3rd Annual SoCal Challenge will be held on November 20th and 22nd in San Juan Capistrano, CA
The SoCal Challenge is back and ready for more ultra-competitive College Basketball contests. Last year’s Surf Division boasted nothing but thrilling games with multiple games landing in overtime before UNLV eventually claimed the trophy. This season the format does not change - a bracketed Tip-Off event in San Juan, Capistrano on November 20th and 22nd. The bracketed games will be played on the 20th with the Championship Game and 3rd Place game being played on the 22nd.
The event will welcome California of the Pac-12, Tulane of the American Conference, UTEP from Conference USA, and Bradley from the Missouri Valley to once again provide the SoCal community and national viewers watching on CBS Sports Network four very competitive teams, and nearly ensuring some great battles. That has been a hallmark of this great event.
Travel Packages and Sponsorship opportunities will be available soon.
MEET THE TEAMS
CALIFORNIA – The Golden Bears are going to compete this season thanks to a splash hire of HC Mark Madsen. Madsen comes over from Utah Valley, where the Wolverines had a record-setting 22-23 season that included a deep run in the NIT. Madsen is no stranger to the SoCal Challenge, as his Wolverines won the 2021 Sand Division in the inaugural year of the event. Time was not wasted after the announcement of Madsen’s hiring as the Golden Bears got busy in the Portal. Keonte Kennedy (via Memphis), Mike Meadows (via Portland), Fardaws Aimaq (via Texas Tech and UVU), Jalen Cone (via Northern Arizona), and Jaylon Tyson (via Texas Tech) will all join veteran Devin Askew in what has to be considered one of the most experienced rotations in the Pac-12. How fast can they gel together? Check out the SoCal Challenge to find out.
TULANE – Ron Hunter brings this Green Wave program out west to San Juan Capistrano where they will be greeted with waves coming in from the Pacific Ocean. Coach Hunter has steadily improved the talent level at Tulane since his arrival and Green Wave fans and community can smell a breakthrough season. Sion James, Jaylen Forbes, and Kevin Cross all return and are in positions of leadership. Some new talent arrives with Kolby King (via St. John’s), Gregg Glenn (via Michigan), Jordan Wood (via Howard), and VMI’s leading scorer, Asher Woods, all joining the program.
UTEP – HC Joe Golding enters his third season at UTEP following a wildly successful run as the coach at Abilene Christian. UTEP has fought hard for two seasons in CUSA with last year being the best CUSA season ever (FAU in Final Four, North Texas and UAB in NIT Finals, Charlotte CBI Champs, etc). The coming CUSA is going to be much different. Gone are FAU, North Texas, UAB, UTSA, Charlotte, and Rice. In comes Liberty, New Mexico State (already a rival for the Miners), Sam Houston, and Jacksonville State. This new-look league appears to be wide open and the Miners have done enough to believe they can compete for the CUSA Title. Zid Powell (via Buffalo), Elijah Jones (via ECU) and Baylor Hebb (via Colorado State) join the roster via the Portal. Established leaders in Tae Hardy, Calvin Solomon, Otis Frazier III, and Mario McKinney, Jr all return for another year in Golding’s system. Excitement in El Paso is warranted.
BRADLEY – The Braves had a memorable run in 22-23 to the Missouri Valley Conference regular season title. Highly successful HC Brian Wardle is of course disappointed in losing the Arch Madness Title game, but this season can be about redemption. The Braves will need to fill some key holes but can build around ultra-talented Malevy Leons this season. Leons will be joined by fellow vets Connor Hickman, Darius Hannah, and of course Duke Deen. Trey Pettigrew joins the program via Nevada and appears to have the most upside of the newcomers.
