The Empire Classic is an annual college basketball event played in November at the beginning of the season and televised by ESPN. Originally known as the Atlantic City Shootout and produced by the Gazelle Group, Inc., the event was first played in 1995. The following year, it became the Coaches vs. Cancer Classic as a collaboration between the National Association of Basketball Coaches and the American Cancer Society in an effort to raise funds for cancer research. In 2012, the tournament beneficiary became Wounded Warrior Project, resulting in the tournament being renamed the 2K Sports Classic. (A new annual college basketball tournament benefiting cancer research, also called the Coaches vs. Cancer Classic and hosted by the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, was held from 2012 to 2014. ) In 2019, the 2K Sports Classic was renamed the 2K Empire Classic Benefiting Wounded Warrior Project, commonly referred to as the "Empire Classic".

History

The first two events were doubleheader showcases held at the Atlantic City Convention Center (now Boardwalk Hall). From 1997 through 2001, the event was played as a tournament. Princeton won the first tournament in 1997, which took place at Continental Airlines Arena in the New Jersey Meadowlands. In 1998, the event moved to Madison Square Garden in New York City, where it remained through 2019. In both 2002 and 2003, it was played as a showcase doubleheader. In 2004, it became a tournament again, with a new format as a 16-team event with teams from 16 separate conferences. Four predetermined regional round hosts played two games at home and the winners play in the semifinals and finals at Madison Square Garden. Syracuse won the first tournament played in this format, beating Memphis, 77–62, in 2004. In 2007, Gardner–Webb unexpectedly won at Kentucky, 84–68, and advanced to the semifinals at Madison Square Garden, preventing one of the tournament's marquee teams from playing there. To ensure that the marquee teams would play in the semifinals in the 2008 tournament, the semifinalists were predetermined, regardless of the results of the regional rounds. Beginning in 2009, the format was revised to a 12-team field and each team was guaranteed four games in the tournament, with the semifinalists advancing to Madison Square Garden and the remaining eight teams being split into two subregional tournaments played at predetermined campus sites. In 2014, the tournament format changed again, with eight teams from eight separate conferences invited to the tournament. Two games were held at four different regional sites selected before the tournament. The semifinals and finals were held at Madison Square Garden and the remaining four teams played in a tournament format at a predetermined on-campus site. This format persisted through 2019. With the COVID-19 pandemic raging in the United States during the 2020–21 NCAA Division I men's basketball season, the Empire Classic was one of the very few multiteam events held during the fall of 2020. With no fans permitted to attend, it took place behind closed doors at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut. Only four teams participated. Baylor withdrew from it after head coach Scott Drew tested positive for COVID-19; Rhode Island replaced Baylor. In 2021, the tournament format was dropped, and the Empire Classic took place as a showcase event at T-Mobile Arena on the Las Vegas Strip in Las Vegas, Nevada. Four teams participated, and the event consisted of two doubleheaders played over the course of two days, The 2024 Empire Classic will return to a showcase format with Maryland facing Villanova at Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey.

Yearly champions, runners-up, and MVPs

1Tournament held behind closed doors at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Most Championships

Updated through 2023 event.

Most appearances

Updated through 2023 event.

Participants and brackets

• – Denotes overtime period

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

2019

2020

The 2020 tournament was held November 25–26 behind closed doors at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut as a result of COVID-19 pandemic-related restrictions.

2021

The top two teams in the country, Gonzaga and UCLA, headlined the 27th annual Empire Classic, held at T-Mobile Arena on the Las Vegas Strip in Las Vegas, Nevada, on November 22 and 23. Joining them were Central Michigan and Bellarmine. The format reverted to a showcase event.

2022

The tournament took place at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York on November 21 and 22, 2022. Game recaps:

2023

The tournament took place on November 19 and 20, 2023 at Madison Square Garden in Manhattan, New York.

2024

Villanova and Maryland will square off in the Showcase Game of the 2024 Empire Classic benefiting Wounded Warrior Project on November 24, 2024 at Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey.