Utah men’s basketball to play in new tournament College Basketball Crown
Rick Scuteri, Associated Press
Utah forward Ezra Ausar (2) drives against Arizona guard Caleb Love on Feb. 26, 2025, in Tucson, Ariz.The University of Utah and interim head coach Josh Eilert will continue playing men’s basketball this season, added to the field for the inaugural College Basketball Crown postseason tournament.
The 16-team event starts and finishes within one week, March 31 to April 6, at two venues in Las Vegas.
Utah (16-16) is set to face Butler (14-19) at 1 p.m. MDT Monday, March 31, at the MGM Grand Garden Arena and airing on FS1. The semifinals and championship are in T-Mobile Arena, with the Sunday championship airing on FOX.
A win would have Utah play the winner of Boise State and George Washington on April 2 in the quarterfinals. The semifinals are scheduled for Saturday, April 5, and the final the following day.
The event siphoned away some apparent NIT invitations for teams like Boise State and Oregon State. But teams like Butler and Colorado are in the Crown field with losing records, both overall and in their conferences.
The tournament is put on by Anschutz Entertainment Group, also known as AEG Worldwide, a sports and entertainment event company.
