Grand Canyon, NAU to play inaugural Arizona Tip-Off tournament

Jun 15, 2023, 9:15 AM

The debut of the Arizona Tip-Off basketball tournament will take place at Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale from Nov. 17-19, 2023.

BY ARIZONA SPORTS

The Grand Canyon Antelopes and Northern Arizona Lumberjacks will participate in the inaugural Arizona Tip-Off, a men’s college basketball Tournament hosted at Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale this fall.

The event will take place from Nov. 17-19 and also include South Carolina, DePaul and San Francisco in a four-team bracket for the Cactus Division.

A separate bracket, the Desert Division, includes Northern Arizona, South Dakota, Purdue Fort Wayne and the Virginia Military Institute.

Grand Canyon, which went 24-12 last season and made the first round of the NCAA Tournament under head coach Bryce Drew, faces San Francisco in the opening round.

Coming off a 12-23 season, NAU plays Purdue Fort Wayne to begin the tournament at Desert Diamond Arena, the former home of the Arizona Coyotes.

All four opening-round games in the tournament will take place on Nov. 17.

The Desert Division will play its title game and third-place games on Nov. 18, while the Cactus Division will have its championship and third-place contests on Nov. 19.

All Cactus Division games will be aired on CBS Sports Network, while tip-off times for the entire event and Desert Division television plans will be announced at a later time.

The event will be hosted by the Arizona Sports and Entertainment Commission and Intersport.

“We eagerly anticipate becoming the host of a multi-day event that welcomes teams and fans from every corner of the country to our state,” Arizona Sports and Entertainment Commission executive director Nikki Balich said in a release.

“This not only boosts our tourism industry but also strategically places us in the national spotlight during an important time of year. Our partnership with Intersport, which is celebrated for its ability to manage large-scale events to the highest standards, fills us with tremendous confidence. We predict this event will become a fundamental and respected fixture in Arizona’s sports calendar.”

Travel packages are on sale for the event at www.arizonatipoff.com/travel.

Ticket packages go on sale in the fall.