Maui Invitational 2025: NC State, Texas highlight 8-team men's college basketball field
Arizona State, Boise State, NC State, Seton Hall, Texas, USC, Washington State and Chaminade will compete in the 2025 Maui Invitational, the event announced on July 29.
The tournament will take place at the Lahaina Civic Center in Lahaina, Hawaii from November 24-26, ending at its usual time right before Thanksgiving.
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Only one of the seven Division I teams in the event, Texas, made the NCAA tournament last season (Chaminade, a Honolulu school that takes part in the tournament in odd-numbered years, competes at the Division II level).
Several of the participants could be significantly better in 2025-26. NC State will be entering its first season under coach Will Wade, who restocked the Wolfpack's roster with one of the top-rated transfer classes in the sport. After two underwhelming seasons under Rodney Terry, Texas hired Sean Miller away from Xavier. USC will be entering its second season under coach Eric Musselman, who signed a top-10 transfer class and a five-star freshman in Alijah Arenas (who will be out six to eight months with a knee injury). Boise State has won 99 games and made three NCAA tournaments over the past four seasons.
While the Maui Invitational has long been one of the most popular and prestigious early season tournaments in college basketball, there's an open question of how long it can remain that in the rapidly evolving landscape of college athletics.
Last year marked the debut of the Players Era Festival, a Thanksgiving week tournament in Las Vegas that gives each participating team $1 million in name, image and likeness opportunities. This year's field for the 18-team event includes Houston, Kansas, Alabama, Auburn, St. John's, Michigan, Iowa State, Gonzaga and Creighton, among others, all of which are widely projected as top-25 teams entering the season.
After his team surprisingly went winless in its three games in the Maui Invitational last year, UConn coach Dan Hurley voiced his frustrations with the event.
"I'm not doing another three-game MTE again," Hurley said. "Moving forward, we will only play home-and-homes and single-game events in big-time arenas. I don't think I'll ever do a three-game MTE again."
Maui Invitational teams 2025
Here's a look at the eight teams that will be taking part in the 2025 Maui Invitational:
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Maui Invitational schedule 2025
Here are the matchups for the 2025 Maui Invitational:
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