From Maui Classic to EA SPORTSTM Maui Invitational®, a 25-year journey as the nation's premier early-season college basketball tournament:
Half a century ago the NCAA opened the door to greater competitive equity in college sports by adopting what is known by many as the Hawaiian Exemption, paving the way for Hawaii-based colleges to compete with mainland schools in spite of their geographic isolation.
On December 23, 1982…little known NAIA Chaminade upset top-ranked Virginia, led by three-time MVP Ralph Sampson, 77-72. Called "the greatest upset in college basketball history," the win put host Chaminade on the map nationwide and led to the creation of the Maui Classic.
78 schools representing 20 conferences and 36 states have competed in the EA SPORTS Maui Invitational.
Maui participants have won an astounding 52 of 68 NCAA championships, 51 of 67 national runner-up spots and comprise 202 of 272 Final Four teams.
Participating teams are reimbursed 100% of their travel-related expenses, enabling small conference and mid-major schools the rare opportunity to compete on a neutral court with the top basketball programs in the country.
Each year, more than 4,000 out-of state visitors – boosters, players, officials, team and game personnel, media representatives, sponsors, production crews and basketball fans in general – travel to the EA SPORTS Maui Invitational and boost the local economy by more than $10 million.
Tournament sponsors such as the Maui Visitors Bureau, Hawaii Tourism Authority and County of Maui Department of Parks & Recreation have invested a total of nearly $2 million in the Lahaina Civic Center to create a quality host venue for the mecca of college basketball for three days in November – from a new playing floor, rollaway bleachers, lighting and parking to the addition of permanent air conditioning in 2003, new scoreboards in 2004 and a beautiful wall mural of the Island of Maui in 2006.
For many of the hundreds of players from around the country who have competed in the EA SPORTS Maui Invitational over the years, the cultural and educational experience of Hawaii is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
Under the selection and oversight of NCAA Officials Coordinator Hank Nichols, the 12 officials assigned to the EA SPORTS Maui Invitational are perennially among the best in the country, with most having officiated in the NCAA Tournament for many years.
In late 2002, ESPN and KemperSports Marketing completed a long-term contract extension, guaranteeing live television coverage on ESPN or ESPN2 of a minimum nine tournament games through 2011. This translates to national television exposure for all eight participating teams and their respective conferences, a minimum of two games televised nationally for six teams, and all three games televised nationwide for four of the eight teams in the EA SPORTS Maui Invitational.
All 12 games were televised in 2005 and 2006 withthe addition of ESPNU. All twelve games will be again televised for the 2007 tournament.
AP College Basketball Editor Jim O'Connell calls the EA SPORTS Maui Invitational "the best in-season tournament in the country – the standard by which all others are compared."
Aloha and welcome to the EA SPORTSTM Maui Invitational®!
In the recent Dec. 31, 2007 issue of Sports Illustrated, Alexander Wolff takes an in-depth look at the dramatic college basketball game that spawned today's EA SPORTS Maui Invitational. In the piece titled, "The Greatest Upset Never Seen," Wolff describes Chaminade's miraculous upset of then top-ranked Virginia on Dec. 23, 1982, which "led to the creation of what has become the Maui Invitational, the sport's most prestigious in-season tournament."
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