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The Basketball Tournament 2023

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The Basketball Tournament
2023
Tournament information
Location
Regional sites
Semifinal/Championship site
DatesJuly 19–August 3, 2023
Tournament
format(s)
Single elimination
Participants64 teams
PurseChampionship: US$1,000,000 winner-take-all
Final positions
ChampionsHeartfire
Runner-upBleed Green
Tournament statistics
MVPBrandon Jefferson[2]
Top scorer(s)Brandon Jefferson (115)[1]
Games played63
← 2022
2024 →

The Basketball Tournament 2023 was the tenth edition of The Basketball Tournament (TBT), a 5-on-5, single elimination basketball tournament with a $1 million winner-take-all prize. The tournament, involving 64 teams, began on July 19 and ended on August 3 with the championship game in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The tournament format was similar to that of the last edition in 2022—64 teams, each playing in one of eight regionals.

The event had a "championship week", starting with the regional winners advancing to quarterfinals at one of four sites, Dayton, Louisville, Wheeling, WV, and Wichita. The quarterfinal winners then traveled to Philadelphia for the semifinals and championship game. Heartfire, a team sponsored by MedImpact, won the tournament.[3]

Format

For its 2023 edition, TBT retained its traditional 64-team format and eight-region format, with each regional involving eight teams at a single host site (similar in format to the NCAA Division II men's and women's tournaments). Wichita is serving as host for two separate regionals.

In a feature it calls "Run It Back", TBT organizers invited all teams that won first-round games in the 2022 edition to play in 2023. The remaining teams, and the regional placements for all entrants, were revealed in a selection special hosted by Andrew Zoldan with analyst Seth Greenberg that aired on TBT's YouTube channel on June 21, 2023.[4]

As with previous years, all tournament games operate with the "Elam Ending", a format of ending the game without use of a game clock. Under the Elam Ending, the clock is turned off at the first dead-ball whistle with 4 minutes or less to play in the game. At that time, a target score, equal to the score of the leading team (or tied teams) plus eight, is set, and the first team to reach this target score is declared the winner of the game.[5] Thus, all games end on a made basket (field goal or free throw) and there is no overtime.

Venues

The Basketball Tournament 2023 featured games in eight locations, seven of which hosted a regional. The eighth hosted the championship weekend (two semifinal contests and the championship game). Official regional names, if different from the location names, are indicated in the listings below the location names.

class=notpageimage|
Regional sites only
Regional and quarterfinal site
Championship site
Cincinnati
(Xavier) 		Lubbock Syracuse Dayton
Cintas Center United Supermarkets Arena The Oncenter UD Arena
Capacity: 10,224 Capacity: 15,300 Capacity: 7,000 Capacity: 13,409
Louisville Wheeling
(West Virginia) 		Wichita Philadelphia
(Championship)
Freedom Hall WesBanco Arena Charles Koch Arena Daskalakis Athletic Center
Capacity: 18,865 Capacity: 5,406 Capacity: 10,506 Capacity: 2,509

Teams

Source:[6][7]

TBT has a history of teams rostered primarily with alumni from specific NCAA Division I college basketball programs; 33 such teams entered the 2023 tournament. Three other teams were rostered primarily with alumni from groups of NCAA basketball programs sharing a common bond. Two mostly consist of alumni from a specific Division I conference, one is drawn from a group of historic basketball rivals, another is drawn from NCAA Division III alumni, and the last is drawn from historically black colleges and universities.

Name College or sponsor affiliation Source of team name Region
AfterShocks Wichita State alumni School nickname of Shockers Wichita 2
Air Raiders Texas Tech alumni School nickname of Red Raiders Lubbock
Athletics Miami — Team sponsor Athletics Miami, a basketball facility Dayton
Austin's Own Texas alumni School location in Austin Lubbock
B1 Ballers — Wichita 2
Beale Street Boys Memphis alumni Street where school arena is located Wichita 2
Best Virginia West Virginia alumni West Virginia
Big 5 Philadelphia Big 5 alumni Syracuse
Bleed Green North Texas alumni School nickname of Mean Green Lubbock
Blue Collar U Buffalo alumni Primary school color, plus city's blue-collar image Syracuse
Boeheim's Army Syracuse alumni Former Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim Syracuse
Broad Street Birds Temple alumni Street where school arena is located, Owl mascot Wichita 2
Bucketneers ETSU alumni School nickname of Buccaneers Xavier
Carmen's Crew Ohio State alumni "Carmen Ohio", Ohio State's school song Dayton
Challenge ALS: Florida — Combination of former teams Challenge ALS and Florida TNT West Virginia
The Commonwealth UMass alumni Commonwealth of Massachusetts Syracuse
DaGuys STL — Team YouTube channel, with players mainly from Greater St. Louis Wichita 2
DawgTown Georgetown alumni Team mascot Jack the Bulldog West Virginia
Dubois Dream — Based out of Dubois, Pennsylvania West Virginia
Eberlein Drive — Team owners' home street Louisville
The Enchantment New Mexico alumni State nickname, "Land of Enchantment" Lubbock
Fort Wayne Champs — Players with connections to Fort Wayne, Indiana Xavier
Friday Beers[a] Armored Athlete Dayton
Gataverse Florida alumni Florida Gators mascot Louisville
Georgia Kingz — Players with connections to the state of Georgia Xavier
Gutter Cat Gang[b] — Team sponsor Gutter Cat Gang, an NFT company[8] Louisville
Happy Valley Hoopers Penn State alumni Location of the school in Happy Valley Syracuse
HBCUnited HBCU alumni Lubbock
Heartfire MedImpact Arizona nonprofit HeartFire Missions, a provider of Christian medical mission trips Wichita 1
Herd That Marshall alumni School nickname of Thundering Herd West Virginia
India Rising — Players of Indian origin Dayton
In the Lab — In The Lab, a basketball content creation company Lubbock
Jackson TN Underdawgs — Players with connections to Jackson, Tennessee Louisville
Juco Products — Players with connections to Junior colleges Wichita 1
LA Cheaters Drew League Wichita 1
Living the Dream — Wichita 1
Mass Street Kansas alumni Short for Massachusetts Street, the main street through the central business district of the school's home of Lawrence Wichita 1
Men of Mackey Purdue alumni Purdue home court Mackey Arena Dayton
The Money Team TMT Team sponsor Floyd "Money" Mayweather Xavier
Nasty Nati Cincinnati alumni Nickname of the city of Cincinnati Xavier
The Nawf — Players with connections to Gwinnett County, Georgia Louisville
The Nerd Team — Players from "more prestigious" universities Syracuse
The Program for Autism — The Program NYC, a youth basketball initiative Xavier
Purple & Black Kansas State alumni School colors Wichita 2
Purple Hearts — Gun violence awareness Lubbock
Ram Nation VCU alumni School nickname of Rams West Virginia
Ram Up Colorado State alumni School nickname of Rams Wichita 2
Red Scare Dayton alumni Name of Dayton student section Dayton
The Rhody Way[c] Rhode Island alumni School mascot Rhody the Ram Dayton
Rise & Grind — Lubbock
Shell Shock Maryland alumni Maryland Terrapins school mascot Louisville
Show Me Squad Missouri alumni Missouri state nickname "Show Me State" Wichita 1
Sideline Cancer — Pancreatic cancer awareness West Virginia
Team Arkansas Arkansas alumni Wichita 2
Team Colorado Colorado alumni Dayton
Team DRC Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie Xavier
Team Gibson — Team sponsor Taj Gibson Syracuse
Team Overtime Overtime Team sponsor Overtime, a sports media company Dayton
The Ville Louisville alumni City nickname Louisville
Vegas Rebellion UNLV alumni Vegas Rebels school mascot Wichita 1
Virginia Dream — Players with connections to the state of Virginia Syracuse
War Ready Auburn alumni School battle cry "War Eagle" Louisville
We Are D3 NCAA Division III alumni Wichita 1
Zip Em Up Xavier alumni Former Xavier team motto Xavier
Zoo Crew Pittsburgh alumni Oakland Zoo student section West Virginia

Note: team names are per the TBT bracket; some names have slight variation on TBT website pages.

  1. ^ Known in previous TBT editions as Armored Athlete.
  2. ^ Known in previous TBT editions as Team Hines.
  3. ^ Withdrew from the tournament July 22.[9]

Tournament bracket

Seven of the eight no. 1 seeds advanced in first-round play, with no. 8 India Rising upsetting Red Scare in the Dayton Regional.

Five no. 1 seeds advanced in second-round play; the lowest seed to advance to the third round was no 6. Nasti Nati from the Dayton Regional.

Two no. 1 seeds advanced in third-round play; the lowest seed to advance to the quarterfinals was again Nasti Nati.

No no. 1 seeds won a quarterfinal match; the lowest seed to advance to the semifinals was no 4. Herd That from the West Virginia Regional.

In the first semifinal game, Herd That were eliminated by Heartfire, the no. 2 seed from the Wichita 1 Regional.

In the second semifinal game, Friday Beers were eliminated by Bleed Green, the no. 2 seed from the Lubbock Regional.

Heartfire then defeated Bleed Green in the championship game.

Source:[7][10][11]

Lubbock Regional – United Supermarkets Arena

First Round
July 19 		Second Round
July 21 		Third Round
July 23
         
1 Air Raiders 83
8 Purple Hearts 64
1 Air Raiders 67
4 The Enchantment 84
4 The Enchantment 77
5 Austin's Own 66
4 The Enchantment 57
2 Bleed Green 70
3 HBCUnited 58
6 In The Lab 88
6 In The Lab 72
2 Bleed Green 83
2 Bleed Green 94
7 Rise & Grind 78

Wichita 1 Regional – Charles Koch Arena

First Round
July 19 		Second Round
July 22 		Third Round
July 23
         
1 Mass Street 70
8 We Are D3 67
1 Mass Street 69
4 Show Me Squad 65
4 Show Me Squad 96
5 Vegas Rebellion 90
1 Mass Street 60
2 Heartfire 73
3 LA Cheaters 86
6 Living The Dream 72
3 LA Cheaters 57
2 Heartfire 62
2 Heartfire 69
7 JUCO Products 66

Wichita 2 Regional – Charles Koch Arena

First Round
July 20 		Second Round
July 21 		Third Round
July 23
         
1 AfterShocks 66
8 B1 Ballers 54
1 AfterShocks 73
4 Beale Street Boys 69
4 Beale Street Boys 73
5 Broad Street Birds 67
1 AfterShocks 63
3 Team Arkansas 59
3 Team Arkansas 70
6 Ram Up 58
3 Team Arkansas 63
2 Purple & Black 52
2 Purple & Black 72
7 DaGuys STL 59

Xavier Regional – Cintas Center (Cincinnati)

First Round
July 21 		Second Round
July 22 		Third Round
July 24
         
1 Program for Autism 91
8 Team DRC 76
1 Program for Autism 86
5 Fort Wayne Champs 74
4 Bucketneers 52
5 Fort Wayne Champs 85
1 Program for Autism 51
6 Nasty Nati 76
3 The Money Team 76
6 Nasty Nati 88
6 Nasty Nati 77
2 Zip Em Up 73
2 Zip Em Up 84
7 Georgia Kingz 78

Syracuse Regional – The Oncenter

First Round
July 24 		Second Round
July 26 		Third Round
July 28
         
1 Blue Collar U 78
8 Big 5 77
1 Blue Collar U 107
4 Virginia Dream 86
4 Virginia Dream 79
5 The Commonwealth 73
1 Blue Collar U 54
2 Boeheim's Army 69
3 The Nerd Team 54
6 Happy Valley Hoopers 49
3 The Nerd Team 75
2 Boeheim's Army 83
2 Boeheim's Army 99
7 Team Gibson 83

Louisville Regional – Freedom Hall

First Round
July 25 		Second Round
July 27 		Third Round
July 29
         
1 Gutter Cats 77
8 The Nawf 72
1 Gutter Cats 71
4 Shell Shock 57
4 Shell Shock 77
5 Gataverse 74
1 Gutter Cats 64
2 The Ville 62
3 Eberlein Drive 68
6 Jackson TN Underdawgs 88
6 Jackson TN Underdawgs 74
2 The Ville 79
2 The Ville 91
7 War Ready 67

West Virginia Regional – WesBanco Arena (Wheeling)

First Round
July 25 		Second Round
July 27 		Third Round
July 29
         
1 Best Virginia 70
8 Dubois Dream 68
1 Best Virginia 61
4 Herd That 74
4 Herd That 86
5 Zoo Crew 71
4 Herd That 73
2 Sideline Cancer 64
3 Challenge ALS: Florida 95
6 Dawg Town 66
3 Challenge ALS: Florida 51
2 Sideline Cancer 60
2 Sideline Cancer 83
7 Ram Nation 72

Dayton Regional – UD Arena

First Round
July 26 		Second Round
July 28 		Third Round
July 29
         
1 Red Scare 67
8 India Rising 77
8 India Rising 56
4 Carmen's Crew 82
4 Carmen's Crew 80
5 Team Overtime 68
4 Carmen's Crew 63
2 Friday Beers 72
3 Team Colorado 68
6 Men of Mackey 70
6 Men of Mackey 68
2 Friday Beers 73
2 Friday Beers 84
7 Athetics Miami 72

Championship Week

Quarterfinals games were played at Wichita, West Virginia, Dayton, and Louisville. All semifinal and championship games were played in Philadelphia.

Quarterfinals
July 25–31 		Semifinals
August 2 		Championship
August 3
         
W1 2 Heartfire 76
W2 1 Aftershocks 53
W1 2 Heartfire 73
WV 4 Herd That 68
SY 2 Boeheim's Army 71
WV 4 Herd That 88
W1 2 Heartfire 78
LB 2 Bleed Green 73
XV 6 Nasty Nati 66
DY 2 Friday Beers 72
DY 2 Friday Beers 65
LB 2 Bleed Green 68
LB 2 Bleed Green 72
LV 1 Gutter Cats 61

Eric Collins, Fran Fraschilla, and Ashley ShaAhmadi were the announcers for both semifinal matches and the championship game.[12]

Semifinals

August 2, 2023
7:00 p.m. EDT
W1 2 Heartfire 73, WV 4 Herd That 68
Scoring by quarter: 9–16, 25–12, 26–17, 13–23
Pts: T. Mack, R. Putney 14
Rebs: R. Solomon, E. Griffin 8
Asts: R. Putney 3		 Pts: J. Tokoto 27
Rebs: J. Tokoto 9
Asts: J. Elmore 5
August 2, 2023
9:00 p.m. EDT
DY 1 Friday Beers 65, LB 2 Bleed Green 68
Scoring by quarter: 17–14, 12–19, 15–19, 21–16
Pts: J. Gamble 20
Rebs: J. Gamble 13
Asts: D. Bost 5		 Pts: J. Stevens 18
Rebs: T. Bell, B. Reed 4
Asts: B. Jefferson 7

Championship

August 3, 2023
7:00 p.m. EDT
W1 2 Heartfire 78, LB 2 Bleed Green 73
Scoring by quarter: 21–18, 26–16, 15–20, 16–19
Pts: E. Griffin 23
Rebs: C. Sword, E. Griffin 7
Asts: R. Putney 3		 Pts: K. Huntsberry 23
Rebs: T. Bell 8
Asts: B. Jefferson, T. Bell 5

Awards

All Tournament Team
Pos Player Team
PG Jordan Stevens Bleed Green
PG Jon Elmore Herd That
SG Jarron Cumberland Nasti Nati
PG Marcus Hall Heartfire
PF Julian Gamble Friday Beers
Coach LaPhonso Ellis Heartfire
GM AJ Mahar Friday Beers

Source: [13]

References

  1. ^ "TBT 2023 Stats: Leaders". thetournament.com. 2023. Retrieved August 4, 2023.
  2. ^ @thetournament (August 4, 2023). "Your TBT 2023 MVP: Brandon Jefferson" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  3. ^ March, Lochlahn (August 3, 2023). "Team Heartfire wins $1,000,000 prize at The Basketball Tournament". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved August 4, 2023.
  4. ^ "TBT 2023 Bracket Reveal Show". The Basketball Tournament. June 21, 2023. Retrieved July 28, 2023 – via YouTube.
  5. ^ Selig, David. "What is the Elam Ending?". sun-sentinel.com. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
  6. ^ "All Teams". thetournament.com. 2023. Retrieved July 28, 2023.
  7. ^ a b "Bracket". thetournament.com. 2023.
  8. ^ "Gutter Cat Gang | The Basketball Tournament | Puma". guttercatgang.com. May 27, 2022. Retrieved July 25, 2022.
  9. ^ Koch, Bill (July 22, 2023). "The Rhody Way withdraws from The Basketball Tournament; what happened". The Providence Journal. Retrieved July 28, 2023.
  10. ^ "TBT 2023 Schedule". thetournament.com. Retrieved July 28, 2023.
  11. ^ "Stats: Schedule". thetournament.com. 2023. Retrieved July 28, 2023.
  12. ^ Ufnowski, Amy (July 2023). "ESPN Announces Schedule and Commentators for TBT 2023, Tipping Off July 19". espnpressroom.com (Press release). Retrieved July 28, 2023.
  13. ^ "Your TBT 2023 All-Tournament Team". Instagram. August 3, 2023. Retrieved August 4, 2023.
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