Top Teams Announced for 2013 ESPN Regional Television Early-Season Basketball Events

Riding Off Success of 2012 Teams

ESPN Regional Television (ERT), a subsidiary of ESPN, owns and operates early-season basketball events worldwide beginning in early-November and running through the Christmas holiday.

The five multi-day, destination events consisting of the Charleston Classic, Puerto Rico Tip-Off, newly formed Wooden Legacy, Old Spice Classic and the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic are bracket-format tournaments featuring 12 games over three days. The teams compete once per day, advancing with a victory. The two remaining undefeated teams will face off in a championship game.

In addition, ERT formed the Armed Forces Classic, heading into its second year on Friday, Nov. 8, and the third installment of the State Farm Champions Classic will be held on Tuesday, Nov. 12. Fans will also get a glimpse of six top teams at the annual Jimmy V Men’s and Women’s Classics Presented by Corona Extra on Tuesday, Dec. 17 from Madison Square Garden in NYC and Durham, N.C., respectively.

The 2012 college basketball events saw great success with top ranked teams in the final Associated Press poll (March 18) on the tournament rosters, including No. 1 Gonzaga, No. 3 Kansas, No. 5 Miami (Fla.), No. 6 Duke, No. 8 Georgetown and No. 9 Michigan State. Eight teams in the final top 25 participated in an ERT basketball event – setting up for an exciting 2013 season.

2013 ERT Basketball Event Preview
Armed Forces Classic – Friday, Nov. 8
The second installment of the Armed Forces Classic will take place in conjunction with the U.S. Army in a location to be determined. Georgetown will face off against Oregon.

• Georgetown finished the 2012-13 season with a 25-7 record, won a share of the BIG EAST regular-season championship and earned a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Championship
• Oregon finished the 2012-13 season with an overall record of 28-9, winning the Pac-12 Conference Championship.
• The Ducks advanced to the NCAA Championship Sweet 16 as a No. 12 seed knocking off No. 5 Oklahoma State and No. 4 Saint Louis, before falling to eventual national champion and top-seeded Louisville.

State Farm Champions Classic – Tuesday, Nov. 12
In its third year, the State Farm Champions Classic will be played at the United Center in Chicago, Ill., and will once again showcase Michigan State vs. Kentucky and Kansas vs. Duke.

• Michigan State, Kansas and Duke all earned NCAA Championship bids
• Kansas and Duke were Elite Eight participants and ranked No. 3 and No. 6 in the final poll, respectively
• The Spartans finished the season in the Sweet 16 and ranked No. 9 in the final AP poll
• Kentucky earned an National Invitation Tournament (NIT) berth
• Additional information can be found on the Champions Classic website

Charleston Classic – Nov. 21, 22 & 24
The Charleston Classic, held at TD Arena in Charleston, S.C., will include UAB, Clemson, Davidson, Georgia, UMass, Nebraska, New Mexico and Temple.

• Temple made a NCAA Championship third round appearance, while Davidson and New Mexico advanced to the second round
• The Lobos ended the season ranked No. 10 in the AP poll
• Massachusetts was a NIT participant
• Additional information, including travel packages, can be found on the Charleston Classic website

Puerto Rico Tip-Off – Nov. 21, 22 & 24
The Puerto Rico Tip-Off will showcase Charlotte, Florida State, Georgetown, Kansas State, Long Beach State, Michigan, Northeastern and VCU.

• All of the eight-team field participated in postseason tournaments
• Michigan played in the 2013 NCAA Championship title game falling to Louisville and ended the season ranked No. 10 by the AP
• VCU played in the NCAA Championship third round, while Georgetown and Kansas State advanced to the second round
• Georgetown ranked No. 8 and Kansas State stood at No. 12 in the final AP poll, while Florida State and VCU received votes
• Charlotte, Florida State, Long Beach State and Northeastern were NIT first-round participants
• Additional information, including travel packages, can be found on the Puerto Rico Tip-Off website

Wooden Legacy – Nov. 28 & 29, Dec. 1
The newly created Wooden Legacy will be in Orange County, Calif. The first two days will be played on the campus of Cal-State Fullerton and the final day of competition will be at the Honda Center in Anaheim. The field consists of Arizona State, Cal-State Fullerton, Charleston, Creighton, George Washington, Marquette, Miami (Fla.) and San Diego State.

• Marquette and Miami played in the Elite Eight, while Creighton and San Diego State were third round participants
• In the final AP poll, Miami was ranked No. 5, Marquette was No. 15 and Creighton was No. 22
• Arizona State played in the NIT and Charleston earned a College Basketball Invitational (CBI) berth
• Additional information, including travel packages, can be found on the Wooden Legacy website

Old Spice Classic – Nov. 28 & 29, Dec. 1
The Old Spice Classic, held at HP Field House at ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex near Orlando, Fla., will feature Butler, LSU, Memphis, Oklahoma State, Purdue, Saint Joseph’s, Siena and Washington State.

• Butler advanced to the Sweet 16, Memphis was a third-round participant and Oklahoma State advanced to the second round
• Oklahoma State finished the year ranked No. 17 in the AP poll, while Memphis was ranked No. 19 and Butler received votes
• St. Joseph’s earned a NIT berth and Purdue participated in the CBI quarterfinals
• Additional information, including travel packages, can be found on the Old Spice Classic website

Jimmy V Men’s & Women’s Classics Presented by Corona Extra – Tuesday, Dec. 17
The men’s doubleheader, held at New York City’s famed Madison Square Garden for the 11th consecutive year and 19^th overall, will feature Florida vs. Memphis and Pittsburgh vs. Cincinnati. The women’s event, in its 12^th year, will showcase Connecticut at Duke.

• Florida advanced to the NCAA Championship Elite Eight and was ranked No. 14 at the season’s conclusion
• Memphis played in a second-round game and ended the season ranked No. 19
• Pitt was a second-round national tournament participant and was ranked No. 20 in the final poll, while Cincinnati also advanced to the second round
• Connecticut women are coming off it program-record eighth national championship, while Duke finished ranked No. 5 in the final AP poll
• Additional information can be found on the Jimmy V Classics website

Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic – Dec. 22, 23 & 25
The Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic, played at the Stan Sheriff Center in Honolulu, Hawaii, will include tournament host Hawaii, plus Akron, Boise State, George Mason, Iowa State, Oregon State, Saint Mary’s and South Carolina.

• Four NCAA Championship participants in Akron (second round), Boise State (first round), Saint Mary’s (second round) and Iowa State (third round)
• Saint Mary’s received votes in the final AP poll
• George Mason played for the CBI Championship title, while Hawaii was part of the CollegeInsider.com  Tournament (CIT)
• Additional information, including travel packages, can be found on the Diamond Head Classic website

ESPN Regional Television
ESPN Regional Television (ERT), a subsidiary of ESPN, owns and operates collegiate sporting events worldwide, including two Labor Day Kickoff college football games; seven college bowl games and eight college basketball events. These account for approximately 200 hours of programming, reach almost 64 million viewers and attract nearly half a million attendees each year. The owned and operated events build relationships with conferences, schools and local communities, as well as provide unique experiences for teams and fans. In addition to event ownership, ERT manages the Big 12 Corporate Partner Program.

Collegiate Football
BBVA Compass Bowl (Birmingham, Ala.); Beef ‘O’ Brady’s Bowl St. Petersburg; Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl (Dallas-Fort Worth); Gildan New Mexico Bowl (Albuquerque); Las Vegas Bowl; MEAC/SWAC Challenge presented by Disney (Orlando, Fla.); Texas Bowl (Houston); Texas Kickoff (Houston); Sheraton Hawai’i Bowl (Honolulu) and The Home Depot College Football Awards

Collegiate Basketball
Armed Forces Classic (TBD); Charleston Classic (S.C.); Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic (Honolulu); Jimmy V Men’s & Women’s Basketball Classics presented by Corona Extra (Madison Square Garden & Durham, N.C.); Old Spice Classic (Walt Disney World Resort near Orlando, Fla.); Puerto Rico Tip-Off (San Jaun, PR); State Farm Champions Classic (United Center, Chicago) and Wooden Legacy (Orange County, Calif.).

For more information, visit espnplus.com.

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