(VCSU) The brackets have been set for the inaugural Battle at the Beach NAIA Basketball Tournament on Thanksgiving weekend.
The Valley City State University men’s basketball team is one of eight programs converging on Panama City, Fla., for the tournament organized by Faulkner University. All 12 games of the three-day tournament will be played at the Billy Harrison Field House on the campus of Gulf Coast State College – about five miles from the white-sand beaches of Panama City Beach, Fla.
The Vikings play the first game of the tournament, facing off against LSU Alexandria at 12:30 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 29. VCSU will also play Nov. 30 and Dec. 1. The tournament is set up as a straight eight-team bracket, with a team needing to win three games to claim the championship.
Tournament Links
Tournament Bracket
Tournament Live Stats
Tournament Home Page
Inspired by tournaments such as The Maui Invitational, the inaugural Battle at the Beach includes a field of teams that features seven NAIA programs from six different states and six different conferences. Four of the teams are NAIA Division I.
The bracket includes Thomas University (Ga. – The Sun Conference), Voorhees (S.C. – Independent), Faulkner University (Ala.– Southern State Athletic Conference), Talladega (Ala. – Gulf Coast Athletic Conference), Lindsey Wilson (Ky. – Mid-South Conference), LSU-Alexandria (La. – Red River Athletic Conference) and Carver Bible College – the only non-NAIA school in the tournament.
Valley City State’s first opponent, LSU Alexandria, is a historically strong NAIA Division I program and one of the favorites to win the tournament. The Generals are currently 5-1 overall and ranked No. 6 in the NAIA Division I Top 25 Coaches’ Poll.
