Best Virginia Pulls Out of TBT Next Month
The TBT Tournament is slated to get underway on July 4 and run through July 14 with $1 million at stake for the winning team. Coming to you from Columbus, Ohio, the 24-team tournament is a single-elimination field and there should be plenty of excitement to unfold in the tournament.
As it stands, one of the teams that was expected to be in the field is no longer a part of the tournament. It was announced that Best Virginia, who was seeded 10th in the field, had to pull out of the field after one of their players had tested positive for COVID-19. As a result, they chose to step out of the field, negating the chance of a potential in-state matchup against 23rd-seeded Herd That, a team compromised of players from Marshall. The Best Virginia team had former players like Dae’Sean Butler and Juwan Staten, though they needed to step aside for the best interests of everyone involved. Best Virginia did have the opportunity to take the floor as a team without the player who tested positive but chose to leave. They would have been subject to multiple tests and a 14-day quarantine period had they stayed.
TBT tournament founder and CEO Jon Mugar expressed his disappointment for Best Virginia and also that safety is the top priority for the tournament.
"This is a safety-first event. We're disappointed for the Best Virginia players and fans that they won't get an opportunity to compete in TBT 2020, and our thoughts are with the player for a speedy recovery. While the virus remains a persistent threat, we have confidence in our health and safety plan and the many safeguards we have put in place to run this year's tournament."
In their stead, the field will see the implementation of the team called Playing for Jimmy V. That team will slot into the Best Virginia slot on the 10th-seed line and get a shot at the money. It is anchored by former Gonzaga guard Josh Perkins along with Marques Townes, who was one of the key components on the Loyola-Chicago team that made their Cinderella run to the Final Four in 2018.
As it stands, the tournament is going to be one with some big talent, so the winning team is going to have their work cut out for them. The top seed is Carmen’s Crew, led by former Ohio State point guard Aaron Craft. They are the defending champions, but they’ll have their work cut out for them if they hope to make it back to back crowns. The second-seeded team is Overseas Elite, who had won four straight titles between 2015 and 2018 before seeing Carmen’s Crew earn the title last season. They added seven-time NBA All-Star Joe Johnson to the mix in an effort to try and get their crown back.
The TBT Tournament gets underway beginning July 4 and can be seen on ESPN and the other networks that are part of the ESPN family. Tune in and see who comes up on top when it’s all said and done.