The 2016 NIT Season Tip-Off at Barclays Center features a Thanksgiving afternoon semifinal doubleheader of Temple vs. Florida State, followed by Illinois vs. West Virginia on Thursday, November 24. All four teams will return to action on Friday, November 25, when a championship will be awarded.
Temple, making its sixth NIT Season Tip-Off appearance, and West Virginia, making its third appearance in the event, return to Barclays Center, where both teams played in the 2016 NCAA Tournament. After earning a bid to the 2016 Postseason NIT, Florida State will make its third appearance in the early season version this year. Illinois will be making its debut appearance in the tournament.
Each of the four championship round teams will also host two non-bracketed games on campus as part of the event. The complete schedule of the campus-site games will be announced at a later date.
Tickets for the NIT Season Tip-Off at Barclays Center will go on sale Friday, July 22, at 10 a.m. and can be purchased via Ticketmaster by visiting
www.barclayscenter.com, or
www.ticketmaster.com, or by calling 800-745-3000. Tickets are also available at the American Express Box Office at Barclays Center beginning Saturday, July 23, at noon. Tickets are available for groups by calling 855-GROUP-BK.
Now in its second year at Barclays Center, the NIT Season Tip-Off has been played in New York each November since 1985. Defending NCAA National Champion Villanova won the event in 2015.
The NIT Season Tip-Off is owned and operated by ESPN Events, a division of ESPN. For more information, please visit the event’s official website at
www.nitseasontipoff.com.
About Barclays Center
Barclays Center opened on September 28, 2012, and is a major sports and entertainment venue in the heart of Brooklyn, New York. One of the most intimate seating configurations ever designed into a modern multi-purpose arena, Barclays Center offers 17,732 seats for basketball, 15,795 for hockey, and up to 19,000 seats for concerts, and has 101 luxury suites, four bars/lounges, four clubs, and 40/40 CLUB & Restaurant by American Express.
Barclays Center hosts an extensive variety of events, including premier concerts, major professional boxing cards, top college basketball, family shows, the Brooklyn Nets and the New York Islanders.
Located atop one of the largest transportation hubs in New York City, Barclays Center is accessible by 11 subway lines, the Long Island Rail Road, and 11 bus lines.
ESPN Events
ESPN Events, a division of ESPN, owns and operates a large portfolio of collegiate sporting events worldwide. The roster includes three Labor Day weekend college football games; 13 college bowl games, 10 college basketball events and two college award shows, which accounts for approximately 250-plus hours of programming, reaches almost 64 million viewers and attracts over 700,000 attendees each year. With satellite offices in Albuquerque, Birmingham, Boca Raton, Boise, Dallas-Fort Worth, Honolulu, Las Vegas, Montgomery and St. Petersburg, ESPN Events builds relationships with conferences, schools and local communities, as well as providing unique experiences for teams and fans.
ESPN Events also manages the Big 12 Corporate Partner Program.
Collegiate Basketball