The College Basketball Invitational will not take place in 2026 as the third-tier postseason college basketball tournament suddenly announced that it would not be taking place.
The CBI was formed in 2008 as a complement to the NCAA Tournament and the National Invitational Tournament. With 100 teams already playing postseason basketball, a tertiary tournament is probably a little bit of overkill. However, it did give even more teams an opportunity to experience what it was like to play tournament basketball in March, especially from mid-major and low-major conferences. A power conference team hasn’t participated in the CBI since 2019.
The CBI posted the news to their X page. However, they provided very few details. Their post only reads, “Due to circumstances beyond our control, the CBI will not be held this year. We will see you next year.”
What those circumstances are remain a mystery. Last year’s CBI tournament was won by Illinois State in the final against Cleveland State. Unlike their other postseason tournament brethren, the College Basketball Invitational has been contested entirely in one location since the COVD-19 pandemic with games taking place in Daytona Beach, Florida. Only 11 teams accepted invites last year, the smallest field since the 2021 edition that was impacted by COVID.
Last season, the CBI was streamed on FloSports for the majority of the tournament with the semifinals televised on ESPNU and the final airing on ESPN2. A grand total of 541 fans were in attendance for the championship game. The CBI was created by The Gazelle Group, which also promotes major non-conference regular season games and have been the subject of controversy over photo rights.
We’re only left to speculate what the circumstances might be that would trigger the cancelation. It could be anything from being unable to book their Daytona Beach site to an inability to sell television rights to teams expressing a lack of interest in participation. While the tournament is hopeful to return in 2027, it’s hard to see how it still fits in the current college sports landscape and a comeback after taking a year off might be too much to ask.
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