I announced this a while ago but here is the release Official Tournament Website | Travel Information
THE FLATS – The Georgia Tech men’s basketball team has been invited to participate in the 2023 Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic, and will compete in the holiday event in Honolulu, Hawai’i for the second time in four years this December. The 14th annual event will take place Dec. 21, 22 and 24 at SimpliFi Arena at the Stan Sheriff Center. The bracket and game times will be announced at a later date.
The field for the 2023 Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic will also feature host Hawaii (22-11, 13-7 Big West), who won the event last December, Massachusetts (15-16, 6-12 Atlantic 10), Nevada (22-11, 12-6 Mountain West), Old Dominion (19-12, 11-7 Sun Belt), Saint Mary’s (27-8, 14-2 West Coast), Temple (16-16, 10-8 American Athletic) and TCU (22-13, 9-9 Big 12 Conference).
The Yellow Jackets participated in the tournament in 2019, earning a third-place finish after defeating Boise State and Hawai’i sandwiched around a loss to Houston. Tech posted a 15-18 overall record in 2022-23, 6-14 in the ACC.
“We’re excited to be a part of Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic, excited for a great opportunity to compete against high-caliber opposition, and to enjoy some Hawaiian hospitality,” said first-year head coach Damon Stoudamire. “As we work to elevate our program, this is an excellent way to face some very good teams to help prepare us for the Atlantic Coast Conference season.”
Tech has a 12-6 record all time in five previous tournament events in Hawai’i, including a 2-1 slate in the 2019 Diamond Head Classic and a 6-3 mark in three appearances in the old Rainbow Classic – 1984 (champion), 1988 and 1994 – which also were hosted by the University of Hawai’i. The Yellow Jackets also played in the 1998 Big Island Classic in Hilo, and the 2006 Maui Invitational, finishing as the runner-up in both events.
Each team will compete in one game per day, advancing through the bracket over three days for a total of 12 games. The two teams that remain undefeated throughout will face off in the championship game on the final day of the tournament.
Previous tournament champions of the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic include USC (2009, 2017), Butler (2010), Kansas State (2011), Arizona (2012), Iowa State (2013), George Washington (2014), Oklahoma (2015), San Diego State (2016), TCU (2018), Houston (2019), Vanderbilt (2021) and Hawaii (2022).
Tickets are expected to go on sale in October. Exclusive airfare offers from Hawaiian Airlines, title sponsor of the tournament and special hotel rates from OUTRIGGER Resorts & Hotels, the official hospitality sponsor, can be found at https://espnevents.com/hawaiian-airlines-diamond-head-classic/travel/. Visit the tournament website at hawaiianairlinesdiamondheadclassic.com to sign up for special email offers, and for more information.
ESPN EVENTS ESPN Events, a division of ESPN, owns and operates a portfolio of collegiate sporting events nationwide. In 2023, the 32-event schedule includes four early-season college football kickoff games, 17 college bowl games, 10 college basketball events, and a college softball event, in addition to a new a college gymnastics event coming in 2024. Collectively, these events account for over 400 hours of live programming on ESPN platforms, while reaching 60 million viewers and attracting more than 650,000 annual attendees. Each year, the portfolio of events features more than 20 Division I conferences and hosts over 4,000 participating student-athletes. With satellite offices in more than 10 cities across the country, ESPN Events builds relationships with conferences, schools and local communities, as well as providing unique experiences for teams and fans. For more information, visit the official website, Facebook,Twitter or YouTube pages.
