C of C, Clemson to headline tournament
Cougars' new basketball arena to host event
By Larry Williams
CLEMSON — ESPN is putting the finishing touches on a mid-November basketball tournament at the new Carolina First Center with Clemson and College of Charleston serving as the headliners.
The deal has not been finalized, but sources with knowledge of the situation said ESPN is ironing out the details on an exempt tournament that could run for four years in Charleston and eventually include South Carolina, The Citadel and Charleston Southern.
Sources said six teams have committed to playing in this year's tournament, which would run Nov. 14, 15 and 16 at the new home for College of Charleston's basketball team. The plan is to have an eight-team tournament, with the Tigers and Cougars matched in opposite brackets.
The tournament would be what the NCAA classifies as exempt, or a "multi-team event." The NCAA allows teams to play a maximum of 29 regular-season games, or 27 regular season games plus four games in a multi-team event.
NCAA rules would prohibit Clemson and College of Charleston from returning to the tournament in the next four years, but ESPN's idea is to have the Gamecocks, Bulldogs and Buccaneers play host to the tournament over that time period.
Cougars athletic director Joe Hull said it would be "premature to comment on the situation at this time."
If the tournament becomes a reality, College of Charleston's scheduled opener could end up getting moved. The Cougars have already announced they'll open their new arena against South Carolina on Nov. 17 — a day after the conclusion of the proposed tournament.
The 5,000-seat Carolina First Center will replace John Kresse Arena as the home of the Cougars. Placing the Tigers and Cougars in opposite brackets would allow for the possibility of the two teams facing each other in the championship game.
Charlie Bennett contributed to this report. Reach Larry Williams at lwilliams@postandcourier.com and check out the new Clemson blog at charleston.net/blogs
E-mail this story
Printer-friendly version
Comments
Use the comment form below to begin a discussion about this content.
Notice about comments:Postandcourier.com is pleased to offer readers the enhanced ability to comment on stories. We expect our readers to engage in lively, yet civil discourse. Postandcourier.com does not edit user submitted statements and we cannot promise that readers will not occasionally find offensive or inaccurate comments posted in the comments area. Responsibility for the statements posted lies with the person submitting the comment, not postandcourier.com. If you find a comment that is objectionable, please click "report abuse" and we will review it for possible removal. Please be reminded, however, that in accordance with our Terms of Use and federal law, we are under no obligation to remove any third party comments posted on our website. Read our full Terms and Conditions.
Users can now build user-to-user connections, follow friends' recent posts, add an avatar that fits their personality, and more. If you have posted here before you'll need to sign up again, or if you've never posted before, start now by signing up!
Thank you for your interest in this story. The comment thread for this article has been closed.
- Most Commented
- Most Emailed
- Shared
- Upper King on rise: Hotels, apartments, restaurants changing face of downtown area
- UPDATE: Missing woman's fiance seen leaving scene of burned SUV, carrying a shovel
- Missing woman case gets murkier
- Magnolia Gardens offering free dream wedding to contest winner
- Body of missing woman's fiance was found near handgun
- Pinterest: Pinning hopes and dreams
- DAVID SLADE: S.C. offers hybrid car tax credit
- Black women today: Strong. Resilient. Ambitious.
- Ex-Boeing worker claims racism, retaliation in firing
- MCDERMOTT COLUMN: Golf business has risks, rewards
