Paradise Jam Tournament

The U.S. Virgin Islands Paradise Jam is a college basketball tournament that takes place in late November of each year, with the men usually playing the week before Thanksgiving and the women playing Thanksgiving week. It normally takes place in St. Thomas at the Sports and Fitness Center on the campus of the University of the Virgin Islands.

Paradise Jam

Sport	College basketball
Founded	2000 (women's), 2001 (men's)
Founder	Basketball Travelers, Inc.
No. of teams	8 men's teams, 8 women's teams
Country	United States
Venue(s)	Sports and Fitness Center, University of the Virgin Islands, St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands
Most recent champion(s)	Men: Kansas State Women: UConn (Reef) Kentucky (Island)
TV partner(s)	FloHoops.com
Official website	Paradise Jam

Kansas State is the defending men's champion. UConn and Kentucky are the defending women's champions in the Reef and Island divisions, respectively.

2017 venue change

The 2017 men's and women's tournaments were moved to the U.S. mainland due to heavy damage caused by Hurricanes Irma and Maria. The tournament organizers decided to solicit hosting bids from all participating teams in both tournaments, with each tournament intended to be hosted by a school in that specific event.[1][2] The substitute venue for the 2017 men's tournament was Vines Center at Liberty University in Lynchburg, Virginia.[3] The 2017 women's edition used two different venues, with the Reef division at the Charles E. Smith Center on the campus of George Washington University in Washington, D.C. and the Island division at the neutral Titan Field House at Eastern Florida State College in Melbourne, Florida, presumably after no school in the Island division submitted a bid.[4] The tournament moved back to the Virgin Islands in 2018.[5]

Format

The tournament began in 2000 as a women's tournament. In 2001 a men's tournament was added and both have been played every year since 2001. In its current format both tournaments feature eight teams playing three games.

Men's format

The men's tournament was introduced in 2001 with a six-team, three-game format. In 2006, the tournament was expanded to eight teams playing in a predetermined bracket. All teams play three games with the final day's games determining placement in all positions, first through eighth.

Women's format

The original women's format was a six-team tournament with teams divided into two groups of three for a round-robin competition. Group standings following the conclusion of the three games decided the entrants to the fifth-place, third-place, and championship games. In 2001, the women's tournament was altered to include three divisions - St. Thomas, St. John, and St. Croix. The following year the St. Croix division was dropped leaving two divisions. Over the years the women's tournament has featured anywhere from six to 10 teams. In 2008, the format was altered to its current form, featuring the Reef and Island divisions with four teams playing in each division. All teams play three games with the final day's games determining placement in all positions, first through fourth in each division.

Past tournaments

University of the Virgin Islands view from campus

Men's tournament

Year	Champion	Runner-Up	Score	Tournament MVP	All-Tournament Team
2001	Miami	Clemson	67–65	John Salmons, Miami	Ricky Cottrill, Eastern Michigan Eric Bush, UAB Rasual Butler, LaSalle Chris Hobbs, Clemson Darius Rice, Miami
2002	BYU	St. Bonaventure	66–57	Marques Green, St. Bonaventure	Mark Bigelow, BYU Travis Hansen, BYU Nick Moore, Toledo Pervis Pasco, Kansas St. Terry Taylor, Virginia Tech
2003	Boston College	Wichita State	84–81	Craig Smith, Boston College	Uka Agbai, Boston College Devin Green, Hampton Blake Hamilton, Monmouth Jamar Howard, Wichita State Rob Kampman, Wichita State
2004	Arkansas	Eastern Michigan	82–64	Ronnie Brewer, Arkansas	Eric Ferguson, Arkansas John Bowler, Eastern Michigan Craig Bradshaw, Winthrop Zac Schlader, Austin Peay Izik Ohanon, Saint Louis
2005	Wisconsin	Old Dominion	84–81	Alando Tucker, Wisconsin	Bryant Dunston, Fordham Alonzo Hird, Eastern Kentucky Mike Mercer, Georgia Alex Loughton, Old Dominion Kammron Taylor, Wisconsin
2006	Alabama	Xavier	63–56	Alonzo Gee, Alabama	Justin Ingram, Toledo Tyler Smith, Iowa Curtis Sumpter, Villanova Stanley Burrell, Xavier Ronald Steele, Alabama
2007	Baylor	Winthrop	62–54	Curtis Jerrells, Baylor	Aaron Bruce, Baylor Luke Harangody, Notre Dame Taj McCullough, Winthrop Jeremis Smith, Georgia Tech Jhamar Youngblood, Monmouth
2008	UConn	Wisconsin	76–57	Hasheem Thabeet, UConn	Jerome Dyson, UConn Trevon Hughes, Wisconsin Jack McClinton, Miami Kemba Walker, UConn Jeremy Wise, Southern Miss
2009	Purdue	Tennessee	73–72	E’Twaun Moore, Purdue	Kwadzo Ahelegbe, Northern Iowa Will Walker, DePaul Robbie Hummel, Purdue Wayne Chism, Tennessee Tyler Smith, Tennessee
2010	Old Dominion	Xavier	67–58	Ben Finney, Old Dominion	Jeff Robinson, Seton Hall Larry Anderson, Long Beach State Demontez Stitt, Clemson Frank Hassell, Old Dominion Tu Holloway, Xavier
2011	Marquette	Norfolk State	59–57	Darius Johnson-Odom, Marquette	J.R. Cadot, TCU Mike Scott, Virginia Terrance Henry, Ole Miss Kyle O'Quinn, Norfolk State Jae Crowder, Marquette
2012	New Mexico	UConn	66–60	Kendall Williams, New Mexico	Sherrod Wright, George Mason Lamont Jones, Iona Shabazz Napier, UConn Ryan Boatright, UConn Tony Snell, New Mexico
2013	Maryland	Providence	56–52	Dez Wells, Maryland	Evan Smotrycz, Maryland Ian Chiles, Morgan St. Tyler Harris, Providence Nate Buss, Northern Iowa Anthony Ireland, Loyola Marymount
2014	Seton Hall	Illinois State	84–80	Sterling Gibbs, Seton Hall	Damarcus Harrison, Clemson Jordan Mickey, LSU Trey Freeman, Old Dominion DeVaughn Akoon-Purcell Jr., Illinois St. Desi Rodriguez, Seton Hall
2015	South Carolina	Tulsa	83–75	Sindarius Thornwell, South Carolina	Dwayne Bacon, Florida State Juan’ya Green, Hofstra Khristian Smith, Indiana State Shaquille Harrison, Tulsa Mindaugas Kacinas, South Carolina
2016	Creighton	Ole Miss	86–77	Marcus Foster, Creighton	Cole Huff, Creighton Deandre Burnett, Ole Miss Josh Hawkinson, Washington State Aundre Jackson, Loyola Dennis Smith Jr., N.C. State
2017	Colorado	Mercer	79–70	McKinley Wright IV, Colorado
2018	Kansas State	Missouri	82–67	Dean Wade, Kansas State	Henry Coones, Kansas State Barry Brown Jr., Kansas State Xavier Sneed, Kansas State Kamau Stokes, Kansas State Cartier Diarra, Kansas State
2019	Nevada	Bowling Green	77–62	Jalen Harris, Nevada	Javon Freeman-Liberty, Valparaiso Jazz Johnson, Nevada Dylan Frye, Bowling Green Chris Vogt, Cincinnati Charles Bassey, Western Kentucky Jalen Harris, Nevada

Women's tournament

Year	Division	Champion	Runner-Up	MVP	All Stars
2000	N/A	Texas Tech	Southwest Missouri State	Jackie Stiles, Southwest Missouri State	N/A
2001	St. Thomas	Texas	USC	Stacy Stephens, Texas	N/A
	St. John	Arizona State	Kansas State	Amanda Levens, Arizona State	N/A
	St. Croix	Florida State	Saint Mary’s	Shinikki Whiting, Florida State	N/A
2002	St. Thomas	South Carolina	Boston College	Jocelyn Penn, South Carolina	Cristina Ciocan, South Carolina Jessalyn Deveny, Boston College Becky Gottstein, Boston College Petra Ujhelyi South Carolina Shaquala Williams, Oregon
	St. John	Duke	Arkansas	Alana Beard, Duke	Shameka Christon, Arkansas LaShondra Dixon, Hampton Okeisha Howard, Old Dominion India Lewis, Arkansas Iciss Tillis, Duke
2003	St. Thomas	Virginia Tech	Mississippi State	Carrie Mason, Virginia Tech	Tiania Burns, Mississippi State Jenny DeMuth, Indiana Lisa Kriener, Iowa State Ieva Kublina, Virginia Tech Tan White, Mississippi State
	St. John	Southwest Missouri State	West Virginia	Kari Koch, Southwest Missouri State	Kate Bulger, West Virginia Lesley Dickinson, James Madison Jenni Lingor, Southwest Missouri State Alex Stewart, Georgia Tech Fallon Stokes, Georgia Tech
2004	St. Thomas	North Carolina State	Louisville	Tiffany Stansbury, North Carolina State	Marquetta Dickens, North Carolina State Jazz Covington, Louisville Missy Taylor, Louisville Rachael Butler, Hampton Kiera Hardy, Nebraska
	St. John	Rutgers	Kentucky	Michelle Campbell, Rutgers	Chelsea Newton, Rutgers Matee Ajavon, Rutgers Sara Potts, Kentucky Shannon Howell, Oregon State Shannon Schlagel, South Dakota State
2005	St. Thomas	Minnesota	Virginia	Jamie Broback, Minnesota	Tiffany Sardin, Virginia Liz Podominick, Minnesota Denesha Kenion, Virginia Lauren Hill, Alabama Dellena Criner, Nevada
	St. John	Tennessee	Maryland	Candace Parker, Tennessee	Shanna Zolman, Tennessee Crystal Langhorne, Maryland Marissa Coleman, Maryland Lindsay Bowen, Michigan State Stephanie Hawk, Gonzaga
2006	St. Thomas	Arizona State & Rutgers‡ ‡In 2006, the final game was cancelled due to a family tragedy involving a family member of one of the Arizona State players.[6]		N/A	Amanda Brown, Penn State Essence Carson, Rutgers Briann January, Arizona State Crystal Kelly, Western Kentucky Kia Vaughn, Rutgers Emily Westerberg, Arizona State
	St. John	Marquette	Xavier	Christina Quaye, Marquette	DeWanna Bonner, Auburn Krystal Ellis, Marquette Miranda Green, Xavier Amber Harris, Xavier Carrie Moore, Western Michigan
2007	St. Thomas	UConn	Duke	Maya Moore, UConn	Chante Black, Duke Tina Charles, UConn T.J. Jordan, Old Dominion Ashley Morris, Temple Candice Wiggins, Stanford
	St. John	Wake Forest	Texas A&M	Alex Tchangoue, Wake Forest	Jamie Braun, Indiana Corinne Groves, Wake Forest Danielle Gant, Texas A&M Takia Starks, Texas A&M Kiki Stephens, Wichita State
2008	Reef	California	South Florida	Ashley Walker, California	Shantia Grace, South Florida Alexis Gray-Lawson, California Wendy Ausdemore, Iowa Lauren Grief, California Dominic Seals, Texas Tech
	Island	Wisconsin	Baylor	Alyssa Karel, Wisconsin	Rachel Allison, Baylor Rae Lin D’Alie, Wisconsin D’Nay Daniels, Central Florida Danielle Wilson, Baylor Laura Kurz, Villanova
2009	Reef	Rutgers	Southern Calif.	Brittany Ray, Rutgers	Chelsey Lee, Rutgers Brittainey Raven, Texas Kathleen Nash, Texas Ashley Corral, Southern Calif. Armelie Lumanu, Mississippi State
	Island	Notre Dame	Oklahoma	Skylar Diggins, Notre Dame	Danielle Robinson, Oklahoma Amanda Thompson, Oklahoma Valerie Nainima, South Carolina Melissa Lechlitner, Notre Dame Jené Morris, San Diego State
2010	Reef	Georgetown	Tennessee	Summer Rodgers, Georgetown	Monica McNutt, Georgetown Glory Johnson, Tennessee Meighan Simmons, Tennessee Alex Montgomery, Georgia Tech Raeshara Brown, Missouri
	Island	West Virginia	Iowa State	Liz Rapella, West Virginia	Madina Ali, West Virginia Kelsey Bolte, Iowa State Helena Sverrisdottir, TCU Chelsea Shine, Virginia
2011	Reef	Michigan	Washington State	Courtney Boylan, Michigan	Jeanette Jackson, Prairie View A&M Katherine Plouffe, Marquette Ashley Cook, Washington State Jenny Ryan, Michigan
	Island	Alabama	Seton Hall	Ericka Russell, Alabama	Tia Lewis, Old Dominion Kiara Young, Louisiana Tech Jasmine Crew, Seton Hall Jasmine Robinson, Alabama
2012	Reef	South Carolina	DePaul	Aleighsa Welch, South Carolina	Sarah Hansen, Florida Gulf Coast Nicole Hamilton, Hampton Brittany Hrynko, DePaul Ashley Bruner, South Carolina
	Island	UConn	Purdue	Breanna Stewart, UConn	Elizabeth Beynnon, Marist Sandra Garcia, Wake Forest Courtney Moses, Purdue Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis, UConn
2013	Reef	Syracuse	Texas	Brianna Butler, Syracuse	Brittney Sykes, Syracuse Courtney Walker, Texas A&M Brady Sanders, Texas Ariel Hearn, Memphis
	Island	Duke	Kansas	Tricia Liston, Duke	Elizabeth Williams, Duke Cece Harper, Kansas Niki Diguilio, Central Michigan Shatyra Hawkes, Xavier
2014	Reef	Kentucky	South Florida	Makayla Epps, Kentucky	Jennifer O’Neill, Kentucky Courtney Williams, South Florida Ivory Crawford, Illinois Sharane Campbell-Olds, Oklahoma
	Island	Florida Gulf Coast	Wichita State	Whitney Knight, Florida Gulf Coast	Jenna Cobb, Florida Gulf Coast Nikki Dixon, Clemson Kelsey Mitchell, Ohio State Alex Harden, Wichita State
2015	Reef	Maryland	South Dakota State	Brionna Jones, Maryland	Kerri Young, South Dakota State Macy Miller, South Dakota State Aysia Bugg, Pittsburgh Shatori Walker-Kimbrough, Maryland
	Island	Rutgers	Green Bay	Kahleah Copper, Rutgers	Lauren Moses, Virginia Kolby Morgan, Tulane Kaili Lukan, Green Bay Tyler Scaife, Rutgers
2016	Reef	Florida State	Michigan	Leticia Romero, Florida State[7]	Shakayla Thomas, Florida State[7] Katlelyn Flaherty, Michigan[7] Hallie Thome, Michigan[7] Jill Barta, Gonzaga[7]
	Island	Kansas State	UTEP	Kindred Wesemann, Kansas State[7]	Breanna Lewis, Kansas State[7] Chloe Jackson, LSU[7] Raigyne Moncrief, LSU[7] Jennifer Mathurin, NC State[7]
2017	Reef	Syracuse[8]	Vanderbilt	Tiana Mangakahia, Syracuse[9]	Cayla McMorris, Wisconsin[10] Rachel Bell, Vanderbilt[11] Kelli Prange, George Washington[12] Miranda Drummond, Syracuse[13]
	Island	West Virginia[14]	Virginia Tech	Teanna Muldrow, West Virginia[14]	Aubree Brown, Drexel[15] Tori Schickel, Butler[15] Taylor Emery, Virginia Tech[15] Chania Ray, West Virginia[15]

Future tournament fields

2019

[16] [17]

Men

• Bowling Green
• Cincinnati
• Fordham
• Grand Canyon
• Illinois State
• Nevada
• Valparaiso
• Western Kentucky

Women

• Baylor
• Indiana
• Louisville
• Oklahoma State
• Oregon
• South Carolina
• UT Arlington
• Washington State

References

1. "Storm damage forces Paradise Jam from Virgin Islands; host site to be named next week". ESPN.com. Associated Press. September 22, 2017. Retrieved September 23, 2017.
2. "Paradise Jam Relocated" (Press release). Basketball Travelers, Inc. September 22, 2017. Archived from the original on September 24, 2017. Retrieved September 23, 2017.
3. "Men's 2017 U.S. Virgin Islands Paradise Jam Relocated to Liberty University" (Press release). Basketball Travelers, Inc. September 29, 2017. Archived from the original on September 30, 2017. Retrieved September 30, 2017.
4. "Women's 2017 U.S. Virgin Islands Paradise Jam Sites Selected" (Press release). Basketball Travelers, Inc. October 4, 2017. Archived from the original on October 10, 2017. Retrieved October 9, 2017.
5. "2018 Paradise Jam Schedule Set For Men's Basketball - University of Pennsylvania".
6. "2006 Paradise Jam – Women". Retrieved 27 Dec 2012.
7. Gardner, James (2016-11-27). "Kansas State, FSU Win Paradise Jam Women's Tourney". St. Croix Source. Retrieved 2018-02-09.
8. "Syracuse Women's Basketball Wins Paradise Jam Reef Division". Troy Nunes Is An Absolute Magician. Retrieved 2018-02-07.
9. "Syracuse women's basketball sweeps Paradise Jam by beating George Washington". syracuse.com. Retrieved 2018-02-08.
10. "Badgers sink Commodores in overtime". University of Wisconsin. Retrieved 2018-02-08.
11. "Women's Basketball Heads to Saint Louis". Retrieved 2018-02-08.
12. "Colonial of the Week Presented by Capgemini: Kelli Prange". Retrieved 2018-02-08.
13. "Orange Host Northwestern For B1G/ACC Challenge". Cuse. Retrieved 2018-02-08.
14. "Mountaineers Down Hokies at Paradise Jam - West Virginia University". West Virginia University. Retrieved 2018-02-07.
15. "West Virginia wins the Paradise Jam title at EFSC". EFSC Titans. 2017-11-25. Retrieved 2018-02-08.
16. "Men's 2019 Paradise Jam Field Announced". November 8, 2018.
17. "Women's 2019 Paradise Jam Field Announced". May 13, 2019.

External links

• Official site of the U.S. Virgin Island Paradise Jam Tournament