Field Announced For 2008 Old Spice Classic
4/29/2008 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
April 29, 2008
EAST LANSING, Mich. - ESPN Regional Television, Inc. (ERT), a subsidiary of ESPN, announced today the field for the 2008 Old Spice Classic, to be held on Thanksgiving weekend at the Milk House at Disney's Wide World of Sports® Complex near Orlando, Fla. The field for the third annual Old Spice Classic is loaded with current and traditional college basketball powerhouses. The teams will include Michigan State, Georgetown, Gonzaga, Maryland, Oklahoma State, Siena, Tennessee and Wichita State. The final bracket will be announced later this summer, including match-ups and television schedule.
Seven of those eight teams qualified for postseason play in 2008, including five in the NCAA Tournament and two in the Sweet 16. Michigan State and Tennessee advanced to the Sweet 16, Siena and Georgetown advanced to the second round and Gonzaga also made the NCAA Tournament. Maryland and Oklahoma State played in the National Invitational Tournament (NIT).
During this decade, half of the 2008 Old Spice Classic field has reached the NCAA Final Four. Michigan State won the national championship in 2000 and appeared in three other Final Fours, and Maryland claimed the title in 2002, while also reaching the 2001 Final Four. The other recent Final Four teams are Oklahoma State (2004) and Georgetown (2007).
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 game at 6:30 p.m. ET Sunday, Nov. 30.
The tournament is a weekend-long affair at the Walt Disney World Resort and participating teams are invited to the Walt Disney World Resort Theme Parks and other event functions.
"The quality and depth of the Old Spice Classic field continues to get better and better each year, and this year includes some of the NCAA's most respected programs," said Mike Millay, Director of Sports Programs and Events for Disney's Wide World of Sports. "Having such a stellar field competing at the No. 1 family vacation destination in the world makes this event the most attractive preseason tournament in men's college basketball."
Last year, North Carolina State edged Villanova in the championship game of the Old Spice Classic at the Milk House. Of the 12 games played, 10 were decided by 10 or fewer points.
The inaugural Old Spice Classic was played in 2006, with Arkansas defeating West Virginia for the championship.
Additional information, including travel packages, can be found on the Old Spice Classic Web site at www.oldspiceclassic.com. For more information on Disney's Wide World of Sports, visit www.disneysports.com.
