The College Basketball Invitational (CBI) is a men's college basketball tournament created in 2007 by The Gazelle Group. The inaugural tournament occurred after the conclusion of the 2007–08 men's college basketball regular season. The CBI selects 16 teams that are not selected for the NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament or the National Invitation Tournament[1] (NIT), and who are willing to pay a $27,500 entry fee to participate.[2] In the CBI, prior to 2020[3] teams competed on home courts. After the post-COVID pandemic revival, the tournament has been staged at the Ocean Center in Daytona Beach, Florida. The CBI is a single-elimination tournament. Prior to 2020, the tournament was single elimination until the final two teams were determined, after which the championship was determined by a championship series with a best-two-out-of-three format. Since the tournament's 2021 revival and adoption of the single-site format, the championship is also determined by a single game. In 2023, the CBI introduced NIL funding of $40,000 to be distributed in the following manner: $25,000 to the champion, $10,000 to the runner-up, and $2,500 to each semifinalist.
The inaugural CBI
The 2008 College Basketball Invitational was the first new postseason tournament since the Collegiate Commissioners Association Tournament in 1974. The opening round was played on March 18, 2008, and March 19, 2008, with the second round being played on March 24, 2008. The semifinals took place on March 26, 2008. The championship was a best-of-three series with games being played on March 31, April 2, and April 4, 2008. The bracketing was done in east, west, south and midwest regions.[4]
Tulsa was crowned the champion in the 2008 tournament.
Television
On February 1, 2016, the CBI announced an exclusive television partnership with ESPN to broadcast the Championship Series of the CBI. In the inaugural year, games were available in local markets on Fox Sports Net and DirecTV.[5] The games could also be viewed on the official website.[6] The 2009 tournament broadcast was changed to HDNet with four first-round games, two quarterfinal games, both semifinal games, and all three championship games being broadcast. HDNet changed its name to AXS and aired the 2013 tournament. CBS Sports Network televised the 2014 and 2015 tournaments. ESPNU televised the best-of-three Championship Series from 2016 to 2019.[7]
The following is an overview and list of the announcers and television networks to broadcast the tournament.
| Year | Network | Play-by-play | Color analyst |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Fox College Sports | Michael Reghi | Bob Sundvold |
| 2009[8] | HDNet (Select games in first two rounds, Semifinals, Finals) | Rich Cellini | Craig Ehlo |
| 2010[9] | |||
| 2011 | |||
| 2012 | Keno Davis | ||
| 2013[10] | AXS TV (Select games in first two rounds, Semifinals, Finals) | Kenny Rice | Bobby Cremins |
| 2014[11] | CBSSN (Finals) | Scott Graham | Bob Wenzel |
| 2015[12] | Michael Reghi | John Griffin | |
| 2016 | ESPNU (Finals) | Mitch Holthus | Sean Harrington |
| 2017 | Roy Philpott | Corey Williams | |
| 2018 | Jason Capel | ||
| 2019 | Tim McCormick | ||
| 2020 | Tournament not held | ||
| 2021 | FloSports | Chris Hooker | Kevin Lehman |
| 2022 | FloSports (First round and Quarterfinals) | Tom James | Jim Christian |
| ESPN2 (Semifinals and Championship) | Roy Philpott | Joe Lunardi | |
| 2023 | FloSports (First round and Quarterfinals) | ||
| ESPN2 (Semifinals and Championship) | |||
| 2024 | FloSports (First round and Quarterfinals) | ||
| ESPN2 (Semifinals and Championship) | |||
Champions
Clara
Wilmington
| Year | Champion | Runner-up | MVP |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Tulsa | Bradley | Jerome Jordan, Tulsa |
| 2009 | Oregon State | UTEP | Roeland Schaftenaar, Oregon State |
| 2010 | VCU | Saint Louis | Joey Rodriguez, VCU |
| 2011 | Oregon | Creighton | Joevan Catron, Oregon |
| 2012 | Pittsburgh | Washington State | Lamar Patterson, Pittsburgh |
| 2013 | Santa Clara | George Mason | Kevin Foster, Santa Clara |
| 2014 | Siena | Fresno State | Brett Bisping, Siena |
| 2015 | Loyola Chicago | UL Monroe | Earl Peterson, Loyola Chicago |
| 2016 | Nevada | Morehead State | Tyron Criswell, Nevada |
| 2017 | Wyoming | Coastal Carolina | Justin James, Wyoming |
| 2018 | North Texas | San Francisco | Roosevelt Smart, North Texas |
| 2019 | South Florida | DePaul | David Collins, South Florida |
| 2020 | Canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic[13] | ||
| 2021 | Pepperdine | Coastal Carolina | Kessler Edwards, Pepperdine |
| 2022 | UNC Wilmington | Middle Tennessee | Jaylen Sims, UNC Wilmington |
| 2023 | Charlotte | Eastern Kentucky | Brice Williams, Charlotte |
| 2024 | Seattle | High Point | Cameron Tyson, Seattle |
Presenting sponsors
- 2008–2010: none
- 2011–2012: Zebra Pen
- 2013: Buick
- 2014–2016: none
- 2017: Five Four
- 2023: Discount Tire
- 2019, 2021–2022, 2024-present: Roman/Ro
See also
References
- ^ "Fourth postseason hoops tourney announced". ESPN.com. January 27, 2009. Retrieved November 19, 2023.
- ^ Shaffer, Jonas. "Towson men's basketball declines postseason tournament invitations". Archived from the original on November 8, 2017. Retrieved March 13, 2017.
- ^ "Group starts third postseason tourney featuring 16 teams". ESPN. November 14, 2007. Retrieved November 19, 2023.
- ^ "College Basketball Invitational introduced as new postseason event" (Press release). The Gazelle Group. Archived from the original on March 19, 2008. Retrieved November 14, 2007.
- ^ "Fox College Sports to broadcast inaugural College Basketball Invitational" (Press release). The Gazelle Group. Archived from the original on March 19, 2008. Retrieved March 4, 2008.
- ^ "College Basketball Invitational online viewing prices". The Gazelle Group. Archived from the original on May 9, 2008. Retrieved March 25, 2008.
- ^ "ESPNU to air CBI Championship Series". College Basketball Invitational. Gazelle Group. Retrieved February 11, 2016.
- ^ "HDNet to Broadcast 2009 College Basketball Invtnl" (Press release). Albany HDTV. Retrieved January 30, 2009.
- ^ "HDNet to Broadcast Live Coverage of the 2010 College Basketball Invitational" (Press release). PR News Wire. Retrieved March 10, 2010.
- ^ "2013 March Madness: CBI Championship Schedule" (Press release). Eye on Sky and Air Sports. Retrieved March 28, 2013.
- ^ "2014 College Basketball Invitational (CBI) Championship Schedule" (Press release). Eye on Sky and Air Sports. Retrieved March 29, 2014.
- ^ "2015 CBI, CIT, & NIT TV & National Radio Info" (Press release). Eye on Sky and Air Sports. Retrieved March 29, 2015.
- ^ "CBI called off amid ongoing coronavirus concerns". ESPN.com. March 11, 2020. Retrieved March 12, 2020.