UAlbany Among Twelve Participating Men's Basketball Teams in 2010 Legends Classic

Princeton, N.J. - The University at Albany men's basketball team will be among twelve programs participating in the 2010 Legends Classic, as announced on Wednesday, March 10 by The Gazelle Group. Syracuse, Michigan, Georgia Tech and UTEP will host regional round games. Detroit and William & Mary are the host institutions for the subregionals.

The 2010 Legends Classic culminates with the Championship Rounds at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, N.J., Nov. 26-27. Championship Round tickets will go on sale Thursday, March 11 at 12:00 noon, and may be purchased by calling Ticketmaster at 800-736-1420 or through Ticketmaster.com.

The format for the 2010 Legends Classic, which has fast become one of the nation's premier early-season college basketball tournaments, will remain the same as this past season. Twelve teams from across the nation will compete in the fourth annual event with Syracuse, Michigan, Georgia Tech, and UTEP hosting regional round games from Nov. 17-21. The four hosts will then advance to the Championship Rounds on Thanksgiving Weekend, Nov. 26-27, at Atlantic City's historic Boardwalk Hall, while the remainder of the field will participate in subregionals held at campus sites.

Other teams participating in the 2010 Legends Classic are UAlbany, Bowling Green, Detroit, Gardner-Webb, Mercer, Niagara, Western Carolina, and William & Mary. Detroit and William & Mary will host the subregional rounds.
Match-ups for the Championship Rounds, as well as the entire bracket for the 2010 Legends Classic, will be announced at a later date.

"We are excited about the opportunity to play in the Legends Classic," UAlbany coach Will Brown said. "I like the format where you play three games in three days. It simulates a conference tournament atmosphere where you have a quick turnaround in terms of preparation. Our program enjoyed hosting the 2K Sports Classic (subregional) this year and look forward to the Legends."

The four schools playing in Atlantic City, each of which was ranked prior to the start of conference play this season, have combined for 13 Final Four appearances, 84 trips to the NCAA Tournament, and three national championships. Each of the four schools has been to the NCAA Tournament a minimum of 15 times.

The 2009 Legends Classic saw the emergence of Florida as the Gators, unranked prior to the event, posted wins over No. 2 Michigan State and Rutgers to claim the title. The wins catapulted Florida to No. 13 (AP) and 17 (ESPN/USA Today) in the next week's national polls.

The Northeast Conference (NEC) is the sponsoring conference of the Legends Classic. Now entering its 29th season, the NEC is an NCAA Division I collegiate athletic association consisting of 12 institutions of higher learning located throughout six states.

Historic Boardwalk Hall first opened its doors in 1929 and recently underwent a three year, $90 million renovation to transform the building into a modern special events arena. Listed on the National Register of Historic Landmarks, it has been recognized as Atlantic City's premier entertainment venue, known for high profile concerts, family shows and sporting events. Visit www.boardwalkhall.com for more information. For destination information about Atlantic City, visit www.atlanticcitynj.com.

The Legends Classic is produced by The Gazelle Group in Princeton, N.J. The Gazelle Group is a sports marketing firm specializing in event production and management, client representation, and sponsorship consulting. Gazelle produces numerous nationally-recognized events, such as the Coaches vs. Cancer Classic, the O'Reilly Auto Parts CBE Classic, and the College Basketball Invitational (CBI). For more information on The Gazelle Group, please visit www.gazellegroup.com.

Courtesy: UAlbany Sports Information