UCLA Men's Basketball: Bruins Switching Location for Maui Invitational Amidst Wildfire Concerns

This year's Maui Invitational features a stellar field...

In the wake of the horrific wildfire situation in Hawaii, the island of Maui was sadly ravaged by damage. 

A multitude of structures have been burned to the ground. Thousands of people have been displaced from their homes. Many more are currently missing. Longstanding businesses are no longer in operation because of a lack of resources. 

In terms of events scheduled to be held on Maui, the annual Maui Invitational -- one of College Basketball's biggest non-conference tournaments -- has officially been moved away from Maui. Veteran basketball pundit Andy Katz breaks down the news below in this video: 

This year’s Tournament will shift to the island of Oʻahu while its traditional home court – the Lahaina Civic Center – continues to serve as a critical hub for Maui wildfire recovery efforts.

Click here for more information about the relocation: https://t.co/6GXZOZStlx pic.twitter.com/T8206sBAbZ

— Maui Invitational (@MauiInv) September 15, 2023

According to reports, the tournament will be moved away from the Lahaina Civic Center. Some had speculated that the tournament would be held in Las Vegas. 

However, as the reports indicate, the tournament will stay within Hawaii -- instead of being played in Honolulu at the Stan Sheriff Center. 

Aside from the horrible damage sustained to the area (and thus the tourist sector in terms of hotel usage/availability), the facility itself is said to currently be used as a center for helping those recover from the atrocities. 

The 2023 @MauiInv will be played in Honolulu at the Stan Sheriff Center

The Lahaina Civic Center will continue to serve as a critical hub for Maui wildfire recovery efforts 🙏 pic.twitter.com/V0ysKVjf36

— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) September 15, 2023

While basketball is clearly secondary to the recovery efforts, the tournament itself should be quite entertaining. 

UCLA is going to be the youngest team in what's considered to be an absolutely loaded field. The Bruins will open the tournament playing against a very talented Marquette squad.

The winner of that game will square off versus the victor of the Kansas-Chaminade game. On the other side of the bracket, Tennessee will play Syracuse, and Purdue to go toe-to-toe with Gonzaga.

Without a doubt, this competition will be a stiff test for all teams involved. It is a field comprised of multiple teams expected to be title contenders.