St Joseph's

Mid-Major Player of the Week: Ahmad Nivins

Joey Whelan — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 10:04:12 -0500

As a companion to CHN's National Player of the Week, we will be presenting a Mid-Major Player of the Week as well this season. All non-BCS players are eligible for this award. In the case that the National POY is a non-BCS player, they will be repeated here as well.

Ahmad Nivins - Saint Joseph's

3 Games: 16 ppg, 9.3 rpg, 3 bpg

Sure there are plenty of guys that had better stat lines this week, but no one did it against stiffer competition than the Hawks big man in the middle. A double-double against a potential Final Four team in Texas and a strong 16 and 8 showing against a talented Alabama team in the Maui Invitational were enough to give Nivins the honors for this week. Yes, he beat up on an outmanned Indiana squad in his second game, but you can't deny the performances in his other two games. Don't be shocked to see Nivins pop up on this list several more times this year.

Just Missed Out

Josh Akognon - Cal State Fullerton

3 Games: 24.7 ppg, 4.7 rpg, 2 apg

The Anaheim Classic turned out to be some entertaining basketball thanks in large part to the play of the undersized Akognon. He lit up stiff competition by dropping 24 points on both Wake Forest and Saint Mary's, then finished off the weekend with 26 against Charlotte. We knew the California native could score in bunches, and while he was a little trigger happy from the perimeter this week, he proved he could do it against big name programs.

Josh Heytvelt - Gonzaga

3 Games: 15 ppg, 6 rpg, 1.7 bpg

The Bulldogs announced themselves as a legitimate Final Four contender by winning the Old Spice Classic, and Heytvelt announced his return as a strong presence inside. He started slow in the tournament opener with Oklahoma State, but rebounded nicely for two fine showings versus Maryland and Tennessee. With the balanced scoring attack the ‘Zags have it is doubtful that the senior will put up huge numbers on a regular basis, but when Heytvelt is on his game, 15 and 6 should be the norm.

Stefon Jackson - UTEP

3 Games: 20.3 ppg, 7.3 rpg, 1.3 apg, 2 spg

Highlighted by a brilliant performance against Wake Forest, Jackson may have had the best showing from anyone at the Anaheim Classic, and with the cast of characters present this weekend, that's saying something. The senior torched the Demon Deacons for 31 points, hitting 13 of his 14 attempts from the free throw line. His 17 and 10 showing against Saint Mary's shouldn't be overlooked either.

Worth Noting

A.J. Slaughter - Western Kentucky

His numbers for the week aren't anything to write home about, but any time a player scores 25 points and grabs 9 rebounds in helping his team upset a top five opponent, that is worth some ink. So with that in mind, kudos to Slaughter and the Hilltoppers for pulling the major upset over then #3 Lousiville yesterday.

GameNight: St. Joseph's vs Texas (Maui)

Raphielle Johnson — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 00:01:56 -0500

Start: Nov 24 2008 - 3:00pm

Preview & Prediction: By Raphielle Johnson

The first game of the 2008 EA Sports Maui Invitational matches up the St. Joseph’s Hawks (1-1) and the #8 Texas Longhorns (2-0). Texas, at the top of the Big 12 with rival Oklahoma in conversations as to who can win the conference, needs to develop the point guard position and they will be tested in Maui. The question for the Longhorns is who will take over the reins for departed All-American D.J. Augustin at the point. Justin Mason has moved into that vacated spot in the starting lineup, and he’s had ten assists to six turnovers in two games thus far.

Even though games against Stetson and Tulane haven’t been much of a test for Rick Barnes’ team, their balance is something that should be a strength throughout the year. Four players average at least ten points per game, with senior A.J. Abrams leading the way at 18.0 ppg. Connor Atchley and Dexter Pittman are both capable big men who will develop even more as the season wears on, and Damion James is an absolute beast all over the floor. But it would be a mistake to not admit that they’re in for quite a test in this one.

The Hawks feature one of the better big men in the nation that doesn’t have his name mentioned every five minutes on ESPN in senior Amhad Nivins, and his workload got heavier the moment last season ended. Losing the multidimensional Pat Calathes hurts, as it would any team to lose a player of that caliber, but Phil Martelli’s team has enough talent back to make a run in the Atlantic 10. Nivins is shooting a remarkable 83.3% in two games, and guards Tasheed Carr and Darrin Govens can play some basketball as well.

The area that the Hawks need improvement in if they’re to win this game is shooting from behind the arc. St. Joe’s is just 29.6% from distance in two games and shot just 40.3% overall in their loss at Holy Cross. In addition to improved accuracy, the Hawks need to stay out of foul trouble in the frontcourt, as they lack the depth that the Longhorns possess up front.

WINNER: Texas MARGIN: 10+

Maui Invitational Preview: Can Someone Stop UNC?

Kevin McNeill — Sun, 23 Nov 2008 14:21:05 -0500

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EA SPORTS Maui Invitational (Nov 24-26)

Key Games:

- Texas / St. Joseph's winner vs. Indiana / Notre Dame winner

- UNC vs. Alabama / Oregon winner

- Championship game

Once again, Maui showcases a little bit of everything. The country will get a good look at three teams contending for their respective conference titles, two of the most underrated freshmen in the country in Michael Dunigan and JaMychal Green, along with returning stars such as Tyler Hansbrough, Tajuan Porter, Luke Harangody and the great tandem of AJ Abrams and Damion James.

You also have the dueling storylines of a tradition-rich program primed for a run at the national title, along with a tradition-rich program just trying to get through one of their most challenging seasons ever.

North Carolina starts the season the same way they started the last one, as the top ranked team in the nation. This time however, there is a noticeable gap between the Tar Heels and everyone else. Not only do they return the reigning Wooden award winner (not to mention the other five national POY awards), but also feature Wayne Ellington, Danny Green and Ty Lawson - all of whom pulled out of the NBA draft to come back for a title run.

Marcus Ginyard will be in street clothes for the tournament, which is a huge setback, especially on defense, but the Heels still tower over everyone else and should be the favorite to leave the island with the championship. Even though Tyler Hansbrough is still recovering from a stress reaction in his shin, he should be more than effective in Hawaii.

The Maui tournament is also a great test for North Carolina, not only for the high caliber of the field, but for the fact that it also prepares the Heels for a big test at Michigan State. They should be more than ready for the start of ACC play come January.

On the other end of the spectrum sits Indiana. They will field a team with all but two players from last season's roster having either transferred or been booted, a lame duck Athletic Director, an entirely new coaching staff, a self-imposed penalty limiting contact with recruits and a loss of a scholarship - all due to the still-lingering effects of the Kelvin Sampson call scandal.

Better yet, Indiana still awaits word on the NCAA's ruling over the charge of "failure to monitor," indicating that the school didn't do enough to watch Sampson's calls and activities in regard to recruits. Indiana angrily, and repeatedly, denied the charge over the summer, but soon after Sampson helpfully issued a statement saying he never concealed his illegal calls from university officials. Besides, the NCAA rarely likes to admit they were wrong.

So, in a perfect world, the end result would be that Indiana wouldn't have to suffer any more indignities than they already have, and Kelvin Sampson wouldn't be allowed within 100 yards of so much as a NAIA job. Which means of course that it may be safe to predict that Indiana will find itself facing a postseason or television ban, and Sampson will be back in college again by this time next year (following his foray into the NBA as an assistant).

But we move on. The Maui Invitational could well feature back to back matchups of Top 10 teams, should Texas play Notre Dame, with the winner facing the top ranked Tar Heels in the title game. That alone makes it once again the preseason's best tournament.

Another thing to look out for are the two aforementioned freshmen - Michael Dunigan for Oregon and JaMychal Green for Alabama. It wasn't that long ago that we didn't put much stock in freshmen play in November since they are just getting their first glimpse of the college game. No more. Dunigan is already averaging 13 & 8 down low, while Green tries to replace Richard Hendrix by chipping in 15 & 10.

Finally, one last note. The tournament first began on the 20^th anniversary of the greatest upset in sports history, Division II school Chaminade's victory over Ralph Sampson and #1 Virginia in 1982. They play the Tar Heels in the first round this year. If a miracle happens, would this be a bigger upset?

Atlantic 10 Media Poll: Xavier The Favorite

Press Release — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 09:17:20 -0400

After winning a program-record 30 contests and advancing to the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament, Xavier has been tabbed as the team to beat in the Atlantic 10 men's basketball race, according to a poll of Atlantic 10's head coaches and media released Tuesday during Basketball Media Day.

The Musketeers received 44 of the 61 first-place votes cast by the panel of coaches and media members. Xavier (30-7/14-2) returns a pair of starters from last year's team which captured its second consecutive A-10 regular season title. Leading XU will be junior forward Derrick Brown (10.9 ppg., 6.5 rpg.) and senior guard/forward C.J. Anderson (10.7 ppg., 5.9 rpg.), who garnered preseason All-Conference first- and third-team honors, respectively. Xavier has won 20 or more games in 11 of the last 12 seasons and advanced to the NCAA Tournament in seven of the past eight years, including Elite Eight appearances in 2004 and 2008.

Temple received 12 first-place votes and placed second in the preseason poll. The Owls (21-13/11-5) captured the 2008 Atlantic 10 Championship for the first time since 2001 - their league-leading seventh time overall. TU welcomes back senior guard Dionte Christmas (19.7 ppg., 5.9 rpg.), a preseason first-team All-Conference selection who is vying to become the first player to lead the A-10 in scoring three times.

Dayton (23-11/8-8) was picked third and will be led by preseason second-team selection Chris Wright (10.4 ppg., 5.7 rpg.), a 6-8 forward who garnered All-Rookie team distinction a year ago. The Flyers earned three first-place votes. 2008 NCAA participant Saint Joseph's (21-13/9-7) was tabbed fourth and will be anchored by preseason first-team choice Ahmad Nivins (14.4 ppg., 5.8 rpg.), the A-10 field goal percentage leader the past two seasons.

One of a league-record eight teams to win at least 20 games a year ago, Charlotte (20-14/9-7) earned a pair of first-place votes and was selected fifth in the poll, while NIT runner-up Massachusetts (25-11/10-6) was picked sixth. Saint Louis (16-15/7-9) was tabbed seventh, followed by Richmond (16-15/9-7), Rhode Island (21-121/7-9), La Salle (15-17/8-8), George Washington (9-17/5-11), Duquesne (17-13/7-9), Fordham (12-17/6-10) and St. Bonaventure (8-22/2-14).

In that same poll, the coaches and media selected the preseason All-Conference teams. The first-team is comprised of Brown, Christmas, Nivins, Kevin Lisch of Saint Louis and Massachusetts' Chris Lowe. The second-team consists of Wright, George Washington's Rob Diggs, Ricky Harris of Massachusetts, the 2008 recipient of the Chris Daniels Most Improved Player Award and the league's second-highest returning scorer (18.2 ppg.), Tommie Liddell of Saint Louis and Charlotte's Lamont Mack. On the third-team are C.J. Anderson of Xavier, Richmond's Kevin Anderson, Jimmy Baron of Rhode Island, La Salle's Rodney Green and David Gonzalvez of Richmond.

The preseason All-Defensive team consists of Brown, Lisch, Lowe, Lavoy Allen of Temple and Saint Joseph's Garrett Williamson. The All-Rookie team is comprised of Melquan Bolding of Duquesne, Dayton's Paul Williams and Xavier teammates Kenny Frease, Terrell Holloway and Mark Lyons.

The 2008-09 season tips off on Nov. 11 when Massachusetts faces Arkansas-Monticello in the 2K Sports Classic in Carbondale, Ill. The top 12 teams will advance to the 33rd Annual Atlantic 10 Championship, to be held Mar. 11-14 at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, N.J.

Last season marked the 14th time in Conference history and fifth since 2000 that multiple A-10 teams earned at-large berths to the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament. In addition, Charlotte, Dayton, Massachusetts and Rhode Island advanced to the NIT and Richmond earned a berth in the inaugural College Basketball Invitational.

PREDICTED ORDER OF FINISH

1. Xavier (44)

2. Temple (12)

3. Dayton (3)

4. Saint Joseph's

5. Charlotte (2)

6. Massachusetts

7. Saint Louis

8. Richmond

9. Rhode Island

10. La Salle

11. George Washington

12. Duquesne

13. Fordham

14. St. Bonaventure

- First-place votes in parentheses

Preseason High-Major All-Americans: 08-09

CHN — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 12:53:48 -0400

CollegeHoops.net's Preseason High-Major All-America Team is dominated by an impressive set of senior guards who are hoping to lead their teams deep into the NCAA Tournament. VCU leader Eric Maynor, a returning 2nd Team High-Major All-American, edged out Pargo and Vaden for Player of the Year honors. Besides Maynor, other returning CHN High-Major All-Americans include Robert Vaden (1st team last year), Jeremy Pargo (3rd team), Lee Cummard (4th team), Dionte Christmas (3rd team), Stefon Jackson (4th team), and Josh Young (4th team).

The CollegeHoops.net All-American teams are voted on by staff writers. Coming up later this week is CHN's Mid-Major All-America team.

CollegeHoops.net Preseason High-Major Player of the Year: Eric Maynor (VCU)

CollegeHoops.net First Team High-Major All-America

Jeremy Pargo	Gonzaga	SR	G
Robert Vaden	UAB	SR	G
Eric Maynor	VCU	SR	G
Lee Cummard	BYU	SR	G/F
Luke Nevill	Utah	SR	C

CollegeHoops.net Second Team High-Major All-America

Dionte Christmas	Temple	SR	G
Stefon Jackson	UTEP	SR	G
Austin Daye	Gonzaga	SO	F
Derrick Brown	Xavier	JR	F
Ahmad Nivins	St. Joseph's	SR	F

CollegeHoops.net Third Team High-Major All-America

P'Allen Stinnett	Creighton	SO	G
Wink Adams	UNLV	SR	G
Josh Young	Drake	JR	G
Chris Wright	Dayton	SO	F
Jerome Jordan	Tulsa	JR	C

CollegeHoops.net Honorable Mention High-Major All-American

Lavoy Allen	Temple	SO	F
Matt Bouldin	Gonzaga	JR	G
Jonathan Cox	Drake	SR	F
Osiris Eldridge	Illinois St	JR	G
Brandon Ewing	Wyoming	SR	G
Steven Gray	Gonzaga	SO	G
Ricky Harris	UMASS	JR	G
Josh Heytvelt	Gonzaga	SR	F
Matt Janning	Northeastern	JR	G
Charles Jenkins	Hofstra	SO	G
Armon Johnson	Nevada	SO	G
Bryan Mullins	Southern Illinois	SR	G
Jonathan Tavernari	BYU	JR	F
Jermaine Taylor	UCF	SR	G
Ben Uzoh	Tulsa	JR	G
Lorenzo Wade	San Diego St	SR	F
Gary Wilkinson	Utah State	SR	F
Jeremy Wise	Southern Miss	JR	G

Daily Conference Poll: Who Will Win the Atlantic 10?

Shawn Siegel — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 04:24:28 -0400

State of '08: Pennsylvania

Shawn Siegel — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 12:08:07 -0400

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Duke or Carolina? BC or UMASS? Gonzaga or Washington.. or Washington State? What is the best program in each state? While there's not much competition in Hawaii.. there are great debates to be had in loaded regions like California, North Carolina, and Texas. The State of '08 is a ranking of every program in every state.. based mostly on recent success (the last five years) mixed in with subjective factors such as conference prestige, historical success, and overall program direction.

For more info, check out the State of '08 introduction.

PENNSYLVANIA

PITTSBURGH - The Panthers have made 7-straight NCAA Tournaments, thanks to the foundation built by Ben Howland. In that 7-year stretch are 4 Sweet Sixteens, including 2 each by Howland and Jamie Dixon. This year's team projects to be Top 20 once again.

VILLANOVA - Jay Wright's squad is looking to make its 5th Tournament in a row. Even though the team did sneak into the field last year, the previous three teams were legit Top 25 squads, including the 2006 team that earned a #1 seed.

SAINT JOSEPH'S - In the past eight years, St. Joe's has reached the postseason seven times (4 NCAAs and 3 NITs), a stretch in which Phil Martelli has been named the A10's top coach three times. This year the team should be solid once again, but Philly rivals Villanova and Temple are expected to be better.

TEMPLE - The Owls returned to the Big Dance for the first time since 2001, as the program is still trying to gain an identity following John Chaney's epic career. With the exception of 2007, Temple has been in the Top 102 RPI every year since the 80's.

PENN - The Quakers have obviously been one of the best teams (along with Princeton) in the Ivy League since the early 70's. While Princeton has collapsed, Penn is still hanging in there following the departure of Fran Dunphy. Last year's young team did struggle following 3-straight Tourney trips, but a 19-20 win season should be expected in 2009.

6. BUCKNELL - Long-time coach Pat Flannery stepped down after last season's disappointing 12-19 finish. But Flannery took the program to heights that no one could have expected. In '05 & '06, the Bison not only made the Big Dance, but knocked off Kansas & Arkansas. '07 wasn't bad either with a Top 80 RPI finish.

7. DREXEL - Drexel is coming off one if its worst seasons in years, and the worst in Bruiser Flint's 12-year career. Before last year's 12-20 debacle, the Dragons had made 4 NIT's in the previous 5 years.

8. PENN STATE - Last year's 7-11 Big Ten record was the best in Ed DeChellis' 5-year tenure. I guess that's progress of some sort, but the Penn State has accomplished virtually nothing since 2001's freak Sweet Sixteen run.

9. LEHIGH - When Billy Taylor took over in 2002, Lehigh had been in a prolonged slump. But he did a nice job getting the Mountain Hawks to the Tourney in '04 and to the Pat League title game in '06. 2nd year coach Brett Reed is trying to continue that success after an up and down first year.

10. ROBERT MORRIS - Last year was the culmination of steady growth achieved during Mark Schmidt's tenure. But it was 1st year coach Mike Rice who got to reap Schmidt's rewards, leading the team to an all-time high 27 wins and making the NIT after winning the NEC regular-season title.

11. DUQUESNE - Not one of Duquesne's last six coaches finished with a +.500 record. Last year's 17-13 record was the Dukes best since 93-94 when they reached the NIT. 17-13 is quite an accomplishment for Ron Everhart considering he took over a team that was 3-24 in '06.

12. LA SALLE - La Salle's utter lack of success is surprising because the school does have decent name recognition. The program has showed potential since John Giannini took over in 2004, but the postseason will still have to wait. La Salle has finished over .500 just once in the last 15 seasons (2006).

13. LAFAYETTE - In '99 & '00, the Leopards won back to back Patriot League titles. There hasn't been much to cheer about in the last 8 seasons though. 2004 was the last time Lafayette even finished above .500 in league play.

14. SAINT FRANCIS - The past three seasons have been simply brutal. The Red Flash have won 15 total games against D1 teams and finished below 300th in the RPI each year. Most preseason publications project another last-place NEC finish in 08-09.

Last: Oregon - Next: South Carolina

State of '08: The Introduction (& State list/links)

Poll: Who Will be the Best Team in Philadelphia?

Shawn Siegel — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 10:32:24 -0400

2008-09 St. Joseph's Basketball Preview: #91

Joel Welser — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 11:19:10 -0400

St. Joseph’s Hawks

Overall Rank: #91

Conference Rank: #8 Atlantic 10

2007-08: 21-13, 9-7, 4^th

2007-08 postseason: NCAA

Once again there will be a very thin line between success and failure in the Atlantic 10 Conference and that might be bad news for St. Joseph’s. The Hawks slipped into the NCAA Tournament last year, mostly thanks to two victories over top ten ranked Xavier in the last ten days of the regular season. There is potential to do it again, but it will be very difficult with a couple key starters gone.

Who’s Out:

The biggest loss is Pat Calathes and it is not just because of his 17.5 points per game. The 6-10 guard was a great outside shooter and, with his height, created a ton of mismatches on the offensive side of the floor. He was second on the team with 2.7 assists and led the squad with 7.5 boards per contest. The rebounding might be the biggest issue now that Rob Ferguson and Arvydas Lidzius have also run out of eligibility. Ferguson stretched out the defense with outside shooting as well and tallied 11.9 points and 4.8 rebounds per game. Lidzius saw far fewer minutes, but he was at least another big body who could come in and grab some rebounds and the team will be in desperate need of players like that this season. Guard D.J. Rivera left the team after playing 13 games during the 2007-2008 campaign.

Who’s In:

The obvious need is for some depth at the forward positions and Temidayo Adebayo fits the bill. The 6-10 native of Nigeria might need a little time to adjust to playing at this level, but he should be able to contribute in some areas as a freshman. Small forwards Bryant Irwin and A.J. Rogers will battle for playing time as well. Irwin, at 6-8, has the size to man the four spot for the Hawks and eventually he could develop into a great replacement for Ferguson. Rogers is a little smaller at 6-5, but he does great work on the glass and will give the team a rebounding threat on the wing. He will not put up numbers on the glass like Calathes any time soon, but the Hawks can use all the help they can get in the rebounding department. Chris Prescott, a 6-3 shooting guard, might be the next in a long line of great St. Joe guards. He can get to the basket with ease and has a decent jumper. For now, he will likely play a role off the bench. Adding more depth to the backcourt is Michael Auriemma, the son of Connecticut’s women’s coach Geno.

Who to Watch:

Ahmad Nivins is the only player left on the roster who averaged over four rebounds per game last season. Nivins is a superb scorer under the basket and will always work hard, but he needs some help now that Calathes and Ferguson are gone. There are very few candidates and Idris Hilliard is the only option with any experience. The 6-6 Hilliard lacks the shooting range to be an effective small forward, but he should do fine as an undersized four. He does not lack in toughness and will create space for Nivins under the basket. After averaging a mere 5.7 minutes per game as a freshman, Hilliard needs to be ready to see that number increase drastically.

Final Projection:

While the frontcourt readjusts, the backcourt will be winning some games for the Hawks. Tasheed Carr averaged 5.6 assists per game and did a fine job keeping the turnovers to a minimum. It will be his job to get all the new players involved in the offense and find a new scoring threat or two. Much of the scoring could be done by shooting guard Darrin Govens. The junior never really found his shooting touch as an underclassman, but this could be the year he becomes a leader of the team and puts up much better numbers. The same could be said for former sixth man Garrett Williamson, who will likely find a starting job this time around. Williamson will not do it with his outside shot, but he does get to the basket effectively and, at 6-5, can be the rebounder on the wing the team needs.

Projected Post-season Tournament: none

Projected Starting Five:

Tasheed Carr, Senior, Guard, 10.8 points per game

Darrin Govens, Junior, Guard, 9.8 points per game

Garrett Williamson, Junior, Guard, 5.3 points per game

Idris Hilliard, Sophomore, Forward, 1.2 points per game

Ahmad Nivins, Senior, Forward, 14.4 points per game

Complete Top 144 Ranking | 2008-09 Preview & Awards | Coach Interviews | Discuss the Preview

2008 Maui Invitation Bracket Announced

Press Release — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 18:43:20 -0400

MAUI, Hawaii, Aug. 5, 2008 – The EA SPORTS Maui Invitational today announced the official bracket for the 2008 edition of the nation’s premier early-season college basketball tournament. Marking its milestone 25^th year, the eight-team competition will return to Maui’s ocean-front Lahaina Civic Center Nov.24-26.

Battling this year for the coveted Wayne Duke Championship Trophy, will be North Carolina, Notre Dame, Texas, Indiana, Oregon, Saint Joseph’s, Alabama and host Chaminade. Six of the seven Division I teams in the 2008 lineup participated in the 2008 NCAA Tournament, highlighted by North Carolina’s Final Four appearance and Texas’ run to the Elite Eight. The field also includes three former national champions – North Carolina, Indiana and Oregon – with 10 NCAA titles between them.

The ESPN networks will combine once again to offer live television coverage of all 12 tournament games. In addition, ESPN360.com will provide live simulcasts of the games televised on ESPN and ESPN2.

“Throughout its history the EA SPORTS Maui Invitational has become synonymous with the kickoff of the college basketball season,” said Tournament Chairman Dave Gavitt. “We look forward to commemorating the tournament’s 25^th year with another impressive field vying for Maui glory. Fans from across the nation can look forward to a memorable experience, on and off the court.”

First-round action tips off Thanksgiving week on Monday, Nov. 24, with Game One featuring Atlantic 10 team and Maui newcomer, Saint Joseph’s, led by coach Phil Martelli, against 2008 Elite Eight participant and three-time Maui team, Texas, under head coach Rick Barnes. The winner of this game will take on the winner of Game Two, pitting in-state rivals for battle as five-time national champion and 2002 Maui champ, Indiana, guided by new coach Tom Crean, will face head coach Mike Brey and Notre Dame, a growing BIG EAST force returning for a second appearance at the Lahaina Civic Center. Four-time national champion and two-time Maui titleholder, North Carolina, will hit the hardwood in Game Three, as Hall of Famer Roy Williams pilots his highly touted Tar Heels in a contest with 2008 PacWest Conference champion and tournament host Chaminade, which pulled off an upset over Princeton in Maui last year. The winner of that game will square off with the winner of Game Four, which pairs two teams making their Maui debut: head coach Ernie Kent will call the shots when former national champion and 2007 Pac-10 Conference titleholder, Oregon, plays against the Crimson Tide of Alabama, a Mark Gottfried-led team looking to make its mark in paradise.

The semifinals will take place Tuesday, Nov. 25 at 7 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. Eastern time on ESPN, with the winners advancing to the championship game Wednesday, Nov. 26 at 10 p.m. Eastern (also on ESPN).