Temple University Athletics
Temple to Take Part in the 2023 Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic
5.11.23 | Men's Basketball
PHILADELPHIA - The eight-team field for the 2023 Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic was announced today and Temple will join Georgia Tech, Hawai'i, Nevada, Old Dominion, Saint Mary's, TCU and UMass at the holiday tournament. The 14th edition of the ESPN Events men's college basketball tournament will be at the SimpliFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center in Honolulu on December 21, 22 and 24 with times to be determined.
This will be Temple's first trip to Hawai'i since the 1970s when the Owls made two trips (1971, 1976) to Honolulu to compete in the Rainbow Classic.
"We are looking forward to traveling to Hawai'i to compete in the 2023 Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic," said Temple head coach Adam Fisher. "This is a great opportunity to play in a high-level tournament against top competition from all over the country in an ESPN Events tournament. It will be a good test for our team just before we begin play in the American Athletic Conference."
Tickets are expected to go on sale in October. Exclusive airfare offers from Hawaiian Airlines, title sponsor of the tournament and special hotel rates from OUTRIGGER Resorts & Hotels, the official hospitality sponsor, can be found at https://espnevents.com/hawaiian-airlines-diamond-head-classic/travel/. Visit the tournament website at hawaiianairlinesdiamondheadclassic.com to sign up for special email offers, and for more information.
The Field
•           Georgia Tech (Atlantic Coast) joins the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic field for the second time in the last four years under the new direction of former NBA star and college and pro coaching veteran Damon Stoudamire.
•           Tournament host Hawai'i (Big West) will defend its 2022 title after winning 22 games last season and capturing the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic for the first time in program history.
•           Nevada (Mountain West) had one of the best turnarounds in college basketball this past season, finishing with 22 wins and earning a postseason bid under head coach Steve Alford, who became just the fourth coach to take five different teams to the NCAA Tournament.
•           Old Dominion (Sun Belt), which won eight of its final 10 regular-season games and finished 19-11 in 2022-23, will be the first Sun Belt team to compete in the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic.
•           Saint Mary's (West Coast) will make its third appearance in Honolulu and first since 2013 after claiming a share of the WCC regular-season title and advancing to the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
•           2018 Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic champion TCU (Big 12), returns to Honolulu after advancing to the second round of the NCAAs in each of the last two seasons under Jaime Dixon, a former University of Hawai'i'i assistant coach.
•           UMass (Atlantic 10) makes its first-ever appearance in the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic under the direction of Frank Martin who has also coached two other schools in the holiday tournament (South Carolina and 2011 champion Kansas State).
Each team will compete in one game per day, advancing through the bracket over three days for a total of 12 games. The two teams that remain undefeated throughout will face off in the championship game on the final day of the tournament.
Previous Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic tournament champions include USC (2009, 2017), Butler (2010), Kansas State (2011), Arizona (2012), Iowa State (2013), George Washington (2014), Oklahoma (2015), San Diego State (2016), TCU (2018), Houston (2019), Vanderbilt (2021) and Hawai'i (2022).
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This will be Temple's first trip to Hawai'i since the 1970s when the Owls made two trips (1971, 1976) to Honolulu to compete in the Rainbow Classic.
"We are looking forward to traveling to Hawai'i to compete in the 2023 Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic," said Temple head coach Adam Fisher. "This is a great opportunity to play in a high-level tournament against top competition from all over the country in an ESPN Events tournament. It will be a good test for our team just before we begin play in the American Athletic Conference."
Tickets are expected to go on sale in October. Exclusive airfare offers from Hawaiian Airlines, title sponsor of the tournament and special hotel rates from OUTRIGGER Resorts & Hotels, the official hospitality sponsor, can be found at https://espnevents.com/hawaiian-airlines-diamond-head-classic/travel/. Visit the tournament website at hawaiianairlinesdiamondheadclassic.com to sign up for special email offers, and for more information.
The Field
•           Georgia Tech (Atlantic Coast) joins the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic field for the second time in the last four years under the new direction of former NBA star and college and pro coaching veteran Damon Stoudamire.
•           Tournament host Hawai'i (Big West) will defend its 2022 title after winning 22 games last season and capturing the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic for the first time in program history.
•           Nevada (Mountain West) had one of the best turnarounds in college basketball this past season, finishing with 22 wins and earning a postseason bid under head coach Steve Alford, who became just the fourth coach to take five different teams to the NCAA Tournament.
•           Old Dominion (Sun Belt), which won eight of its final 10 regular-season games and finished 19-11 in 2022-23, will be the first Sun Belt team to compete in the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic.
•           Saint Mary's (West Coast) will make its third appearance in Honolulu and first since 2013 after claiming a share of the WCC regular-season title and advancing to the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
•           2018 Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic champion TCU (Big 12), returns to Honolulu after advancing to the second round of the NCAAs in each of the last two seasons under Jaime Dixon, a former University of Hawai'i'i assistant coach.
•           UMass (Atlantic 10) makes its first-ever appearance in the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic under the direction of Frank Martin who has also coached two other schools in the holiday tournament (South Carolina and 2011 champion Kansas State).
Each team will compete in one game per day, advancing through the bracket over three days for a total of 12 games. The two teams that remain undefeated throughout will face off in the championship game on the final day of the tournament.
Previous Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic tournament champions include USC (2009, 2017), Butler (2010), Kansas State (2011), Arizona (2012), Iowa State (2013), George Washington (2014), Oklahoma (2015), San Diego State (2016), TCU (2018), Houston (2019), Vanderbilt (2021) and Hawai'i (2022).
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