESPN2 | |
| 12:30 a.m. | Consolation #2 | ESPNU | |
| Sun, Dec 25 | 1 p.m. | 5th Place Game or 7th Place Game | ESPN3 |
| 3:30 p.m. | 5th Place Game of 7th Place Game | ESPNU | |
| 6:30 p.m. | 3rd Place Game | ESPN2 | |
| 8:30 p.m. | Championship Game | ESPN2 |