LIHU‘E — The two biggest college hoops tournaments that call Hawai‘i home announced their schedules on Thursday, as the Thanksgiving Maui Invitational and Christmas Diamond Head Classic made their participants and broadcast information available. The EA Sports Maui Invitational, which
LIHU‘E — The two biggest college hoops tournaments that call Hawai‘i home announced their schedules on Thursday, as the Thanksgiving Maui Invitational and Christmas Diamond Head Classic made their participants and broadcast information available.
The EA Sports Maui Invitational, which is hosted by Chaminade University at the Lahaina Civic Center, will consist of an eight-team tournament from Nov. 22-24.
Connecticut, Kentucky and Michigan State, three teams that have a combined 11 national championships, headline the field that also includes Oklahoma, Virginia, Washington, Wichita State and Honolulu’s Chaminade University.
The first round of games will pit Wichita State against Connecticut in the opening contest, followed by Oklahoma against Kentucky, Michigan State against Chaminade and Virginia against Washington in the nightcap.
The ESPN family of networks will broadcast all 12 tournament games.
Tickets for the general public will become available at 9 a.m. HT on Aug. 25 via www.mauiinvitational.com.
The following month, University of Hawai‘i’s Stan Sheriff Center will host the Diamond Head Classic, taking place Dec. 22, 23 and 25.
All eight participating teams will be in action during each of the three days, with the opening Wednesday tipping off at 10 a.m. HT as Mississipi State takes on Washington State.
San Diego will go up against Baylor at noon, followed by NCAA Tournament runner-up Butler taking on Utah at 6 p.m., leading up to the Hawai‘i-Florida State game at 8 p.m.
Thursday will feature all eight teams again, with winner’s bracket games at 1:30 p.m. and 5 p.m., and loser’s bracket games at 11:30 a.m. and 7:30 p.m.
The final day of action will begin at 9 a.m. Saturday, Christmas Day, with the seventh-place game, followed by the fifth-place game at 11:30 a.m., the third-place game at 2:30 p.m. and the championship game at 4:30 p.m.
The championship and third-place games will be televised on ESPN2, will all other tournament games on ESPNU.
Tickets for the Diamond Head Classic are available in different package formats. For more information, visit www.hawaiianairlinesdiamondheadclassic.com.
