The Basketball Tournament 2021

The Basketball Tournament
2021
Tournament information
Location	Regional sites Wichita, Kansas; Charleston, West Virginia; Columbus, Ohio; Peoria, Illinois; Championship site Dayton, Ohio;
Dates	July 16–August 3, 2021
Tournament; format(s)	Single elimination
Participants	64 teams
Purse	Championship: US$1,000,000 winner-take-all
Final positions
Champions	Boeheim's Army
Runner-up	Team 23
Tournament statistics
MVP	Tyrese Rice
Top scorer(s)	Tyrese Rice (86 pts); Marvelle Harris (23.3 ppg);
Games played	63
	← 2020 2022 →

The Basketball Tournament 2021 was the eighth edition of The Basketball Tournament (TBT), a 5-on-5, single elimination basketball tournament. The tournament, involving 64 teams, began on July 16 and concluded on August 3 with the championship game in Dayton, Ohio. The format of the tournament returned to that of the 2019 edition—64 teams, each playing in one of four regionals, with the top two teams from each regional progressing to the championship weekend. The tournament was won by Boeheim's Army, who captured the winner-take-all $1 million prize.^[3]^[4]

Format

For its 2021 edition, The Basketball Tournament (TBT) returned to a 64-team format, with four regionals of 16 teams each (similar in format to the NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament), and each regional being held at a single host site. The regional host sites and teams were revealed by TBT organizers on April 14, 2021.^[5] The tournament prize remained at $1 million. The teams and their regional placements were revealed in a selection special hosted by Seth Greenberg and Chris Vosters that aired on TBT's YouTube channel on June 21, 2021.^[6]

As with previous years, all tournament games operated with the "Elam Ending", a format of ending the game without use of a game clock. Under the Elam Ending, the clock is turned off at the first dead-ball whistle with under four minutes to play in the game. At that time, a target score, equal to the score of the leading team plus eight, is set, and the first team to reach this target score is declared the winner of the game.^[7] Thus, all games end on a made basket (field goal or free throw) and there is no overtime.

The first edition of a "33-Point Contest" was held between the two semifinal games—individual players competed to see who could make 11 three-point field goals the fastest.^[8] The contest, and prize of $33,333.33, was won by Omar Strong of team B1 Ballers.^[9]

Venues

The Basketball Tournament 2021 featured games in five locations: four regional sites plus one site for the championship weekend (four regional finals, two semifinal contests, and the championship game).


Wichita	Charleston	Columbus
Charles Koch Arena	Charleston Coliseum & Convention Center	Covelli Center
Capacity: 10,506	Capacity: 11,519	Capacity: 3,700

Peoria	Dayton	Regional sites Championship site
Peoria Civic Center	University of Dayton Arena
Capacity: 11,433	Capacity: 13,435

Teams

Key: Alumni team representing a specific college basketball program

Source:^[10]

Wichita Regional^[11]
Seed	Team	App. (Last)	Affiliation	Origin of name
1	Eberlein Drive	6th (2020)		Team owners' home street
2	AfterShocks	2nd (2019)	Wichita State	Team nickname "Shockers"
3	Challenge ALS	5th (2020)		ALS awareness
4	LA Cheaters	2nd (2019)	Drew League
5	Florida TNT	2nd (2019)		Former college players from the state of Florida
6	Team Arkansas	3rd (2019)	Arkansas
7	Purple & Black	5th (2019)	Kansas State	Kansas State school colors
8	The Enchantment	1st	New Mexico	State nickname "Land of Enchantment"
9	Stillwater Stars	2nd (2020)	Oklahoma State	School location in Stillwater, OK
10	Omaha Blue Crew	1st	Creighton	School location in Omaha, NE and primary color
11	Fort Worth Funk	1st	TCU	School location in Fort Worth, TX
12	Kimchi Express	4th (2018)
13	Mental Toughness	1st	JCK Foundation	Mental health awareness
14	We Are D3	3rd (2019)	NCAA Division III
15	Ex-Pats	1st	Patriot League	Former Patriot League players
16	NG Saints	1st	Neumann Goretti HS

West Virginia Regional^[12]
Seed	Team	App. (Last)	Affiliation	Origin of name
1	Sideline Cancer	8th (2020)		Cancer awareness
2	Best Virginia	2nd (2019)	West Virginia
3	Herd That	2nd (2020)	Marshall	Team nickname "Thundering Herd"
4	Armored Athlete	7th (2020)
5	War Ready	2nd (2020)	Auburn	School battle cry "War Eagle"
6	Team 23	6th (2019)		Uniform number worn by Michael Jordan
7	D2	3rd (2020)	NCAA Division II
8	PrimeTime Players	7th (2020)
9	Fort Wayne Champs	6th (2019)		Players with connections to Fort Wayne, IN
10	Bleed Virginia	1st		Former mid-major players from Virginia
11	Georgia Kingz	1st		Former college players from Georgia
12	Bucketneers	1st	East Tennessee State	Team nickname "Buccaneers"
13	HBCUnited	1st	HBCUs
14	Team DRC	3rd (2019)		Team sponsor Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie
15	WoCo Showtime	7th (2019)	Wofford	Abbreviation of Wofford College
16	Founding Fathers	1st	James Madison	School namesake and founding father James Madison

Illinois Regional^[13]
Seed	Team	App. (Last)	Affiliation	Origin of name
1	Golden Eagles	6th (2020)	Marquette	Team nickname "Golden Eagles"
2	House of 'Paign	2nd (2020)	Illinois	School location in Champaign, IL
3	Boeheim's Army	7th (2020)	Syracuse	Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim
4	Always Us	1st	Oregon	Phrase used by Dana Altman
5	Autism Army	1st		Autism awareness
6	The OverLooked	1st	Murray State
7	Always a Brave	4th (2018)	Bradley	Team nickname "Braves"
8	Brotherly Love	3rd (2020)		Nickname for Philadelphia
9	Playing for Jimmy V	2nd (2019)	V Foundation	Nickname of Jim Valvano
10	Tubby Time	1st		Players coached in college by Tubby Smith
11	Heartfire	2nd (2020)
12	SCD Hoops	1st		Sickle cell disease awareness
13	Peoria All-Stars	5th (2020)		Players with connections to Peoria, IL
14	Forces of Seoul	1st		Players with pro experience in South Korea
15	Jackson TN Underdawgs	5th (2019)		Players with connections to Jackson, TN
16	B1 Ballers	1st

Columbus Regional^[14]
Seed	Team	App. (Last)	Affiliation	Origin of name
1	Carmen's Crew	5th (2020)	Ohio State	School song "Carmen Ohio"
2	Red Scare	3rd (2020)	Dayton	Name given to student section
3	Zip 'Em Up	1st	Xavier	Former Xavier team motto
4	Team Hines	3rd (2020)		Team player Kyle Hines
5	The Money Team	2nd (2020)		Team sponsor Floyd "Money" Mayweather
6	Blue Collar U	1st	Buffalo	Buffalo team color, plus city's blue-collar image
7	Wolf Blood	1st	NC State	Team nickname "Wolfpack"
8	Men of Mackey	2nd (2020)	Purdue	Purdue home court Mackey Arena
9	Ballinteers	1st	Tennessee	Team nickname "Volunteers"
10	Category 5	1st	Miami (FL)	Team name "Hurricanes" and Saffir–Simpson scale
11	The Nerd Team	1st		Players from "more prestigious" universities
12	The Region	5th (2019)		Players from Northwest Indiana, locally called "The Region"
13	Brown & White	1st	St. Bonaventure	St. Bonaventure team colors
14	Ohio 1804	1st	Ohio	Year of Ohio University founding
15	BC Vahakni City	1st	BC Vahakni City	VBET A-League team of the same name
16	Mid-American Unity	3rd (2019)	MAC

Tournament bracket

Source:^[15]^[16]

Wichita Regional

First round July 16–17			Second Round July 18			Regional semifinals July 20			Regional final July 31 (Dayton) 12:00 p.m. / ESPN

1	Eberlein Drive	86

16	NG Saints	68
			1	Eberlein Drive	119

			9	Stillwater Stars	67
8	The Enchantment	83

9	Stillwater Stars	84
						1	Eberlein Drive	67

						5	Florida TNT	74
5	Florida TNT	83

12	Kimchi Express	59
			5	Florida TNT	92

			4	LA Cheaters	85
4	LA Cheaters	76

13	Mental Toughness	73
									5	Florida TNT	92

									2	AfterShocks	63
6	Team Arkansas	74

11	Fort Worth Funk	70
			6	Team Arkansas	63

			3	Challenge ALS	69
3	Challenge ALS	67

14	We Are D3	60
						3	Challenge ALS	65

						2	AfterShocks	69
7	Purple & Black	59

10	Omaha Blue Crew	60
			10	Omaha Blue Crew	73

			2	AfterShocks	76
2	AfterShocks	60

15	Ex-Pats	53

West Virginia Regional

First round July 17–18			Second Round July 19			Regional semifinals July 21			Regional final July 31 (Dayton) 7:00 p.m. / ESPN2

1	Sideline Cancer	80

16	Founding Fathers	77
			1	Sideline Cancer	92

			9	Fort Wayne Champs	71
8	PrimeTime Players	61

9	Fort Wayne Champs	72
						1	Sideline Cancer	58

						12	Bucketneers	57
5	War Ready	50

12	Bucketneers	77
			12	Bucketneers	79

			4	Armored Athlete	60
4	Armored Athlete	88

13	HBCUnited	52
									1	Sideline Cancer	71

									6	Team 23	78
6	Team 23	91

11	Georgia Kingz	64
			6	Team 23	74

			3	Herd That	71
3	Herd That	85

14	Team DRC	76
						6	Team 23	75

						2	Best Virginia	67
7	D2	68

10	Bleed Virginia	56
			7	D2	51

			2	Best Virginia	63
2	Best Virginia	70

15	WoCo Showtime	67

Columbus Regional

First round July 23–24			Second Round July 25			Regional semifinals July 27			Regional final July 31 (Dayton) 9:00 p.m. / ESPN2

1	Carmen's Crew	77

16	Mid-American Unity	65
			1	Carmen's Crew	80

			8	Men of Mackey	69
8	Men of Mackey	83

9	Ballinteers	74
						1	Carmen's Crew	89

						5	The Money Team	91
5	The Money Team	86

12	The Region	71
			5	The Money Team	93

			4	Team Hines	76
4	Team Hines	67

13	Brown & White	56
									5	The Money Team	81

									6	Blue Collar U	84
6	Blue Collar U	88

11	The Nerd Team	82
			6	Blue Collar U	93

			3	Zip 'Em Up	83
3	Zip 'Em Up	91

14	Ohio 1804	67
						6	Blue Collar U	78

						10	Category 5	61
7	Wolf Blood	65

10	Category 5	74
			10	Category 5	76

			2	Red Scare	69
2	Red Scare	88

15	BC Vahakni City	44

Illinois Regional

First round July 24–25			Second Round July 26			Regional semifinals July 28			Regional final July 31 (Dayton) 2:00 p.m. / ESPN

1	Golden Eagles	94

16	B1 Ballers	66
			1	Golden Eagles	71

			9	Playing for Jimmy V	64
8	Brotherly Love	46

9	Playing for Jimmy V	78
						1	Golden Eagles	88

						5	Autism Army	75
5	Autism Army	76

12	SCD Hoops	48
			5	Autism Army	76

			4	Always Us	71
4	Always Us	79

13	Peoria All-Stars	73
									1	Golden Eagles	69

									3	Boeheim's Army	73
6	The OverLooked	56

11	Heartfire	67
			11	Heartfire	62

			3	Boeheim's Army	68
3	Boeheim's Army	65

14	Forces of Seoul	53
						3	Boeheim's Army	69

						7	Always a Brave	54
7	Always a Brave	75

10	Tubby Time	73
			7	Always a Brave	70

			15	Jackson TN Underdawgs	50
2	House of 'Paign	58

15	Jackson TN Underdawgs	64

Semifinals and championship

Television coverage via ESPN.^[17]

Semifinals August 1 (Dayton) 12:00 p.m. / 2:30 p.m.			Championship August 3 (Dayton) 9:00 p.m.

KS 5	Florida TNT	64

IL 3	Boeheim's Army	66
			IL 3	Boeheim's Army	69

			WV 6	Team 23	67
OH 6	Blue Collar U	62

WV 6	Team 23	78

Semifinals

ESPN

August 1, 2021
12:00 p.m. EDT

Stats

IL 3 Boeheim's Army 66, KS 5 Florida TNT 64
Scoring by quarter: 13–19, 20–15, 9–13, 24–17
Pts: T. Rice 24 Rebs: C. McCullough 7 Asts: T. Rice 7		Pts: K. Clanton 18 Rebs: K. Clanton 16 Asts: D. Jones 5

UD Arena
Dayton, Ohio
Referees: K. Kimble, R. Natili, T. Morrissey

ESPN

August 1, 2021
2:30 p.m. EDT

Stats

WV 6 Team 23 78, OH 6 Blue Collar U 62
Scoring by quarter: 19–17, 15–14, 17–17, 27–14
Pts: W. Lemon & E. Griffin 15 Rebs: R. Putney 9 Asts: W. Lemon 4		Pts: L. Bearden 22 Rebs: C. Massinburg 8 Asts: L. Bearden 3

UD Arena
Dayton, Ohio
Referees: J. Anderson, E. Walton, B. O'Connell

Championship

ESPN

August 3, 2021
9:00 p.m. EDT

Stats, ESPN, SI

IL 3 Boeheim's Army 69, WV 6 Team 23 67
Scoring by quarter: 18–17, 15–15, 17–22, 19–13
Pts: K. Sykes 21 Rebs: C. McCullough 9 Asts: T. Rice/D. Kennedy/K. Sykes 2		Pts: E. Griffin 16 Rebs: E. Griffin 7 Asts: E. Washington 4

UD Arena
Dayton, Ohio
Referees: J. Anderson, K. Kimble, E. Walton

Awards

All Tournament Team
Pos	Player	Team
PG	Tyrese Rice (MVP)	Boeheim's Army
PG	Marcus Keene	Sideline Cancer
PF	Raphiael Putney	Team 23
SG	Dominique Jones	Florida TNT
C	Nick Perkins	Blue Collar U
GM	Kevin Belbey	Boeheim's Army
Coach	Marc Hughes	Team 23

Source: ^[18]^[19]

Notes

^ Minimum three games played

References

^ "Stats: Leaders". thetournament.com. 2021. Retrieved August 3, 2022.
^ @thetournament (August 9, 2021). "Your final TBT 2021 scoring leaders" (Tweet). Retrieved August 9, 2021 – via Twitter.
^ McAllister, Mike (August 3, 2021). "Boeheim's Army Wins The Basketball Tournament". All Syracuse FN. Retrieved August 3, 2021 – via MSN.com.
^ Vasudevan, Anish (24 July 2021). "4th-quarter push catapults Boeheim's Army to victory over Forces of Seoul, 65-53". The Daily Orange. Retrieved 6 August 2021.
^ "The Basketball Tournament announces format, locations for 2021". The Basketball Tournament. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
^ "TBT 2021 Bracket Reveal Show". The Basketball Tournament. June 21, 2021. Retrieved July 24, 2021 – via YouTube.
^ Selig, David (23 July 2018). "What is the Elam Ending?". sun-sentinel.com. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
^ Ufnowski, Amy (July 2021). "ESPN Announces Schedule and Commentators for TBT 2021, Tipping Off Friday". espnpressroom.com (Press release). Retrieved August 1, 2021.
^ Burtnett, Peter (August 1, 2021). "Sibert falls just short of 33-point contest final, TBT Championship Game set". flyernews.com. Retrieved August 1, 2021.
^ Carcieri, Carmine (June 21, 2021). "TBT 2021: What to know about every team in the 64-team bracket". ESPN.com. Retrieved July 24, 2021.
^ "Wichita Region 2021". The Basketball Tournament (TBT).
^ "West Virginia Regional 2021". The Basketball Tournament (TBT).
^ "Illinois Regional 2021". The Basketball Tournament (TBT).
^ "Columbus Region 2021". The Basketball Tournament (TBT).
^ "Bracket". thetournament.com. Retrieved July 24, 2021.
^ "Scores". thetournament.com. Retrieved July 24, 2021.
^ "Schedule". thetournament.com. Retrieved July 24, 2021.
^ @thetournament (August 3, 2021). "These guys were amazing all summer Introducing your TBT 2021 All-Tournament Team!" (Tweet). Retrieved August 3, 2021 – via Twitter.
^ @thetournament (August 3, 2021). "Forever a Syracuse legend Tyrese Rice is your TBT 2021 MVP!!!!!" (Tweet). Retrieved August 3, 2021 – via Twitter.

External links

[3] Minimum three games played

[1] "Stats: Leaders". thetournament.com. 2021. Retrieved August 3, 2022.

[2] @thetournament (August 9, 2021). "Your final TBT 2021 scoring leaders" (Tweet). Retrieved August 9, 2021 – via Twitter.

[4] McAllister, Mike (August 3, 2021). "Boeheim's Army Wins The Basketball Tournament". All Syracuse FN. Retrieved August 3, 2021 – via MSN.com.

[5] Vasudevan, Anish (24 July 2021). "4th-quarter push catapults Boeheim's Army to victory over Forces of Seoul, 65-53". The Daily Orange. Retrieved 6 August 2021.

[6] "The Basketball Tournament announces format, locations for 2021". The Basketball Tournament. Retrieved June 21, 2021.

[7] "TBT 2021 Bracket Reveal Show". The Basketball Tournament. June 21, 2021. Retrieved July 24, 2021 – via YouTube.

[8] Selig, David (23 July 2018). "What is the Elam Ending?". sun-sentinel.com. Retrieved June 21, 2021.

[9] Ufnowski, Amy (July 2021). "ESPN Announces Schedule and Commentators for TBT 2021, Tipping Off Friday". espnpressroom.com (Press release). Retrieved August 1, 2021.

[10] Burtnett, Peter (August 1, 2021). "Sibert falls just short of 33-point contest final, TBT Championship Game set". flyernews.com. Retrieved August 1, 2021.

[11] Carcieri, Carmine (June 21, 2021). "TBT 2021: What to know about every team in the 64-team bracket". ESPN.com. Retrieved July 24, 2021.

[12] "Wichita Region 2021". The Basketball Tournament (TBT).

[13] "West Virginia Regional 2021". The Basketball Tournament (TBT).

[14] "Illinois Regional 2021". The Basketball Tournament (TBT).

[15] "Columbus Region 2021". The Basketball Tournament (TBT).

[16] "Bracket". thetournament.com. Retrieved July 24, 2021.

[17] "Scores". thetournament.com. Retrieved July 24, 2021.

[18] "Schedule". thetournament.com. Retrieved July 24, 2021.

[19] @thetournament (August 3, 2021). "These guys were amazing all summer Introducing your TBT 2021 All-Tournament Team!" (Tweet). Retrieved August 3, 2021 – via Twitter.

[20] @thetournament (August 3, 2021). "Forever a Syracuse legend Tyrese Rice is your TBT 2021 MVP!!!!!" (Tweet). Retrieved August 3, 2021 – via Twitter.

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v t e The Basketball Tournament
Tournaments	2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 (squads) 2021 (squads) 2022 2023 2024
Champions	Notre Dame Fighting Alumni (2014) Overseas Elite (2015, 2016, 2017, 2018) Carmen's Crew (2019, 2024) Golden Eagles (2020) Boeheim's Army (2021) Blue Collar U (2022) Heartfire (2023)
MVPs	Nash (2014) Kennedy (2015, 2018) Fogg (2016, 2017) Buford (2019) Johnson-Odom (2020) Rice (2021) Massinburg (2022) Jefferson (2023) Sullinger (2024)
Related	The Soccer Tournament