On Wednesday, Fox Sports announced that they will be hosting the College Basketball Crown tournament, which will serve as the NIT rival. The tournament will feature 16 teams that did not qualify for the men’s NCAA Tournament, with automatic bids given to two teams each from the Big Ten, Big 12, and Big East conferences. These conferences all have television agreements with Fox Sports.
The rest of the field will consist of at-large participants, but only men’s teams will be included in the tournament. The College Basketball Crown tournament will take place in the MGM Garden Arena and MGM Arena in Las Vegas, starting on March 31, 2025, and ending on April 6. AEG will be a presenting sponsor of the tournament, and games will be broadcast on both Fox and FS1.
The NIT tournament has been in existence since 1938 and serves as a consolation tournament for teams that missed out on the NCAA Tournament. Some teams chose not to participate this year in order to focus on other opportunities like the transfer portal. The NIT final is set to take place on Thursday between Indiana State and Seton Hall.
