Lee Miller Tooley hopped off the phone to welcome the Baylor women’s basketball team to the Atlantis Resort in the Bahamas. A week before Thanksgiving, 80-degree temperatures made it easy for the Bears to settle down on Paradise Island.
Similar weather awaited the Maui Invitational men’s team in Hawaii, about 5,000 miles west of the Caribbean nation. They are often welcomed with a lei, Hawaii’s traditional welcome of friendship.
College basketball teams and fans look forward to this time of year. Sure, holiday week tournaments have high-profile matchups and all-day television coverage, but there’s a familiarity to them that helps you avoid the November chill. For 40 years, sandy basketball vacations have been central to the popularity of the sport itself.
“When you watch (ESPN’s) College Basketball ‘Feast Week’ on TV, when you watch Battle 4 Atlantis on TV, you know college basketball is back,” he said. Miller Tooleyfounder and organizer of the Battle 4 Atlantis men’s and women’s tournament. “Because now we’re so saturated with the NFL, college football and NBA all year round. But when you see these fancy events happening in these beautiful places, you’re like, ‘Wow, hoops are back, let’s get excited.’ I understand.”
MTE Madness
The Great Alaska Shootout was a multi-team event (MTE) that started a trend nearly 50 years ago. The idea of the late Alaska Anchorage coach Bob Rachal was to raise the profile of his program by introducing the National Power Program, which allowed players to earn more than a regular-season game if they played three games. They may be able to take advantage of NCAA regulations that allow them to exceed the maximum quota. Tournaments outside the 48 contiguous states.
The inaugural Seawolf Classic was won by North Carolina State University on November 26, 1978, defeating Louisville 72-66.
The ensuing Maui Invitational in November 1984 was the result of Chaminade’s shocking upset of the NAIA program over top-ranked Virginia and 7-foot-4 star Ralph Sampson in Hawaii two years earlier. .
Events were held one after another, with regions with warmer climates participating in the event. Paradise Jam in the US Virgin Islands. Cancun Challenge, Mexico. Cayman Islands Classic. Jamaican classic. The Myrtle Beach Invitational participates in the Charleston Classic in South Carolina. Numerous tournaments in Florida.
Some events have disappeared, like Tipov in Puerto Rico and the Great Alaska Shootout. The latter in 2017 As event competitions and schools choose regions with warmer climates.
Rise of Atlantis
Miller Tooley’s efforts to build an MTE for Atlantis began with a doubleheader in December 2010, with Georgia Tech defeating Richmond and Virginia Tech defeating Mississippi State, proving the viability of the tournament. It was a moment to do so. Changes to NCAA law were also required to allow MTE in the Bahamas. Approval took place in March 2011. The first eight-team Atlantis Men’s Tournament followed in November.
This tournament featured an Atlantean champion who quickly gained featured status in the famous field. Villanova (2017) and Virginia (2018) They then won the NCAA title that season. the game will run Where the ballroom became an arena At the resort, players will also check out the huge pool. water slide and inner tube rapids Surrounded by palm trees and the Atlantic Ocean.
“The value of having your passport stamped never gets old,” says Miller-Tooley. “Looking at some of the kids, this may be the first and last time they travel outside of the United States, for them and for the staff and their families. …It’s just incredible to see it through the eyes of the kids. It turns out to be an experience.”
ACC Network analyst Luke Hancock knows that firsthand. His Louisville team finished second at Atlantis in 2012 and won the vacated NCAA title later that year, and Hancock was named the Most Outstanding Player of the Final Four.
“I remember[then-coach Rick Pitino]saying something to the effect of, ‘Some of you may never get this opportunity again. You’re staying in this incredible place and you’re doing it with the people you love,” Hancock said.
“Thanksgiving was a business trip for us, and he was definitely like, ‘We’ve got to enjoy this, too.'”
popular demand
Maui has a similar vibe, but 2024 could be a little different as Lahaina recovers From the deadly 2023 wildfires As a result, last year’s event had to be relocated.
North Carolina assistant coach Sean May played on the Tar Heels’ Maui championship team in 2004 and was part of UNC’s staff on the 2016 championship team, both teams later winning NCAA titles. May said that even when he was focused on the game, he “felt a sense of serenity” in the area, where the team set sail on a boat in the Pacific Ocean after winning a title under now-retired Hall of Famer Roy Williams. I savored the memories.
“Teams like us, the Dukes, UW, they want to go to places that are very well run,” May said. “Lee Miller, who participated with her group in Maui, Battle 4 Atlantis, that is the driving force behind the team coming back again, because we have achieved standard A quality, not only in the preparation, but also in the way the tournament is run. Because we know what we can do.”Everything is top notch. And I think that’s what brings players back every year. ”
That’s why Colorado coach Tad Boyle is so excited for the Buffaloes to play against Maui for the first time since 2009.
“Ever since I’ve been here, I’ve been working hard to get to the tournament,” said Boyle, now in his 15th season.
And of course, a warm climate environment won’t hurt either.
“When it comes to world markets, St. John’s and Providence, they don’t want that cold weather,” said the NBA and college TV analyst, who played for Clemson at the 2007 San Juan Invitational in Puerto Rico. said Terrence Oglesby, who played as “They’re going to have to deal with that in January and February. It might be nice to get a taste of what the sun is like.”
A packed schedule
The Men’s Bahamas Championship, held in Nassau, Bahamas, took place last week. No. 11 Tennessee Routing No. 13 Baylor Regarding the title. There is a possibility that there will be a matchup worthy of a Final Four over the next week, with each team having two weeks to play after troubles in the opening game.
“This is a special kickoff to the college basketball season,” Oglesby said. “It’s just not rusty.”
On the women’s side, Atlantis has begun efforts. 4th 8 Team Women’s Tournament No. 16 North Carolina and No. 18 Baylor will play Saturday, while nearby Baha Mar Resort will host two four-team teams including No. 2 UConn, No. 7 LSU, No. 17 Mississippi State and No. 20 North Carolina State. The women’s category continues.
Next up is the male headliner.
The Maui Invitational will celebrate its 40th anniversary when it opens Monday. I’m back in Lahaina. 2nd place and features two-time reigning national champions university universityPart 4 auburnNo.5 iowa and 10th place North Carolina.
Battle 4 Atlantis opens the 13th men’s tournament on Wednesday with No. 3 Gonzaga, No. 16 Indiana and No. 17 Arizona leading the way.
Michigan State Hall of Famer Tom Izzo will be making his fourth trip to Maui, where he debuted in the 1995 tournament as Judd Heathcote’s successor. Izzo’s Spartans made two appearances at Atlantis. Last of 2021.
“Those are important because they give us something exciting in November or December,” Izzo said.
Are there any drawbacks?
“It’s a 10-hour flight,” he said of Hawaii.
___
AP Sports Writers Pat Graham in Colorado and Larry Rage in Michigan contributed to this report.
___
Get voting alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 all season long. sign uphere. AP college basketball:https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-pollandhttps://apnews.com/hub/college-Basketball
