NORFOLK, Va. - Old Dominion University’s men’s basketball team has been selected to participate in the Vegas 16 post-season tournament, March 28-30, to be played at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino. The Monarchs will first take on Tennessee Tech (19-11) on Monday, March 28 at 3:00 p.m. EST.
The first-year tournament features Oakland, Northern Illinois, Conference USA foe Louisiana Tech, Towson, East Tennessee State, Santa Barbara and Tennessee Tech in a single-elimination tournament, that begins play on Monday, March 28 and concludes on March 30. All games will be carried live on the CBS Sports Network (CBSSN).
“The Vegas 16 is a unique event that we are able to provide for our four senior student-athletes who have meant so much to our program, and gives them the opportunity to experience one final post-season tournament. Unlike other post season tournaments, our student athletes will be able to focus the next few weeks on academics, while recovering from a grueling four-day, four-game C-USA tournament,” says Director of Athletics Dr. Wood Selig.
“We also like that this tournament allows teams to play all of their post-season games at one site, which minimizes travel and missed class time. We hope that with two-weeks notice, our fans will make plans to follow the team to a great resort destination and cheer on the Monarchs,” adds Selig.
The Monarchs (22-13) fell on Saturday to Middle Tennessee in the championship game of the C-USA tournament, 55-53, after putting together a four-game run in the tournament. ODU and La. Tech met last Thursday in the C-USA tournament, with the Monarchs winning that game 68-52 to advance to the semifinals.
ODU’s Trey Freeman set a new record for the most total points scored in one tournament with 109 (old record was 97). His 42 field goals is also a record (old record was 35).
Freeman was joined by fellow senior teammate Aaron Bacote on the Conference USA All Tournament Team.
“We are extremely excited to participate in the inaugural Vegas 16 tournament,” said ODU head coach Jeff Jones. “It is especially gratifying that our four seniors will have an opportunity to play some more basketball. They have been great ambassadors for our program.”
The tournament first-round match-ups are as follows:
Monday, March 28
Game 1: Tennessee Tech (19-11) vs. Old Dominion (22-13) – 3 p.m. ET
Game 2: Northern Illinois (21-12) vs. UCSB (18-13) – 5:30 p.m. ET
Game 3: Oakland (21-11) vs. Towson (20-12) – 9 p.m. ET
Game 4: Louisiana Tech (23-9) vs. ETSU (23-11) – 11:30 p.m. ET
Tuesday, March 29
Games 5/6: Semifinals –9/11:30 p.m. ET
Wednesday, March 30
Game 7: Championship – 10 p.m. ET
Tournament tickets are priced from $15 per session for the tournament. All sessions include two games except for the championship game. Tickets can be purchased at the Mandalay Bay box office, MandalayBay.com, AXS.com, Vegas16.com or by calling 888-AXS-TIX. The Mandalay Bay Events Center seats 10,000 for basketball and has played host to NBA preseason games.
For details on travel packages and game tickets, go to the tournament’s website, http://www.vegas16.com.