Wake Forest Athletics
Deacons to Play in 2015 EA SPORTS Maui Invitational
11/25/2013 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Nov. 25, 2013
By Alex Botoman, Wake Forest Athletic Communications (@TieDyeNation)
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - The Wake Forest basketball team will head to the Aloha State in 2015 to be part of a loaded field for the 2015 EA SPORTS Maui Invitational, hosted annually by Chaminade on the Hawaiian island of Maui.
Joining Wake Forest and Chaminade in the tournament field will be Indiana, Kansas, St. John's UCLA, UNLV and Vanderbilt. The eight teams have combined for 19 national championships and 47 Final Four trips between them.
"The 2015 Tournament promises to be very special. Kansas, St. John's, UCLA and Indiana are four of the most storied programs in the history of college basketball. UNLV, Vanderbilt and Wake Forest are among the most successful programs in the past two decades," said tournament chairman Dave Odom, who served as the head coach at Wake Forest from 1990-2001. "To have these teams join Chaminade in Maui will make for a spectacular week of basketball."
The 2015 EA SPORTS Maui Invitational will run from Nov. 23-25, 2015. The games will be played at the Lahaina Civic Center, a 2,400 seat arena in Maui.
The Demon Deacons will be making their first appearance in the EA SPORTS Maui Invitational, traditionally one of the strongest November tournaments. Illinois won last year's tournament, beating a field that included North Carolina, while Duke won the 2011 version of the event.
Wake Forest will be making its first trip to the state of Hawai'i since participating in the Rainbow Classic Dec. 28-30, 1999, in Honolulu.
This season, Wake Forest is competing in the Battle 4 Atlantis at Atlantis Royal Towers Resort on Paradise Island, Bahamas. The Deacons begin play in the tournament on Thursday against No. 2/3 Kansas at 3:30 p.m.
Wake Forest vs. the EA SPORTS Maui Invitational Field
Chaminade - Wake Forest has never played Maui Invitational host Chaminade, a Division II school. The Silverswords have a history of pulling off shock victories in their home tournament including a win over No. 1 Virginia in 1982 that is considered by some to be the biggest upset in college basketball history. Last year, Chaminade knocked off Texas in the opening round.
Indiana - Wake Forest holds a perfect 2-0 record over Indiana with both wins coming in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge. The Chris Paul-led Deacs torched the Hoosiers 100-67 in the 2003 ACC/Big Ten Challenge, and most recently, Wake Forest posted an 83-58 win over Indiana during the 2008 event.
Kansas - Wake Forest will face off against Kansas this Thursday in the Battle 4 Atlantis tournament in the first meeting between the two teams since the 2001-02 season. The series between Wake Forest and Kansas is tied at two wins apiece. The Deacons and Jayhawks have also split NCAA Tournament matchups, with Wake Forest winning in 1984 and Kansas winning in the 1994 Elite Eight.
St. John's - Wake Forest and St. John's have also split four meetings, with the Demon Deacons winning the most recent game in the series at Joel Coliseum during the 2002-03 season. The Deacons won their only postseason game against the Red Storm, beating them in the 1961 NCAA Tournament.
UCLA - Wake Forest's only meeting with UCLA came during its Final Four appearance in 1962. The Deacons beat the John Wooden coached Bruins 82-80 in the consolation game after bowing out of the tournament in the semifinals.
UNLV - Wake Forest has never played UNLV, or any team from the state of Nevada, in basketball.
Vanderbilt - Wake Forest and Vanderbilt have been frequent non-conference opponents on the hardwood with the Commodores leading the series 5-4. In their most recent matchups, the Deacons and Commodores split a home-and-home series during the 2007-08 and 2008-09 seasons with each team winning on its home court.
