The U.S. Virgin Islands Paradise Jam is a

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college basketball In United States colleges, top-tier basketball is governed by collegiate athletic bodies including National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the United States Collegiate Athleti ...

tournament that takes place annually in late November. The men's tournament typically takes place the week before

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, with the women's tournament occurring during Thanksgiving week. It is held in St. Thomas at the Sports and Fitness Center on the campus of the

University of the Virgin Islands The University of the Virgin Islands (or UVI) is a public historically black land-grant university in the United States Virgin Islands. History UVI was founded as the College of the Virgin Islands on March 16, 1962. In 1986, it officially be ...

. Colorado State is the defending men's champion.

Texas A&M Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, or TAMU) is a public, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System in 1948. As of late 2021, T ...

and

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are the defending women's champions in the Reef and Island divisions, respectively.

Format

Paradise Jam began in 2000 as a women's basketball tournament; a men's tournament was added the following year. In its current format, both tournaments feature eight teams that each play three games.

Men's format

The men's tournament was introduced in 2001 with a six-team, three-game group play format. In 2006, the tournament was expanded to eight teams and a bracket format was adopted. All teams play three games in the tournament, with the final day's games determining the tournament standings: a championship game, third-place game, fifth-place game, and seventh-place game are all played.

Women's format

The format of the women's tournament has changed multiple times throughout the existence of Paradise Jam. The first tournament in 2000 featured four teams that played two games each. 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, and two divisions were used going forward. In 2008, the format was adjusted to its current form, which features the Reef and Island divisions with four teams playing in each division. All teams play three games in the tournament, with the final day's games determining placement in all positions, first through fourth in each division.

Tournament history

University of the Virgin Islands view from campus

Men's tournament

*The 2020 tournament was condensed and played at

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due to the

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Women's tournament

Tournaments held outside of the Virgin Islands

2017

The 2017 men's and women's tournaments were moved to the U.S. mainland due to heavy damage caused by Hurricanes Irma and

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. The tournament organizers decided to solicit hosting bids from all participating teams in both tournaments, with each tournament intended to be hosted by a participating school. The substitute venue for the 2017 men's tournament was Vines Center at

Liberty University Liberty University (LU) is a private Baptist university in Lynchburg, Virginia. It is affiliated with the Southern Baptist Conservatives of Virginia ( Southern Baptist Convention). Founded in 1971 by Jerry Falwell Sr. and Elmer L. Towns, Lib ...

in Lynchburg, Virginia. The 2017 women's tournament took place in two different venues, with the Reef division playing at the Charles E. Smith Center on the campus of

George Washington University The George Washington University (GW or GWU) is a Private university, private University charter#Federal, federally chartered research university in Washington, D.C. Chartered in 1821 by the United States Congress, GWU is the largest Higher educat ...

and the Island division at the neutral Titan Field House at

Eastern Florida State College Eastern Florida State College, formerly Brevard Community College, is a public college in Brevard County, Florida. It is a member of the Florida College System and has campuses in Cocoa, Melbourne, Palm Bay, and Titusville, as well as a Virt ...

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, presumably after no school in the Island division submitted a bid. The tournament moved back to the Virgin Islands in 2018.

2020

Due to the

, the 2020 men's tournament was relocated to

, as travel restrictions prevented the tournament from being held in the U.S. Virgin Islands as normal. The tournament took place November 26–28, 2020 at the

The tournament was condensed from the typical eight teams to just four teams — Belmont,

George Mason George Mason (October 7, 1792) was an American planter, politician, Founding Father, and delegate to the U.S. Constitutional Convention of 1787, one of the three delegates present who refused to sign the Constitution. His writings, including ...

, Howard, and Queens (N.C.). Belmont went undefeated, beating the three other teams to win the 2020 men's tournament. The 2020 women's tournament was cancelled.

References

External links

Official site of the U.S. Virgin Island Paradise Jam Tournament
{{coord, 18.340096, -64.97306, display=title College men's basketball competitions in the United States College women's basketball competitions in the United States College basketball competitions Recurring sporting events established in 2000 Basketball in the United States Virgin Islands 2000 establishments in the United States Virgin Islands