NASSAU, The Bahamas – Wisconsin, NC State, Seton Hall and Murray State will tangle at the spectacular Baha Mar resort this November in the 2026 Baha Mar Championship veteran promoter bdG Sports announced Thursday. The sixth-annual event will be played on Thursday, Nov. 19 and Friday, Nov. 20 at the Baha Mar Convention, Arts & Entertainment Center on-site at the resort.

“Baha Mar Hoops has become a highly sought after, must see, early season event on the college basketball calendar given the level of competition it continues to produce,” said Brooks Downing, president and founder of bdG Sports. “But for the fans, it’s an opportunity to see their new team in a destination location like no other, The Bahamas. Baha Mar boasts more than 2,000 luxurious rooms, multiple pools, a $200 million water park, a sports book and casino and multiple dining options on beautiful Cable Beach. It’s just a great place to watch your team up close and personal.”

CBS Sports Network will televise all four games of the event beginning Nov. 19 with NC State taking on Murray State at 6 p.m. ET followed by Wisconsin battling Seton Hall at 8:30 p.m. The consolation game on Nov. 20 will tip at 7 p.m., followed by the championship game at 9:30 p.m.

Event VIP packages and general admission tickets go on sale to the public beginning Monday, Aug. 24 at 11 a.m. ET. The best way for fans to secure premium seating is through the purchase of fan VIP packages which include two premium seat tickets to all games of the Baha Mar Championship, two tickets to the tournament’s VIP reception (Nov. 18) with dinner and open bar included, round-trip ground transportation from the airport and resort, two daily breakfast vouchers, welcome gifts and personal concierge service. (Airfare is not included in the packages. A passport is required for travel to the Bahamas.) General admission tickets and hotel rooms at preferred rates can be purchased separately from the VIP packages at www.bahamarhoops.com.

ABOUT THE TEAMS

Wisconsin made its eighth NCAA Tournament appearance in the last 10 seasons a year ago, posting a 24-11 overall mark and finishing sixth in the Big Ten at 14-6.

Wisconsin’s upcoming roster boasts the return of 7-foot forward Nolan Winter, who ranked fourth in the Big Ten averaging 8.5 rebounds to go with 13.3 points, as well as Austin Rapp (9.6 points, 4.0 rebounds). Among the newcomers added to head coach Greg Gard’s 2026-27 squad are Owen Foxwell, an Australian point guard who averaged 10.8 points and 4.5 assists last season with the Melbourne Phoenix), along with key transfer portal additions in former Miami (Ohio) guard Eian Elmer (12.7 points, 5.9 rebounds) and George Washington guard Trey Autry (11 points, 3.5 rebounds and 1.5 assists).

NC State alum Justin Gainey will bring his first Wolfpack squad to the Bahamas in November. One of the top 3-point shooting threats in the Atlantic Coast Conference returns in guard Paul McNeil Jr., who averaged 13.8 points and 3.1 triples last season. Contributors from the transfer portal should include former Hofstra guard and Coastal Athletic Association Rookie of the Year Preston Edmead (16.1 points, 4.4 assists), Santa Clara guard and West Coast Conference First Team selection Christian Hammon (15.6 points), Washington State forward Eemeli Yalaho (10.1 points and 5.7 rebounds) and UC Irvine center Kyle Evans (12.3 points, 8.4 rebounds).

Gainey spent the last five seasons on staff at Tennessee prior to taking over at NC State, including the last four as associate head coach with the Volunteers. During that span Tennessee made four trips to the NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 while advancing to the Elite Eight three times.

Seton Hall head coach Shaheen Holloway’s fifth squad at his alma mater features a number of transfer portal additions, highlighted by Radford scoring guard Del Jones (17.2 points, 3.5 assists) and sharp-shooting guards Rodney Brown Jr., (14.0 points, 38 percent shooting from 3-point range) from Loyola Marymount and Kareem Thomas (15.9 points, shooting 44.7 percent from long distance) from Dartmouth. Florida Atlantic center Devin Williams (7.5 points, 5.2 rebounds) will look to protect the paint after ranking fifth in the nation last season with 2.6 blocks.

Holloway took Saint Peter’s to the Elite Eight of the 2022 NCAA Tournament and led the Pirates to the 2024 National Invitational Tournament Championship.

Murray State advanced to the NIT in the first season of the Ryan Miller era in 2025-26, finishing 20-13 overall and tying for third in the Missouri Valley Conference with a 12-8 league mark.

Miller’s 2026-27 roster includes the return of MVC Freshman of the Year swingman Roman Domon, who averaged 14.1 points and 5.1 rebounds last season, along with several international players led by freshman guards Mark Padjen and Talis Soulhac. Padjen claimed tournament most valuable player accolades after leading Slovenia to the FIBA U20 EuroBasket Championship earlier this summer. Soulhac emerged as one of France’s promising young guards after helping his country claim a bronze medal at the 2022 FIBA U16 European Championship and representing his country at the 2025 FIBA U19 Basketball World Cup, where he ranked among the event’s leaders, averaging 4.8 assists.

EVENT HISTORY

Past winners of the Baha Mar Championship include Louisville (2021), UCF (2022), Miami (2023), Tennessee (2024) and Purdue (2025). Each of the past two winners of the event – Tennessee and Purdue – parlayed their success in the Bahamas into 30-win campaigns and Elite Eight appearances in the NCAA Tournament.

WONDER AWAITS AT THE BEAUTIFUL BAHA MAR RESORT

The remarkable Baha Mar resort serves as the backdrop to this basketball showcase. Anchored by Grand Hyatt and featuring SLS Baha Mar and Rosewood Baha Mar, the resort is situated on 1,000 acres overlooking Nassau’s famous turquoise ocean waters. The destination resort boasts more than 2,300 rooms, the largest casino in the Caribbean, a $200 million luxury water park, an 18-hole Jack Nicklaus Signature Golf Course, the Caribbean’s first and only flagship ESPA Spa, a new jazz club, and a collection of more than 45 restaurants and lounges.

ABOUT BAHA MAR HOOPS

Baha Mar annually plays host to one of the largest regular-season events in the sport of college basketball. Each November around the Thanksgiving holiday, 20 NCAA Division I men’s and women’s teams visit the stunning resort to compete in three basketball tournaments.

Each August, the resort also holds the Baha Mar Hoops Summer League, offering NCAA teams exhibition games against international competition as part of a foreign tour. The resort welcomed an event-record six teams to Baha Mar earlier this month, including Arkansas, Cincinnati, Louisville, Texas A&M, South Carolina and Valparaiso. Past programs to attend for summer exhibition tours include Kentucky, Penn State, Rhode Island and Xavier.

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