The Basketball Classic

The Basketball Classic presented by Eracism was[2] a single-elimination, fully-bracketed men's college basketball postseason tournament created in 2022 as a successor to the CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament after its scheduled 2020 and 2021 tournaments were cancelled because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The tournament featured up to 32 National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I teams not selected to participate in the NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament, the NIT, or the College Basketball Invitational. All games were streamed on ESPN+.[3] In lieu of a traditional bracket, The Basketball Classic used the old NIT model in which the matchups were set after each round.

The Basketball Classic
SportBasketball
Founded2022
FounderCollegeInsider.com (under their anti-racism organization's name "Eracism")
First season2021–22
Ceased2022[1]
No. of teams32
CountryUnited States
Last
champion(s)
Fresno State
Most titlesFresno State (1)
TV partner(s)ESPN+
Related
competitions
NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament
National Invitational Tournament
College Basketball Invitational
Official websiteWebsite

Format

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The tournament consisted of three rounds, single elimination, the games were held on campuses of participating schools. All gate receipts were collected by The Basketball Classic. Schools could host games in the tournament without the responsibility of an additional financial commitment.

Broadcast

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Year Network Play-by-Play Color analyst Sideline
2022 ESPN+ Noah Frary Nate Ross

Champion

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Year Champion Runner-up MVP
2022 Fresno State Coastal Carolina Orlando Robinson

References

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  1. ^ "NCAA Basketball: An ode to The Basketball Classic (2022-2022)". Retrieved March 22, 2023.
  2. ^ "Announcement Regarding Happening Hoops CBI/Basketball Classic Bracketology". Retrieved March 25, 2023.
  3. ^ "The Basketball Classic presented by Eracism" (PDF) (Press release). The Basketball Classic. Retrieved February 9, 2022.
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