MBK Odds & Ends for 2016

* The Gavitt Games matchups were reported by CBS's Jon Rothstein last night:

Providence at Ohio St.
Villanova at Purdue
Seton Hall at Iowa
St. John's at Minnesota
Rutgers at DePaul
Maryland at Georgetown
Northwestern at Butler
Wisconsin at Creighton

Maryland at Georgetown was scheduled as a rematch when the 2015 games were announced.  Wisconsin at Creighton may be in doubt, per Creighton's radio play-by-play announcer, and Xavier was led to believe they'd be hosting a game and Creighton wasn't expecting to.  Marquette is out as expected.

The first four listed will air on either ESPN Networks or BTN with the last four on FS1.  I believe FOX Sports has committed to keeping the Gavitt Games matchups & not sublicensing them to CBS Sports.

Based on existing tournaments involving Villanova (Charleston) & Creighton (Paradise Jam), expect those schools' games to be played earlier in the week, assuming that the games will be played during the period of November 14-18.  Coming back to Xavier, as the article above notes, they also had limited availability due to committing to a Puerto Rico tournament.

On the Big Ten side of the house, the pattern from last year was that no school hosted a game in both the ACC-Big Ten Challenge and the Gavitt Games, nor be on the road in both.  I would assume that continues in 2016.  Last year, the ACC-Big Ten Challenge matchups & dates showed up in mid-May.

* Per the Gazelle Gourp website, the 2K Sports Classic from MSG will be held on Thursday, November 17th & Friday, November 18th, moving back from being held as a Friday-Sunday event in 2015.

Expect that this event, alongside other ESPN Events tournaments from Charleston & Puerto Rico, to lead into the UNLV at Boise St. game on an ESPN platform later that evening.  Likewise, the Memphis at Cincinnati game on CBSSN that evening should be played after the Paradise Jam, assuming it remains on CBSSN as it has in previous years.

Overall for exempt events in DI men's basketball, Chris Dobbertean's Blogging The Bracket post here is a very good reference.