The 2024 Maui Invitational will return to the island of Maui this year with a splash after wildfires caused last year's tournament to be moved to Honolulu. The bracket features first-round matchups between UConn and Memphis and North Carolina and Dayton among others. UConn is the reigning national champion and one of several likely preseason top-10 teams along with Iowa State and North Carolina.
The 41st annual tournament will also include first-round matchups between Michigan State and Colorado and Iowa State and Auburn. It will be played at Lahaina Civic Center, the traditional venue of the historic early-season college basketball event, during Thanksgiving week on Nov. 25-27.
2024 Maui Invitational bracket
Here are the first-round matchups with Top 25 And 1 rankings listed:
- No. 5 UConn vs. Memphis
- Michigan State vs. Colorado
- No. 6 Iowa State vs. No. 10 Auburn
- No. 4 North Carolina vs. Dayton
Of the eight teams in this year's field, seven qualified for the 2024 NCAA Tournament and six of them -- UConn, Dayton, Michigan State, North Carolina, Colorado and Iowa State -- won at least one game in the tourney. One of the teams in the field, Michigan State, saw its season end at the hands of another team in the field, North Carolina, who knocked out the Spartans in the second round.
The deep 2024 field is chock full of quality teams both past and present including three -- North Carolina, UConn and Michigan State -- who have all won the Maui Invitational at least once. UNC has four Maui titles, tied for the most all-time with Duke since the tournament's inception in 1984.