The Crossover Classic Begins Wednesday Despite Months of Challenges and Changes

Barring any last-second changes, West Virginia men’s basketball will open its 2020-21 season Wednesday evening against South Dakota State University in the first round of the Crossover Classic.

The South Dakota-based event will feature eight teams competing in three rounds of play from Nov. 25-27. This event will be conducted despite a venue and name change, six of the eight original teams withdrawing and a team dropping out just 48 hours before tipoff.

WATCH: WVU’s Bob Huggins Looks Ahead to Wednesday’s Season-Opener

Below is a schedule of all the changes the Crossover Classic endured to make it to round one on Wednesday, including moving from the Bahamas to South Dakota, going through a complete rebrand and finding three replacement teams in just the last seven days.

• Sept. 12: The 2020 Battle 4 Atlantis relocates to South Dakota
  • The field at this time is Duke, WVU, Memphis, Ohio State, Texas A&M, Utah, Creighton and Wichita State
• Oct. 14: The event is rebranded as the Crossover Classic
  • Dayton replaces Duke but the rest of the field remains the same
  • WVU is scheduled to play Texas A&M in the first round on Nov. 25
• Oct. 30: Utah withdraws from the event
• Nov. 6: Ohio State withdraws from the event
  • Saint Mary’s and South Dakota State are announced as replacements
  • The field after these changes is WVU, Texas A&M, Saint Mary’s, Memphis, Creighton, South Dakota State, Dayton and Wichita State
• Nov. 8: Dayton withdraws from the event
  • Utah State is announced as the replacement team
• Nov. 17: Texas A&M withdraws from the event
  • At the time, the Aggies were still scheduled to be WVU’s first-round opponent
• Nov. 18: Northern Iowa is announced as Texas A&M’s replacement
  • The Panthers are initially scheduled to be WVU’s first opponent on Nov. 25
• Nov. 19: Creighton withdraws from the event
• Nov. 20: Western Kentucky is announced as Creighton’s replacement
  • The tournament is also re-seeded and WVU is now scheduled to play South Dakota State in the first round
• Nov. 22: WVU officially confirms that it will play SDSU on Nov. 25 at 7 p.m.
• Nov. 23: The Sanford Pentagon announces that no spectators will be permitted for the event
• Nov. 23: Wichita State withdraws from the event
  • VCU is announced as its replacement
  • The field is now Northern Iowa, Western Kentucky, Saint Mary’s, Memphis, WVU, South Dakota State, VCU and Utah State

Of the original eight-team field, only West Virginia and Memphis will actually compete in the event.

The schedule for the first day of the tournament on Nov. 25 is:

• Memphis vs. Saint Mary’s – 2 p.m. EST (ESPN)
• Northern Iowa vs. Western Kentucky – 4:30 p.m. EST (ESPNU)
• South Dakota State vs. West Virginia – 7 p.m. EST (ESPN2)
• VCU vs. Utah State – 9:30 p.m. EST (ESPN2)