Sport | Basketball |
---|---|
Founded | 2022 |
Founder | Collegeinsider.com |
Inaugural season | 2021–22 |
No. of teams | 32 |
Country | United States |
TV partner(s) | ESPN+ |
Related competitions | NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament National Invitational Tournament College Basketball Invitational |
Official website | Website |
The Basketball Classic is a single-elimination, fully-bracketed men's college basketball postseason tournament created in 2022 as a successor to the CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament, featuring up to 32 National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I teams not selected to participate in the NCAA tournament, the NIT, or the CBI. In lieu of a traditional bracket, The Basketball Classic uses the old NIT model in which the matchups are set after each round. The Basketball Classic was founded by Collegeinsider.com to replace the former CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament, which was discontinued after its scheduled 2020 and 2021 tournaments were cancelled.
No tournament was held in 2023, and the future of the tournament is unknown. [1]
Games are held on campuses of participating schools. All gate receipts will be collected by The Basketball Classic. Schools can host games in the tournament without the responsibility of an additional financial commitment.
ESPN+ has broadcast rights for all games of The Basketball Classic. [2] The following is an overview and list of the announcers and television networks to broadcast The Basketball Classic:
Year | Network | Play-by-Play | Color analyst | Sideline |
---|---|---|---|---|
2022 | ESPN+ | Noah Frary | Nate Ross |
Year | Champion | Runner-up | MVP |
---|---|---|---|
2022 | Fresno State | Coastal Carolina | Orlando Robinson |
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The 2016 College Basketball Invitational (CBI) was a single-elimination tournament of 16 National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I teams that did not participate in the NCAA Tournament or the NIT. The opening games and the quarterfinals were held in mid-March on the home courts of participating teams. After the quarterfinals, the bracket was reseeded for the semifinals. A best-of-three championship series was held between the two finalist teams. An experimental rule allowing players six personal fouls instead of five was used in all national postseason tournaments except for the NCAA Tournament.
The 2016 CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament (CIT) was a postseason single-elimination tournament of 26 NCAA Division I basketball teams. The first round was played March 14–16, 2016. The second round March 18–20, Quarterfinals March 22–24 the semifinals March 27, and the championship game was played on March 29
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The 2022 College Basketball Invitational (CBI) was a single-elimination, fully-bracketed men’s college basketball postseason tournament featuring 16 National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I teams not selected to participate in the NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament or the National Invitation Tournament (NIT). The tournament began on March 19 and concluded on March 23. Semifinal and championship games aired on ESPN2. The tournament was won by UNC Wilmington.
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