TBT, Louisville Alumni Team 'The Ville' Returning to Freedom Hall in 2024

TBT made their city of Louisville debut last summer.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The Basketball Tournament, along with their Louisville men's basketball program's alumni team "The Ville," is running it back.

TBT announced Tuesday that the city of Louisville and Freedom Hall will once again serve as one of the eight regional host sites for the 2024 iteration of the event.

The Louisville Regional will take place July 19-24, with the winner of the eight-team regional facing the winner of the recently-announced Lexington Regional in the TBT quarterfinals.

"We are ecstatic to return to Louisville this summer." TBT founder and CEO Jon Mugar said in a release. "The energy at Freedom Hall was raucous and reminded me of the Boston Garden in the 1980s. Plus, The Ville's Round 3 game got a 12.4 share in Louisville, which is a record for us. We are all-in on Louisville!"

TBT made their debut in the city of Louisville last summer, with Freedom Hall serving as a regional and quarterfinal host in the 2023 iteration of the event, and The Ville being the first Louisville alumni team to ever compete in the event. The team - whose 2023 roster featured former Louisville greats such as Russ Smith and Peyton Siva - made it all the way to the regional championship.

TBT is a 64-team, $1 million winner-take-all tournament that has seen its popularity rise in recent years after it was first established in 2014. While anyone over 18 years old and not currently on an NBA roster can play, teams more often than not consist of former collegiate and professional basketball players.

It is also home to the Elam Ending, which is an alternate way to conclude basketball games without them turning into an intentional foul fest. At the first dead ball under four minutes in the fourth quarter, a target score for both teams is then established by adding eight points to the leading team’s score.

(Photo of Chane Behanan: Ben J. Solo via TBT)

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