University of Minnesota Athletics
Gophers Set to Compete in Asheville Championship
8/4/2021 7:56:00 AM | Men's Basketball
The University of Minnesota men's basketball program will compete in the inaugural Asheville Championship, Nov. 12 and 14 in Asheville, N.C. Minnesota is one of four teams competing, which also highlights Western Kentucky, Princeton and South Carolina. The event is created by KemperLesnik, who operates the Maui Jim Maui Invitational and manages the event portion of the McDonald's All American Basketball Games.
The Asheville Championship will air on the ESPN family of networks on Friday, November 12 and Sunday, November 14. Friday's match ups include Minnesota vs. Western Kentucky and Princeton vs. South Carolina. Start times and specific ESPN information will follow at a later date.
Tickets are available now exclusively through participating schools' ticket offices. Tickets for the general public go on sale September 14 at 9 a.m.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, KemperLesnik was forced to relocate the 2020 Camping World Maui Invitational from its home on the island of Maui to the mainland in Asheville. The 2020 event ended as the only early season men's multi-team tournament to successfully take place in a secured bubble with its original field. Asheville became the first-ever non-Hawaiian site for the event, and its success spawned interest from college basketball programs and sponsors to establish the first annual tip-off tournament in the Blue Ridge Mountains. As a result, the Asheville Championship was formed and will now serve as a premier event celebrating the start of the college basketball season as well as the first-class music, food and outdoor activities Asheville has to offer.
Minnesota leads the all-time series against Western Kentucky, when it won both its previous contests in 2014 and 2010. The Gophers trail South Carolina 0-2 in its previous two meetings, dating back to 1977 and 1978. Minnesota is 3-0 all-time against the Princeton Tigers, with its most recent competition in 2004.
For more information, or to follow along as it all starts in Asheville, click here.
The Asheville Championship will air on the ESPN family of networks on Friday, November 12 and Sunday, November 14. Friday's match ups include Minnesota vs. Western Kentucky and Princeton vs. South Carolina. Start times and specific ESPN information will follow at a later date.
Tickets are available now exclusively through participating schools' ticket offices. Tickets for the general public go on sale September 14 at 9 a.m.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, KemperLesnik was forced to relocate the 2020 Camping World Maui Invitational from its home on the island of Maui to the mainland in Asheville. The 2020 event ended as the only early season men's multi-team tournament to successfully take place in a secured bubble with its original field. Asheville became the first-ever non-Hawaiian site for the event, and its success spawned interest from college basketball programs and sponsors to establish the first annual tip-off tournament in the Blue Ridge Mountains. As a result, the Asheville Championship was formed and will now serve as a premier event celebrating the start of the college basketball season as well as the first-class music, food and outdoor activities Asheville has to offer.
Minnesota leads the all-time series against Western Kentucky, when it won both its previous contests in 2014 and 2010. The Gophers trail South Carolina 0-2 in its previous two meetings, dating back to 1977 and 1978. Minnesota is 3-0 all-time against the Princeton Tigers, with its most recent competition in 2004.
For more information, or to follow along as it all starts in Asheville, click here.
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