Purdue Men’s Basketball Announces Further Info on Baha Mar Tournament

The week before Thanksgiving, Purdue will be down in the Bahamas and the field is set.

Baha Mar Hoops Championship

It has long been known that Purdue would be traveling to the Bahamas this upcoming season for their non-conference MTE (multi-team event). We were also pretty confident in the field of 4 for the Baha Mar Hoops Championship as Wake Forest and Memphis announced their participation. Now, the rumored 4th team, Texas Tech has been confirmed and Purdue Athletics have announced the game dates as well as Purdue’s first opponent in the tournament.

Purdue will first take on Penny Hardaway and the Memphis Tigers on Thursday, November 20th at the Baha Mar Resort in Nassau. Memphis is currently waiting on an NCAA ruling to see if forward, Dain Dainja, will be granted another year of eligibility. Dainja, whom you may remember played 2 seasons at Illinois, averaged 14.6 points, 7.4 rebounds, and 1.3 blocks per game for the Tigers last season. There are a slew of transfers for this Tiger squad and a few hail from the Big Ten, including 7’1 forward Aaron Bradshaw from Ohio State and 5’11 guard Dug McDaniel from Michigan by way of Kansas State. Also on this Memphis team is Sincere Parker, whom Purdue faced in the NCAA Tournament while he played at McNeese last season. In the 76-62 loss, Parker scored 17 points and recorded a rebound and a steal.

Following the game against Memphis, Purdue will take on either Texas Tech or Wake Forest. Both games offer interesting storylines but let’s start with Texas Tech. The Red Raiders will be led by Big 12 Player of the Year, JT Toppin, who decided to return to Lubbock after Texas Tech fell to eventual champion, Florida, in the Elite 8. This matchup would feature 2 great battles as elite PFs JT Toppin and Trey Kaufman-Renn would face off as well as Braden Smith against former Minnesota Golden Gopher, Elijah Hawkins.

The second potential matchup would be against Wake Forest and former Boilermaker, Myles Colvin, who left Purdue to seek a more expanded role with the Demon Deacons. Though Myles comes from a Purdue family with father Roosevelt a football star and sister Raven a major force on the volleyball team, Myles and his family insist that a better fit is the reason for his transfer. We of course wish Myles the best in his new gold and black uniform, but should Purdue face him in the Bahamas, we hope the Demon Deacons take the loss on November 21st.

Another year, and another loaded November tournament as Purdue will likely take on two teams that made the NCAA tournament last season. While no game will be easy for Purdue in this tournament, at least they will be able to enjoy the tropical weather. Hopefully some of you all can get down to the Bahamas for the game and soak up the sun too!