College Basketball Crown’s organizers “hope putting most of the event’s action between the NCAA Tournament’s Elite Eight and Final Four helps them capitalize on the public’s desire for college hoops” as the 16-team, single-elimination tournament kicks off this week at MGM Grand Garden and T-Mobile Arena, according to Vincent Bonsignore of the LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL. It has the “broadcasting backing” of Fox, which partnered with sports and entertainment company Anschutz Entertainment Group on the original idea. The Big 10, Big East and Big 12 are also “heavily involved.” MGM Grand Garden will host the first two rounds Monday and Tuesday as well as the quarterfinals Wednesday and Thursday. The action moves to T-Mobile Arena for the semifinals and final Saturday and Sunday. Players can “tap into an NIL prize pool that will spread $500,000 among the four semifinal teams.” The CBC is “making the tournament cost-effective for teams by covering all travel expenses, including charter flights.” Holding all the games in Las Vegas also “lowers expenses.” Tournament organizers “want the CBC to be a permanent part of college basketball, even if it means ruffling some feathers.” They believe rewarding players with NIL packages can “help differentiate them from the rest of the field.” The goal for the CBC’s first year is to “build a sturdy foundation and grow from there” (LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL, 3/30).
MAJOR MOMENT: FOXSPORTS.com’s John Fanta wrote in addition to the “endorsement opportunities, 12 NBA organizations have already committed to being at the College Basketball Crown, and with one centralized location in Las Vegas, it allows them to see prospects multiple times throughout the week.” Boise State head coach Leon Rice is “thrilled to be a part of the first-year event.” Rice said, “This event has huge value and upside, and I expect it to keep growing after this first edition of the tournament.” Fanta wrote the tournament will “also seek ways to improve gameplay by implementing some experimental rule changes to speed up end-of-game scenarios, something that is greatly needed for the flow of college basketball to improve.” Rather than officials “arbitrarily going to the monitor on any out-of-bounds calls in the final two minutes of a game, any debatable call will require a coach to utilize a timeout to then challenge the call.” There is “no limit on coaches’ challenges, but if a team does not have a timeout and loses the challenge, they are charged with an administrative technical foul” (FOXSPORTS.com, 3/28).
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