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UNC Basketball: Maui Invitational moved to Asheville, NC

ByNick Delahanty|
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - DECEMBER 21: Garrison Brooks #15, Leaky Black #1 and Anthony Harris #0 of the North Carolina Tar Heels walk back on the court after a timeout in their game against the UCLA Bruins during the CBS Sports Classic at T-Mobile Arena on December 21, 2019 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Tar Heels defeated the Bruins 74-64. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - DECEMBER 21: Garrison Brooks #15, Leaky Black #1 and Anthony Harris #0 of the North Carolina Tar Heels walk back on the court after a timeout in their game against the UCLA Bruins during the CBS Sports Classic at T-Mobile Arena on December 21, 2019 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Tar Heels defeated the Bruins 74-64. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)

The 2020 Maui Invitational will go on as scheduled, but will be in a new location for this year’s competition.

Since 1984, the Maui Invitational has been one of the most popular early-season tournaments in all of college basketball.

The Maui Invitational (also known as the Maui Jim Maui Invitational) typically takes place on Thanksgiving weekend in Lahaina, Hawaii at the Lahaina Civic Center. Each year, seven NCAA Division I men’s basketball programs are invited to compete in the tournament.

North Carolina has the second-most championships in the tournament’s elusive history. Currently, the Tar Heels have four titles in this tourney, their last coming in 2016 (which we all know how that season turned out!).

The Tar Heels are among the teams who are set to compete in this year’s field. However, there’s been a bit of a change for this year’s tournament.

Instead of the competition taking place in its usual location, the host site has been moved to Asheville, North Carolina. The tournament is scheduled to still take place just after Thanksgiving weekend from November 30-December 2.

The host site for this year’s contest was altered due to the lingering COVID-19 virus. As the tournament finds a new temporary home, the Tar Heels will not be forced to leave their home state for this competition.

Here are the other teams that are scheduled to compete in the 2020 Maui Invitational:

-Indiana
-Texas
-Alabama
-Providence
-Stanford
-UNLV
-Davidson

After the NCAA announced a November 25 start date for all college basketball games, it’s good to see that this early season tournament will still take place. The Tar Heels should see some quality opponents in this setting, and it will serve as a nice test right away for Roy Williams’ new-look squad.

Now that we have the official start date for college basketball season, we will have to anxiously await for the release of the Tar Heels schedule. It’s possible that we could see the Tar Heels in action for a game (or possibly two) prior to tip-off at the Maui Invitational.

Continue to follow the Keeping It Heel team for all the latest news and updates regarding the North Carolina men’s basketball program.

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