Empire Classic

The Empire Classic, formerly known as the 2K Sports Classic, is an annual college basketball event played in November at the beginning of the season and televised by ESPN. Originally known as the Atlantic City Shootout and produced by the Gazelle Group, Inc., the event was first played in 1995. The following year, it became the Coaches vs. Cancer Classic as a collaboration between the National Association of Basketball Coaches and the American Cancer Society in an effort to raise funds for cancer research. In 2012, the tournament beneficiary became Wounded Warrior Project, resulting in the tournament being renamed the 2K Sports Classic. A new annual college basketball tournament benefiting cancer research, also called the Coaches Vs. Cancer Classic and hosted by the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, was held from 2012 to 2014.[1] In 2019, the event was renamed the 2K Empire Classic Benefiting Wounded Warrior Project, commonly referred to as the "Empire Classic."

This article is about the tournament known as the Coaches vs. Cancer Classic from 1995 to 2011 and Empire Classic from 2019. For the Coaches vs. Cancer Classic held from 2012 to 2014, see Coaches vs. Cancer Classic. For the thoroughbred race horse, see Classic Empire. For the video game Empire, see Empire (1977 video game).
A 2K Sports Classic game in 2008

St John's won the 2022 Empire Classic defeating Syracuse 76-69 in overtime in the championship game on November 22, 2022 at Barclays Center.

History

The first two events were doubleheader showcases held at the Atlantic City Convention Center (now Boardwalk Hall). From 1997 through 2001, the event was played as a tournament. Princeton won the first tournament in 1997, which took place at Continental Airlines Arena in the New Jersey Meadowlands.

In 1998, the event moved to Madison Square Garden in New York City, where it remained through 2019. In both 2002 and 2003, it was played as a showcase doubleheader. In 2004, it became a tournament again, with a new format as a 16-team event with teams from 16 separate conferences. Four predetermined regional round hosts played two games at home and the winners play in the semifinals and finals at Madison Square Garden. Syracuse won the first tournament played in this format, beating Memphis, 77–62, in 2004.

In 2007, Gardner-Webb unexpectedly won at Kentucky, 84–68, and advanced to the semifinals at Madison Square Garden, preventing one of the tournament's marquee teams from playing there. To ensure that the marquee teams would play in the semifinals in the 2008 tournament, the semifinalists were predetermined, regardless of the results of the regional rounds. Beginning in 2009, the format was revised to a 12-team field and each team was guaranteed four games in the tournament, with the semifinalists advancing to Madison Square Garden and the remaining eight teams being split into two subregional tournaments played at predetermined campus sites.

In 2014, the tournament format changed again, with eight teams from eight separate conferences invited to the tournament. Two games were held at four different regional sites selected before the tournament. The semifinals and finals were held at Madison Square Garden and the remaining four teams played in a tournament format at a predetermined on-campus site. This format persisted through 2019.

With the COVID-19 pandemic raging in the United States during the 2020–21 NCAA Division I men's basketball season, the Empire Classic was one of the very few multiteam events held during the fall of 2020.[2] With no fans permitted to attend, it took place behind closed doors at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut. Only four teams participated. Baylor withdrew from it after head coach Scott Drew tested positive for COVID-19;[2] Rhode Island replaced Baylor.[2]

In 2021, the tournament format was dropped, and the Empire Classic took place as a showcase event at T-Mobile Arena on the Las Vegas Strip in Las Vegas, Nevada. Four teams participated, and the event consisted of two doubleheaders played over the course of two days,[3][4]

Yearly champions, runners-up, and MVPs
Year Winner Score Opponent Tournament MVP Other participants Venue
2023 TBD - TBD TBD Madison Square Garden, New York, NY
2022 St. John's 76-69 Syracuse André Curbelo, St. John's Richmond, Temple Barclays Center, Brooklyn, NY
2021 Showcase Format - No Tournament T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas, NV
20201 Villanova 83-74 Arizona State Jeremiah Robinson-Earl, Villanova Boston College, Rhode Island Mohegan Sun Arena, Uncasville, CT
2019 Duke 81-73 Georgetown Vernon Carey Jr., Duke Texas, California Madison Square Garden, New York, NY
2018 Iowa 91-72 Connecticut Luka Garza, Iowa Syracuse, Oregon
2017 Providence 90-63 Saint Louis Kyron Cartwright, Providence Virginia Tech, Washington
2016 Michigan 76-54 SMU Zak Irvin, Michigan Pittsburgh, Marquette
2015 Duke 86-84 Georgetown Grayson Allen, Duke Wisconsin, VCU
2014 Texas 71-55 California Jonathan Holmes, Texas Syracuse, Iowa
2013 Connecticut 59-58 Indiana Shabazz Napier, Connecticut Boston College, Washington
2012 Alabama 77-55 Villanova Trevor Releford, Alabama Oregon State, Purdue
2011 Mississippi State 67-57 Arizona Arnett Moultrie, Mississippi State St. John's, Texas A&M
2010 Pittsburgh 68-66 Texas Ashton Gibbs, Pittsburgh Illinois, Maryland
2009 Syracuse 87-71 North Carolina Wesley Johnson, Syracuse California, Ohio State
2008 Duke 71-56 Michigan Kyle Singler, Duke UCLA, Southern Illinois
2007 Memphis 81-70 Connecticut Chris Douglas-Roberts, Memphis Gardner-Webb, Oklahoma
2006 Maryland 62-60 Michigan State D. J. Strawberry, Maryland St. John's, Texas
2005 Florida 75-70 Syracuse Taurean Green, Florida Texas Tech, Wake Forest
2004 Syracuse 77-62 Memphis Hakim Warrick, Syracuse Mississippi State, St. Mary's
2003 Showcase Format - No Tournament
2002 Showcase Format - No Tournament
2001 Arizona 75-71 Florida Jason Gardner, Arizona Maryland, Temple
2000 Kansas 82-74 St. John's Kenny Gregory, Kansas Kentucky, UCLA
1999 Stanford 72-58 Iowa Jarron Collins, Stanford Connecticut, Duke
1998 Temple 59-48 Wake Forest Lamont Barnes, Temple Georgetown, Illinois
1997 Princeton 38-36 North Carolina State Brian Earl, Princeton Georgia, Texas Continental Airlines Arena, East Rutherford, NJ
1996 Showcase Format - No Tournament Boardwalk Hall, Atlantic City, NJ
1995 Showcase Format - No Tournament

1Tournament held behind closed doors at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Most appearances
Appearances Teams
5 Syracuse, Texas
4 Marquette, Memphis, St. John's
3 Alcorn State, California, UConn, Duke, Maryland, Pittsburgh, Temple, UC-Irvine, Wake Forest

Participants and brackets

* – Denotes overtime period

1995
Showcase Format – No Tournament
Game 1
   
Penn State 88
Penn 61
Game 2
   
La Salle 68
Marquette 65

1996
Showcase Format – No Tournament
Game 1
   
Temple 76
Georgia Tech 58
Game 2
   
Saint Joseph's 67
21 Tulsa 64

1997
Semifinals Championship
      
NC State 47
19 Georgia 45
Princeton 38
NC State 36
Princeton 62
22 Texas 56 Consolation
19 Georgia 89
22 Texas 87

1998
Semifinals Championship
      
Wake Forest 75*
Illinois 73
7 Temple 59
Wake Forest 48
7 Temple 65
Georgetown 49 Consolation
Illinois 65
Georgetown 50


1999
Semifinals Championship
      
13 Stanford 80*
10 Duke 79
13 Stanford 72
Iowa 58
Iowa 70
1 Connecticut 68 Consolation
1 Connecticut 71
10 Duke 66


2000
Semifinals Championship
      
7 Kansas 99
17 UCLA 98
7 Kansas 82
St. John's 74
St. John's 62
12 Kentucky 61 Consolation
17 UCLA 97
12 Kentucky 92


2001
Semifinals Championship
      
Arizona 71
2 Maryland 67
Arizona 75
6 Florida 71
6 Florida 72
16 Temple 64 Consolation
2 Maryland 82
16 Temple 74


2002
Showcase Format – No Tournament
Game 1
   
Memphis 70
Syracuse 63
Game 2
   
8 Alabama 68
3 Oklahoma 62
Game 3
   
18 Marquette 73
Villanova 61
Game 4
   
4 Texas 77
16 Georgia 71

2003
Showcase Format – No Tournament
Game 1
   
21 Wake Forest 85
Memphis 76
Game 2
   
23 Marquette 52
St. John's 45
Game 3
   
22 Pittsburgh 71
Alabama 62
Game 4
   
18 Saint Joseph's 73
12 Gonzaga 66

2004
Semifinals Championship
      
6 Syracuse 71
14 Mississippi State 58
6 Syracuse 77
23 Memphis 62
23 Memphis 81
Saint Mary's 66 Consolation
14 Mississippi State 67
Saint Mary's 54

2005
Semifinals Championship
      
16 Syracuse 81
Texas Tech 46
Florida 75
16 Syracuse 70
Florida 77
18 Wake Forest 72 Consolation
18 Wake Forest 78**
Texas Tech 73

2006
Semifinals Championship
      
Michigan State 63
18 Texas 61
Maryland 62
Michigan State 60
Maryland 92
St. John's 60 Consolation
18 Texas 77
St. John's 66

2007
Semifinals Championship
      
3 Memphis 63
  Oklahoma 53
3 Memphis 81
Connecticut 70
Connecticut 78
Gardner-Webb 66 Consolation
Oklahoma 69
Gardner-Webb 55

2008
Semifinals Championship
      
Michigan 55
4 UCLA 52
5 Duke 71
Michigan 56
5 Duke 83
Southern Illinois 58 Consolation
4 UCLA 77
Southern Illinois 60

2009
Semifinals Championship
      
24 Syracuse 95
12 California 73
24 Syracuse 87
4 North Carolina 71
4 North Carolina 77
15 Ohio State 73 Consolation
12 California 60
15 Ohio State 76

2010
Semifinals Championship
      
4 Pittsburgh 79
Maryland 70
4 Pittsburgh 68
22 Texas 66
16 Illinois 84
Texas 90* Consolation
16 Illinois 80
Maryland 76

2011
Semifinals Championship
      
18 Texas A&M 60
Mississippi State 69
Mississippi State 67
16 Arizona 57
St. John's 72
16 Arizona 81 Consolation
18 Texas A&M 58
St. John's 57

2012
Semifinals
November 15
ESPN2 		Championship
November 16
ESPN2
      
Alabama 65
Oregon State 62
Alabama 77
Villanova 55
Villanova 89*
Purdue 81 Consolation
Oregon State 66
Purdue 58

2013
Semifinals
November 21
ESPN2 		Championship
November 22
ESPN2
      
Indiana 102
Washington 84
Indiana 58
18 Connecticut 59
18 Connecticut 72
Boston College 70 Consolation
Washington 78
Boston College 89

2014
Semifinals
November 20
ESPN2 		Championship
November 21
ESPN2
      
10 Texas 71
Iowa 57
10 Texas 71
California 55
23 Syracuse 59
California 73 Consolation
23 Syracuse 66
Iowa 63

2015
Semifinals
November 20
ESPN2 		Championship
November 22
ESPN
      
5 Duke 79
VCU 71
5 Duke 86
Georgetown 84
Wisconsin 61
Georgetown 71 Consolation
VCU 73
Wisconsin 74

2016
Semifinals
November 17 		Championship
November 18
      
Pittsburgh 67
SMU 76
SMU 54
Michigan 76
Michigan 79
Marquette 61 Consolation
Pittsburgh 78
Marquette 75

2017
Semifinals
November 16
ESPN2 		Championship
November 17
ESPN2
      
  Providence 77
  Washington 70
  Providence 90
  Saint Louis 63
  Virginia Tech 71
  Saint Louis 77 Consolation
  Washington 79
  Virginia Tech 103
Nashville Subregional Semifinals
November 18 		Championship
November 19
      
  Seattle 102
  Detroit Mercy 71
  Seattle 77
  Belmont 90
  Houston Baptist 88
  Belmont 93 Consolation
  Detroit Mercy 116
  Houston Baptist 109

2018

[13][14]

Semifinals
November 15
ESPN2 		Championship
November 16
ESPN2
      
  Connecticut 83
15 Syracuse 76
  Connecticut 72
  Iowa 91
  Iowa 77
13 Oregon 69 Consolation
15 Syracuse 65
13 Oregon 80
Cheney Subregional Semifinals
November 16 		Championship
November 17
      
  Morehead State 99
  UMKC 89
  Morehead State 70
  Green Bay 87
  Green Bay 82*
  Eastern Washington 78 Consolation
  UMKC 80
  Eastern Washington 87OT

2019

[15]

Semifinals
November 21
ESPN2 		Championship
November 22
ESPN2
      
  Georgetown 82
22 Texas 66
  Georgetown 73
1 Duke 81
1 Duke 87
  California 52 Consolation
22 Texas 62
  California 45
Riverside Subregional Semifinals
November 22 		Championship
November 23
      
  Georgia State 83
  Prairie View A&M 74
  Georgia State 69
  California Baptist 60
  Central Arkansas 98
  California Baptist 104** Consolation
  Prairie View A&M 78
  Central Arkansas 72

2020

The 2020 tournament was held November 25–26 behind closed doors at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut as a result of COVID-19 pandemic-related restrictions.

Semifinals
November 25
ESPN 		Championship
November 26
ESPN
      
3 Villanova 76
  Boston College 67
3 Villanova 83
18 Arizona State 74
Rhode Island 88
18 Arizona State 94 Consolation
  Boston College 69
  Rhode Island 64

2021

The top two teams in the country, Gonzaga and UCLA,[16] headlined the 27th annual Empire Classic, held at T-Mobile Arena on the Las Vegas Strip in Las Vegas, Nevada, on November 22 and 23. Joining them were Central Michigan and Bellarmine.[17] The format reverted to a showcase event.

Showcase Format – No Tournament
November 22, 2021
   
2 UCLA 75
Bellarmine 62
November 22, 2021
   
1 Gonzaga 107
Central Michigan 54
November 23, 2021
   
2 UCLA 63
1 Gonzaga 83
November 23, 2021
   
  Bellarmine 76
  Central Michigan 69

2022

The tournament took place at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York on November 21 and 22, 2022.[18]

Game recaps: [19][20][21][22]

Semifinals
November 21
ESPN2/ESPNU 		Championship
November 22
ESPN2
    
Syracuse 74*
Richmond 71
Syracuse 69
St. John's 76*
St. John's 78
Temple 72 Consolation
Richmond 61
Temple 49

* – Denotes overtime period

2023

The tournament is set to take place from November 19 - 20, 2023 at Madison Square Garden.[23]

Semifinals
November 19
ESPN2/ESPNU 		Championship
November 20
ESPN2
    
UConn
Indiana
 
 
Texas
Louisville Consolation
 
 

* – Denotes overtime period

References
  1. "Plenty of changes next year for Coaches vs Cancer". si.com. si.com. Archived from the original on 4 November 2012. Retrieved 19 September 2011.
  2. Freeman, Tristan, "NCAA Basketball: Biggest takeaways from 2020 2K Empire Classic," bustingbrackets.com, November 27, 2020 Accessed March 11, 2021
  3. "UCLA to Face Bellarmine, Gonzaga in Empire Classic". UCLABruins.com. UCLA Athletics.
  4. "Gonzaga and UCLA to meet in the 2021 Empire Classic benefiting Wounded Warrior Project presented by Continental Tire". Empire Classic. Gazelle Group. Retrieved 26 July 2021.
  5. "2008 Bracket" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 6 January 2009. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
  6. "2009 Bracket" (PDF). GazelleGroup.com. Retrieved December 3, 2022.
  7. "2010 Bracket" (PDF). GazelleGroup.com. Retrieved December 3, 2022.
  8. "2011 Bracket" (PDF). GazelleGroup.com. Retrieved December 3, 2022.
  9. "2012 Bracket" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-09-07. Retrieved 2012-11-16.
  10. "2013 Bracket" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2013-11-13. Retrieved 2013-11-13.
  11. "2014 Bracket" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-12-08. Retrieved 2014-12-05.
  12. "Michigan, Pitt, Marquette, and SMU Headline 2016 2K Classic". 2K Classic benefiting Wounded Warrior Project. Gazelle Groups. Archived from the original on 29 June 2016. Retrieved 13 June 2016.
  13. "2018-19 College Basketball Early Season Tournaments, Events, And Neutral-Site Games". Blogging the Bracket. Archived from the original on 2017-12-02. Retrieved 2017-12-01.
  14. "2018 Bracket" (PDF). Gazelle Groups. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2018-11-22. Retrieved 2018-11-06.
  15. "2019 Schedule". Gazelle Groups. Archived from the original on 2019-09-14. Retrieved 2019-10-17.
  16. "UCLA to Face Bellarmine, Gonzaga in Empire Classic". UCLABruins.com. UCLA Athletics.
  17. "Gonzaga and UCLA to meet in the 2021 Empire Classic benefiting Wounded Warrior Project presented by Continental Tire". Empire Classic. Gazelle Group. Retrieved 26 July 2021.
  18. "2022-23 Men's College Basketball Early Season Tournaments and Exempt Multi-Team Events (MTEs)". SB Nation. April 22, 2022. Retrieved April 25, 2022.
  19. "Syracuse Needs OT to Top Richmond, Reach Empire Final". ESPN. November 22, 2022. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
  20. "Saint John's (NY) Defeats Temple 78–72". The Associated Press. November 22, 2022. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
  21. "Curbelo, St. John's Wins Legends, Top Syracuse 76–69 in OT". ESPN. November 23, 2022. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
  22. "Burton Leads Richmond over Temple 61–49 in Empire Classic". ESPN. November 22, 2022. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
  23. "2023 Empire Classic Field Announced". empireclassic.net. April 4, 2023. Retrieved August 9, 2023.
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