The George Mason men's basketball team will return to the Gildan Charleston Classic in 2015 as the Patriots are among the eight-team field announced today. The eighth annual tournament will be held November 19, 20 & 22 at the TD Arena in Charleston, South Carolina.
Comprising the eight-member field is Bradley (MVC), Long Beach State (Big West), Mississippi (SEC), Oklahoma State (Big 12), Seton Hall (Big East), Towson (CAA) and Virginia (ACC) in addition the Patriots. Mason is one of two teams making a return trip to the tournament as Seton Hall participated in the event in 2011, finishing second in the tournament behind Northwestern who took the title. In Mason's first trip to the Charleston Classic in 2010, the Patriots opened the tournament defeating Charlotte before falling to N.C. State and Wofford in overtime.
The competitive field features Virginia, a No. 1 seed in the 2014 NCAA Championship, which advanced to the Sweet 16, while Oklahoma State earned a NCAA Championship berth and Towson advanced to the CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament quarterfinals. In current national rankings, Virginia is ranked No. 9 in the Associated Press poll (Nov. 17) and Oklahoma State received votes.
The 2015 Charleston Classic will feature a bracket format with 12 games over three days. Each team will compete in one game per day, advancing through the bracket. The two teams that remain undefeated throughout will face off in a championship game on the final day of competition.
Previous winners of the Charleston Classic include: Clemson (2008), Miami (2009), Georgetown (2010), Northwestern (2011), Colorado (2012) and UMass (2013).
For more information, including travel packages, please visit the Charleston Classic website at www.espnevents.com/charleston-classic/. The Charleston Classic is owned and operated by ESPN Regional Television (ERT), a subsidiary of ESPN.
ESPN Events, a subsidiary of ESPN, owns and operates early-season basketball events worldwide beginning in early-November and running through the Christmas holiday.
The four multi-day, destination events consisting of the Gildan Charleston Classic, Puerto Rico Tip-Off, DIRECTV Wooden Legacy and Orlando Classic are bracket-format tournaments featuring 12 games over three days. The teams compete once per day, advancing with a victory. The two remaining undefeated teams will face off in a championship game. Also following the same format, the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic will be announced in late December.
