Tournament Week On The Menu: November 23, 2015

Duke claimed the 2K Classic championship with an entertaining 86-84 victory over Georgetown. Wisconsin took third place by winning a consolation game that was even tighter, 74-73 over VCU. The Hall of Fame Tip-Off Naismith Bracket title went to Purdue, who impressed in pulling away from Florida in a 85-70 rout. Saint Joseph's edged Old Dominion, 66-64 to finish third at the Mohegan Sun. In the Springfield Bracket, Buffalo took down Vermont, 77-71.

The Puerto Rico Tip-Off crown went to Miami, who dominated Butler for most of their 85-75 win, though the Bulldogs narrowed the gap right around the final media timeout of the second half. It's the Hurricanes' second San Juan title, as they won the first edition back in 2007. Utah finished third, though Temple pushed them late in a 74-68 contest. Tubby Smith's Texas Tech Red Raiders ran past his former employer, Minnesota, 81-68 in the fifth-place game, while Mississippi State took out Missouri State, 84-70 to claim seventh.

In the event Miami won in 2014—the Charleston Classic—Virginia kept the title in the ACC, toppling George Mason, 83-66, giving the conference its third title of the day. Oklahoma State survived a late Long Beach State rally to take third place, 82-77. Those two teams will meet in a non-bracketed game in Stillwater on Friday. Seton Hall joins the and Cowboys in leaving with a pair of wins—the Pirates topped Ole Miss 75-63 to finish fifth. Seventh went to Towson, 62-60 victors over Bradley.

Now on to Monday...

Game information courtesy Matt College Sports on TV Website, which has even more games listed.

All times listed are Eastern, adjust accordingly.

Paradise Jam Finals

7th/8th Place: Norfolk State Spartans vs. DePaul Blue Demons, 1:30 p.m. (TGVN TV on YouTube)
4th/6th Place: Ohio University Bobcats vs. Florida State Seminoles, approx. 4 p.m. (TGVN TV on YouTube)
3rd/5th Place: Indiana State Sycamores vs. Hofstra Pride, approx. 6:30 p.m. (CBSSN)
Championship: Tulsa Golden Hurricane vs. South Carolina Gamecocks, approx. 9 p.m. (CBSSN)

For the second straight game in St. Thomas, the Golden Hurricane had to rally to win their semifinal over the Sycamores on Sunday night, though the deficit wasn't quite they dug against Ohio in Friday's quarterfinals. Frank Haith's team might find it more difficult to come from behind against a Gamecock squad that's solid defensively, though Hofstra tested them from the perimeter in Sunday's nightcap.

Gulf Coast Showcase Quarterfinals

All games are streaming on the BD Global Sports YouTube channel.

Murray State Racers vs. Milwaukee Panthers, 12 p.m. 
Pepperdine Waves vs. Duquesne Dukes, approx. 2:30 p.m.
Drake Bulldogs vs. Western Kentucky Hilltoppers, 6 p.m.
Central Michigan Chippewas vs. Weber State Wildcats, approx. 8:30 p.m.

None of the eight teams entered in this mid-major-focused event qualified for last season's NCAA, but OVC regular season champ Murray State and MAC regular season champ CMU both played in the National Invitation Tournament. The Chippewas are the favorites in Estero, Fla., just outside of Fort Myers, but they'll likely be most seriously challenged by the Racers, a WKU team that picked up a nice win over Stony Brook on Saturday, WCC challenger Pepperdine, Horizon contender Milwaukee, and Big Sky power Weber State.

Maui Jim Maui Invitational Quarterfinals

St. John's Red Storm vs. No. 19 Vanderbilt Commodores, 2:30 p.m. (ESPN2)
No. 13 Indiana Hoosiers vs. Wake Forest Demon Deacons, approx. 5 p.m. (ESPN2)
No. 5 Kansas Jayhawks vs. Chaminade Silverswords, 9 p.m. (ESPNU)
UCLA Bruins vs. UNLV Runnin' Rebels, approx. 11:30 p.m. (ESPN2)

The most prestigious Thanksgiving week tournament again has a fantastic field, though the first three games each feature a clear favorite. The fourth, a Pacific Time Zone showdown, is a toss-up, especially considering how UCLA has struggled in an OT loss to Monmouth and close wins over Cal Poly and Pepperdine. UNLV also barely put away the Mustangs in their Maui on the Mainland home game.

Men Who Speak Up Main Event Semifinals

All games are streaming on the BD Global Sports YouTube channel.

Middleweight Bracket

UTSA Roadrunners vs. Central Arkansas Bears, 3:30 p.m.
Texas Southern Tigers vs. Howard Bison, approx. 6 p.m.

Heavyweight Bracket

Clemson Tigers vs. UMass Minutemen, 9:30 p.m.
Creighton Bluejays vs. Rutgers Scarlet Knights, approx. 12 a.m. 11/24

The most likely NCAA team among these eight might be, uh, Texas Southern? It's not a strong group, but at least all four host schools swept their home games, although Rutgers struggled with Central Arkansas on Saturday and UMass only beat Howard by six in both squads' openers. I'd be slightly surprised if the final (on ESPN2 tomorrow) didn't feature Clemson and Creighton.

Fanduel Legends Classic Semifinals

No. 22 LSU Tigers vs. Marquette Golden Eagles, 7 p.m. (ESPN2)
Arizona State Sun Devils vs. North Carolina State Wolfpack, approx. 9:30 p.m. (ESPN3)

Ben Simmons and the Bayou Bengals are the only undefeated team among this quartet, and the clear favorite to win two straight in Brooklyn. Expect tomorrow's final to be a rematch of the terrific LSU-N.C. State NCAA Round of 64 game from March.

CBE Hall Of Fame Classic Semifinals

Kansas State Wildcats vs. Missouri Tigers, 7 p.m. (ESPNU)
Northwestern Wildcats vs. No. 9 North Carolina Tar Heels, approx. 9:30 p.m. (ESPN2)

Game one feels like a toss-up, as both the Wildcats and Tigers will likely finish in the second division of their respective leagues. In the nightcap, I expect the Tar Heels to take out their anger after Saturday's loss at Northern Iowa Panthers out on Northwestern, even if Marcus Paige misses yet another game with a broken hand.

Other Intriguing Entrees

NJIT Highlanders at Providence Friars, 6:30 p.m (FS1)

Since losing at Kentucky on Saturday, November 14th, the Highlanders have rattled off three wins in a row. Don't expect them to run that total to four against Kris Dunn and the Friars, but expect the A-Sun newcomers to give considerable effort.

Chattanooga Mocs at No. 4 Iowa State Cyclones (Emerald Coast Classic), 8 p.m. (Cyclones.tv)

Matt McCall's Mocs are looking to claim their third victory of the young season over a power conference team, though winning in Ames will be considerably more difficult than toppling Georgia or Illinois.

Chicago State Cougars at Illinois Fighting Illini (Emerald Coast Classic), 8 p.m. (ESPN3)

The Mocs' Saturday victim should have no trouble with the woeful Cougars, in theory anyway.

UT Arlington Mavericks at Memphis Tigers (Hoophall Invitational), 8:30 p.m. (ESPNEWS)

On Friday, the Mavericks toppled Ohio State Buckeyes in Columbus as part of this event. Can they grab a second consecutive impressive road win?

East Carolina Pirates at San Diego State Aztecs (Las Vegas Invitational), 10 p.m. (ESPN3)

The Aztecs fell to Little Rock in their first LVI home game on Saturday, and looked terrible in the process, particularly on offense.

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