UCLA in Anaheim
I wrote about it last week, and it was officially released today that UCLA men's basketball will play in the 76 Classic next November in Anaheim. The games will be played Nov. 26, 27 and 29.
The rest of the field was announced today and contains Texas A&M (Big 12), West Virginia (BIG EAST) Long Beach State (Big West), Clemson (ACC), Butler (Horizon), Minnesota (Big Ten) and Portland (West Coast).
The release is below:
76 Classic Announces Field for 2009, Including No. 11 UCLA and Five NCAA Tournament Participants
ESPN Regional Television, Inc., a subsidiary of ESPN, announced today the field for the third annual 76 Classic. The 12-game, bracketed collegiate basketball tournament features eight schools. The games in 2009 will be played Thanksgiving weekend at the Anaheim Convention Center adjacent to Disneyland on Nov. 26, 27 and 29. Tournament pairings and game times will be announced at a later date.
The 76 Classic field for 2009 includes eight teams from eight conferences: No. 11 UCLA (Pac-10), Texas A&M (Big 12), West Virginia (BIG EAST) Long Beach State (Big West), Clemson (ACC), Butler (Horizon), Minnesota (Big Ten) and Portland (West Coast). Five of the eight teams earned berths in the 2007-08 NCAA Tournament: UCLA, Texas A&M, West Virginia, Clemson and Butler.
"Once again, an outstanding field will represent conferences from around the country for the 76 Classic," said Pete Derzis, senior vice president and general manager, ESPN Regional Television. "As the 76 Classic continues to grow, it showcases quality competition and an outstanding off-court experience for the student-athletes, coaches and staff during the Thanksgiving weekend. Fans get the opportunity to watch some great college basketball while also enjoying Disneyland, along with all Southern California has to offer."
This past weekend, No. 24 Wake Forest claimed the 2008 76 Classic trophy with a 87-74 victory over Baylor in the championship game.
The Big West Conference again serves as the host for the 76 Classic at the 7,800-seat Anaheim Convention Center, which has served the conference for the past nine years as the site of its postseason tournament. The 76 Classic features four games each day, with the two undefeated teams competing in the championship game on ESPN2 on the final day.
Tickets for the 2009 76 Classic are expected to go on sale next summer. For more information, visit the official Web site: http://76CLASSIC.com.
3 Comments
Leave a comment
About Inside UCLA
This is Brian Dohn's sixth season covering UCLA after spending 4 1/2 years covering the Dodgers for the Daily News and other Los Angeles Newspaper Group papers. He graduated from Rutgers, where the first college football game was played in 1869. Sure, the Scarlet Knights suffered for a long time, but now RU is doing what Jerseyans always thought was possible. Winning at Rutgers also proves winning is possible everywhere else in the nation, so underachieving coaches better be careful. Now, if only men's hoops can turn it around.
Erm... I got a "permission denied" when I tried to log in. Anyway, does this replace the Wooden Classic? Is the Wooden Classic gone now?
I do not think this replaces the Wooden Classic. This is a pre-season tournament like the Coaches v. Cancer game we played in this year or the Maui Classic we played in a couple years back (and whatever tournament we won last season). The Wooden Classic is a single day, two game event. Also this tournament is not played in the Honda Center (Pond), but in the Anaheim Convention Center.
Oh, I saw Anaheim and assumed it was the Pond.