16-Team CBE Classic Field Set

Princeton, N.J. – Iowa, Kentucky, Texas, and West Virginia will host the Regional Rounds of the Guardians Classic, a 16-team college basketball tournament, on November 12- 16, 2005. The Championship Rounds of the event will be held November 21-22 at Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, Mo.

Last year, Creighton won the Guardians Classic with an overtime win against Ohio State, 65-63.

Tickets for this year's Championship Rounds will go on sale this Saturday (08/20/05) at 10:00 a.m. CST. See below for more information.

Outlined below are the dates, locations and matchups for the tournament. A complete bracket can be found here.

---- REGIONAL ROUNDS ----

---- CHAMPIONSHIP ROUNDS ----

Guardians Classic Notes:
• Iowa, Kentucky, Texas, and West Virginia are all anticipated to be ranked in the top 15 this preseason.
• Five teams in the 2005 Guardians Classic made the NCAA tournament last season: Iowa, Kentucky, Texas, West Virginia and Fairleigh Dickinson.
• Five Wooden Award nominees will play in the 2005 Guardians Classic: Daniel Gibson (Texas), Jeff Horner (Iowa), Kevin Pittsnogle (West Virginia), Rajon Rondo (Kentucky) and P.J. Tucker (Texas).
• Iowa, UMES, Sacramento State, Samford, and Wofford all played in the inaugural Guardians Classic in 2001. Iowa advanced to the Championship Game, losing to Missouri by a last-second free throw, 78-77.

"We are excited that 16 programs, from 16 different conferences, are competing in this year's Guardians Classic. This event exemplifies the strength and positive message from our Guardians of the Game program," said Jim Haney, Executive Director of the National Association of Basketball Coaches. "The 2005 Guardians Classic will demonstrate the positive nature of college basketball, the role coaches play in the lives of student-athletes, and the contributions that coaches make to their communities."

The Guardians Classic was created to promote the NABC's Guardians of the Game program, which emphasizes four core values: advocacy, leadership, service, and education.

TICKET INFORMATION: Championship Round tickets at Sprint Center are now on sale and may be purchased by calling Ticketmaster at 816.931.3330 or through Ticketmaster.com.

For VIP Ticket packages, contact Brian Halligan at 609.921.1300 or bhalligan@gazellegroup.com

Tickets for the Regional Rounds may be purchased through the host schools’ box offices. On-sale dates for individual game tickets will be announced in the near future.

• University of Iowa: (800) IA-HAWKS or visit www.hawkeyesports.com
• University of Kentucky: (859) 257-1818 or visit www.ukathletics.com
• University of Texas: (800) 982-2386 or visit www.texasboxoffice.com
• West Virginia University: (800) WVU-GAME or visit www.wvugame.com

The O’Reilly Auto Parts CBE Classic is produced by The Gazelle Group in Princeton, N.J. The Gazelle Group is a sports marketing firm, specializing in event production/management, client representation, and sponsorship consulting. Gazelle produces numerous nationally recognized events, such as the 2K Sports College Hoops Classic benefiting Coaches vs. Cancer. For more information on The Gazelle Group, please visit gazellegroup.com.

For more information on the O’Reilly Auto Parts CBE Classic, please visit the official tournament website at CBEClassic.com