ORANGE BOWL BASKETBALL CLASSIC SET FOR DECEMBER 17
Miami Lakes, Fla. (www.orangebowl.org) – Game times for the 23rd annual MetroPCS Orange Bowl Basketball Classic will be 1:30 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. on Saturday, December 17, 2016, at the BB&T Center in Sunrise, Fla. The first game will feature the Manhattan College Jaspers against the Florida State Seminoles, followed by the Charlotte 49ers against the Florida Gators.
For ticket information please contact the Orange Bowl ticket sales office at (305) 341-4701 or visit www.orangebowl.org. For group ticket information, fans are encouraged to contact the Orange Bowl Ticket Office.
The Florida Gators will be making their record 18th appearance in the Classic, and second under head coach Mike White. Last year, White’s first season at the helm, the Gators matched a program record for a first year coach with 21 wins. With nine returners, Florida hopes to build on last season’s success. The Gators will take on Classic newcomers – the Charlotte 49ers – out of Conference USA. The 49ers have six returning letterwinners, including their top three scorers from last season and are coached by Mark Price, a first-round draft pick in the 1986 NBA Draft, went on to become a four-time NBA All-Star.
In the tournament opener, Florida State Head Coach Leonard Hamilton, the winningest coach in FSU history, looks to lead his Florida State Seminoles to their seventh straight Classic win; they are 6-1 alltime. The Seminoles take on another Classic newcomer in Manhattan College. Led by head coach Steve Masiello, the Jaspers are chasing their third MAAC title and NCAA Tournament appearance in four years. The Jaspers’ former football program played in the first-ever Palm Festival Game, the predecessor to the Orange Bowl, in 1933.
Both games of the MetroPCS Orange Bowl Basketball Classic will be televised nationally on FS2 (FOX Sports 2) and statewide to local markets on FOX Sports Sun. In addition to national and local television coverage, each game will be live streamed on the FOX Sports GO app and www.FOXSportsGO.com.
With assistance from title sponsor MetroPCS and associate sponsors American Airlines, BB&T Center, Coca-Cola, Florida Prepaid College Board, FOX Sports Florida, Greater Fort Lauderdale CVB, Panera Bread, Sunshine Health, The Miami Herald and Toyota, the Orange Bowl Basketball Classic will be the only Division I basketball played in Broward County again this year.
