Villanova, Washington State, Boston College, New Mexico, Santa Clara Highlight Quality Field

The 76 Classic has confirmed all eight teams for the 2011 tournament field, to be held over Thanksgiving weekend, Thursday, Friday and Sunday, Nov. 24, 25 & 27, at the Anaheim (Calif.) Convention Center adjacent to Disneyland.

The fifth annual early season multi-team event includes Boston College, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Saint Louis, Santa Clara, Washington State, UC Riverside and Villanova.

Five of the eight-team field reached the 2011 postseason. Villanova advanced to the NCAA Championship second round, while Washington State reached the semifinals of the National Invitation Tournament (NIT).  Boston College and New Mexico earned NIT berths, each advancing to the second round. Santa Clara won the title game of the College Insider Tournament.

The 2011 76 Classic, a bracket-format tournament, will feature 12 games over the three days. Each team will compete in one game per day, advancing through a bracket-tournament format.  The two teams that remain undefeated throughout will face off in a championship match Sunday, Nov. 27.

The Big West Conference will again serve as the host conference for the 76 Classic at the 7,500-seat Anaheim Convention Center.

UNLV of the Mountain West won the 2010 76 Classic over Virginia Tech. West Virginia won the 2009 edition of the event, part of the Mountaineers’ run to the NCAA Final Four. Wake Forest was crowned champion of the 76 Classic in 2008. 

The family-friendly tournament hosts the teams for three days of tournament play, practices, events and Disneyland park experiences. Additional information, including travel packages, can be found on the 76 Classic Web site at www.76classic.com.

The 76 Classic is owned and operated by ESPN Regional Television, Inc (ERT), a subsidiary of ESPN.

ESPN Regional Television/Event Ownership
The nation’s largest syndicator of collegiate sports programming, ESPN Regional Television (ERT) annually produces more than 1,000 telecasts of sporting events. Programming includes football, basketball, NCAA events, golf and NHRA events accounting for more than 2,200 live and/or original hours of programming. In addition to event ownership, ERT is the production headquarters for ESPNU, the 24-hour college sports network; syndication rights-holder and producer of national, regional and local shows for college conferences (e.g. – SEC, BIG EAST, Big 12, Mid-American, WAC).
 
ESPN Regional Television markets and/or owns several sporting events, including collegiate football events: Beef ‘O’ Brady’s Bowl St. Petersburg; Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl (Fort Worth, Texas); BBVA Compass Bowl (Birmingham, Ala.); MAACO Bowl Las Vegas; New Mexico Bowl (Albuquerque); Sheraton Hawai’i Bowl (Honolulu); Texas Bowl (Houston); MEAC/SWAC Challenge presented by Disney (Orlando, Fla.) and The Home Depot ESPNU College Football Awards. Collegiate basketball events: 76 Classic (Anaheim, Calif.); Champion’s Classic (Madison Square Garden; debuts 2011); Charleston Classic (S.C.); Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic (Honolulu); Old Spice Classic (Walt Disney World Resort near Orlando, Fla.); Puerto Rico Tip-Off (San Juan); All-College Basketball Classic (Oklahoma City), Sears BracketBusters. In addition to the ESPNU Warrior Classic (Lacrosse), the Hawaiian Islands Invitational (Soccer) and the ESPN National Golf Challenge. For more information, visit ESPNPlus.com.

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