The AdvoCare Invitational field, which has been lauded by college basketball experts as one of the deepest among the upcoming preseason tournaments, features Florida State and LSU, both of which entered the 2018 season ranked in several of the nation’s Top 25 preseason polls.
The Florida State Seminoles (2-0) – an Elite Eight team last season that returns seven of their 10 leading scorers in 2018 – are ranked 14th as they enter the AdvoCare Invitational, while the vastly improved LSU Tigers – led by sophomore guard Tremont Waters — are ranked 17th and are 4-0.
These two squads join 2018 Men’s National Champion Villanova — which entered the season ranked No. 9 before suffering back-to-back losses for the first time since 2013 — NCAA tournament-qualifier College of Charleston, Alabama-Birmingham, Canisius College, Memphis and Oklahoma State in the tournament. Memphis is led by first-year head coach Penny Hardaway, a four-time NBA All-Star who played 16 NBA seasons, including seven with the Orlando Magic (1993-1999).
Single session tickets for the tournament at ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex at Disney are on sale now and can be purchased here.
The four-day tournament is played over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend and players get to spend free time enjoying the Disney theme parks and attractions and are also treated to a Thanksgiving Day dinner.
Media members interested in covering this year’s event should contact Charley Green (cgreen@breakaway-sports.com).
Florida State (2009) and Memphis (2013) are the only previous AdvoCare Invitational champions in the field. Other previous winners include Arkansas (2006), North Carolina State (2007), Gonzaga (2008, 2012, 2016), Florida State (2009), Notre Dame (2010), Dayton (2011), Memphis (2013), Kansas (2014), Xavier (2015) and West Virginia (2017).
This year marks the 13th year of the AdvoCare Invitational tournament at Walt Disney World Resort.