Utah Valley's Brandon Randolph has been selected to participate in the inaugural Dos Equis 3X3U National Championship. This new event will pit 32 four-man teams consisting of players from every Division I college basketball conference against each other in a three-day, 3-on-3 tournament. These teams, comprised of seniors who have exhausted their collegiate eligibility, will compete for a $100,000 prize pool viewable live on Twitter and ESPN2 from Friday, March 30, through Sunday, April 1, at St. Mary's University's Bill Greehey Arena in San Antonio. Randolph will be one of four players selected from the Western Athletic Conference.
Randolph most recently wrapped up a two-year career at Utah Valley. The Inglewood, California native ranks second all-time at UVU in both assists (285) and assists per game (4.3). In his two years at UVU, Randolph averaged 10.5 points, 4.5 rebounds and 4.3 assists per game. He helped lead Utah Valley to a pair of postseason appearances at the College Basketball Invitational where he led the team to the school's first-ever postseason national tournament victories. He most recently helped the Wolverines to a 23-11 record, including a second-place finish in the WAC with a 10-4 record. The 23 wins are the most recorded in a single season at UVU. Randolph earned second-team All-WAC honors for his play this past season.
The Dos Equis 3X3U National Championship begins on Friday, March 30, with 24 pool play games streamed live on Twitter from 7 p.m. to 12:30 a.m. EST, and it continues on Saturday, March 31, with another 24 pool play games streamed live on Twitter from 11 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. The event concludes on Sunday, April 1, with the quarterfinals broadcast live on Twitter from 1:35 to 3 p.m., and the semifinals, third-place game and championship game broadcast live on ESPN2 from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m.
"We are so excited to host these 128 players at this one-of-a-kind event," said Drew Russell, Intersport's vice president of sports properties. "For fans, this will be an opportunity to see the nation's top seniors compete in the rapidly growing and faced-paced nature of 3-on-3 basketball. For players, it will be one last opportunity to showcase their skills on a national stage and give them the chance to earn a significant sum of money. It will also expose them to the 3-on-3 format, which may lead to new opportunities as they take the next step in their professional careers."
Every game of the Dos Equis 3X3U National Championship matters as money will be on the line at all times throughout the competition. Participants will compete for a $100,000 prize pool that will be distributed as follows:
- Each pool play win will earn the team $1,000.
- A quarterfinal win will earn the team $1,000.
- A semifinal win will earn the team $1,000.
- The team that wins the third-place game will earn $1,000.
- The team that wins the championship will earn $50,000.
Each team roster will be comprised of four eligible seniors from the same Division I college basketball conference. Teams will be organized into eight pools of four, and each team will be guaranteed three pool play games. The Dos Equis 3X3U National Championship Player Selection Committee consists of college basketball experts from a wide range of media outlets, including ESPN, CBS Sports, The Athletic, USA Today, NBC Sports, The Ringer and more. The committee worked feverishly throughout the season to determine the nation's top senior college basketball players who have been selected to compete. The complete rosters for each conference will be revealed through a series of studio shows streamed live on Twitter once a day from Monday, March 26, through Thursday, March 29. For more information on the Dos Equis 3X3U National Championship, including buying tickets, event updates, details and rules, please follow them on Twitter, @3X3UHoops, or visit the 3X3U Hoops website.
Jason Erickson works in the communications office at the Utah Valley University athletic department. For more information on Wolverine athletics, visit GoUVU.com.