Matchups Announced for 2023 Fort Myers Tip-Off Beach Div.

[PonyPride]

From SMUMustangs.com:

Matchups Announced for 2023 Fort Myers Tip-Off Beach Division
SMU to face West Virginia, Wisconsin takes on Virginia in opening-round contests for sixth-annual event in Southwest Florida

FORT MYERS, Fla. (July 7, 2023) – Opening-round matchups for the Beach Division of the 2023 Fort Myers Tip-Off are set as Wisconsin will square off against Virginia at 6 p.m. ET and SMU will face West Virginia at 8:30 p.m. on Nov. 20 at Suncoast Credit Union Arena on the campus of Florida SouthWestern State College. Third-place and championship contests are set for the same times Nov. 22. All games will be televised by FS1.

It will be the first all-time meeting between West Virginia and SMU.

The Badgers and Cavaliers have faced each other six times previously, with Virginia owning a 4-2 mark in the series. The Cavaliers have won two straight in the series.

The four programs have combined for 82 conference regular season or tournament championships and 92 NCAA Tournament appearances. Wisconsin and Virginia have each appeared in the Final Four within the last decade and the Cavaliers claimed the 2019 NCAA Championship.

Travel packages are on sale now for SMU fans looking to spend Thanksgiving Week with their favorite team in Southwest Florida. Official fan travel packages include tickets to each Beach Division game, hotel accommodations and parking at Suncoast Credit Union Arena. For complete travel package information, log on to www.fortmyerstipoff.com/travel.

The Westin Cape Coral Resort at Marina Village and the Marriott Sanibel Harbor Resort & Spa are the host hotels for the Beach Division teams of the Fort Myers Tip-off, and fans will have the opportunity to stay where the teams stay

At this time, the only way to guarantee tickets for the 2023 Fort Myers Tip-Off is to purchase an official fan travel package. Ticket-only packages, based on availability, will become available this fall. To receive the latest email alerts regarding tournament news, ticket information and more, visit our website at www.fortmyerstipoff.com.

“The excitement for this year’s tournament continues to build as we get closer to tip off,” said Mark Starsiak, vice president at Intersport and tournament director of the Fort Myers Tip-Off. “Each program brings not only a successful basketball pedigree but also an incredibly passionate fan base that we expect turning out in full force this Thanksgiving. This promises to be one of the most highly anticipated tournaments that we’ve had in our short history.”

The tournament, which has hosted several Final Four-caliber programs in its first five seasons will welcome four power conference programs to the Beach Division for the third straight year (Georgia Tech, Marquette, Mississippi State and Utah in 2022; Florida, Ohio State, Cal and Seton Hall in 2021).

To receive the latest email alerts regarding tournament news, ticket information and more, visit fortmyerstipoff.com.

Matchup Notes

SMU vs. West Virginia
Series Record: First meeting in series history

Notable: While the two programs have never faced, SMU head coach Rob Lanier faced West Virginia regularly during his playing career at St. Bonaventure when both programs were members of the A-10 Conference.

Wisconsin vs. Virginia
Series Record: Virginia leads, 4-2
Last Matchup: November 23, 2018 (Virginia 53, Wisconsin 46)

Notable: This will mark the fourth neutral-site matchup between the two programs, with prior games in Milwaukee, Wis., Fairbanks, Alaska and Paradise Island, Bahamas … Virginia owns a 2-1 record in the prior three neutral site contests … the Cavaliers have won the prior two meetings in the series … Virginia head coach Tony Bennett’s father, [deleted], was the head coach at Wisconsin from 1995-2001.

Potential Second-Round Matchups History

SMU vs. Wisconsin
Series Record: Wisconsin leads, 4-3
Last Meeting: Dec. 3, 1991 (SMU 66, Wisconsin 64)

SMU vs. Virginia
Series Record: Virginia leads, 1-0
Last Meeting: Nov. 29, 2013 (Virginia 76, SMU 73)

Wisconsin vs. West Virginia
Series Record: Wisconsin leads, 3-1
Last Meeting: Nov. 27, 2013 (Wisconsin 70, West Virginia 63)

Virginia vs. West Virginia
Series Record: West Virginia leads, 10-9
Last Meeting: Dec. 5, 2017 (West Virginia 68, Virginia 61)

[Terry Webster]

Interesting matchup with the mess going on at WVU.

[EastStang]

It will be interesting to see what WV team shows up. A team determined to put mayhem behind them, or players trying to get attention so they can leave. Two rebuilds meeting.

[Charleston Pony]

It will be interesting to see if this year's team will gel with all the transfers coming in. Most, if not all of those transfers are going to need to contribute significantly or SMU will be in way over their heads in this event. Going to need an early season effort like we saw last year in Hawaii

[geezerdonk]

Way, way over.

[Pony4Life]

Any perceived advantages can get thrown out the window with all that's going on in Morgantown ... where Huggins now says he didn't really resign?
I don't bet, but if I did, I wouldn't touch that game either way.