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The Horizon League men's basketball conference tournament is held annually at the end of the men's college basketball regular season. The tournament has been played each year since 1980. The winner of the tournament is designated the Horizon League Tournament Champion and receives the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA men's basketball tournament. The finals of the tournament are typically among the first held before the field for the NCAA tournament is announced.
 |
| Horizon League men's basketball tournament | |
|---|---|
| Sport | College basketball |
| Conference | Horizon League |
| Number of teams | 12 |
| Format | Single-elimination tournament |
| Current stadium | Indiana Farmers Coliseum |
| Current location | Indianapolis, Indiana |
| Played | 1980–present |
| Last contest | 2024 |
| Current champion | Oakland (1) |
| Most championships | Butler Bulldogs (7) |
| TV partner(s) | ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, and ESPN+ |
| Official website | https://horizonleague.org/tournaments/?id=63 |
| Host stadiums | |
| Roberts Municipal Stadium (1980–1983) Campus locations (1981, 2003–2015, 2019–present) Frederickson Fieldhouse (1981) Riverfront Coliseum (1981, 1992) Mabee Center (1982, 1985) UIC Pavilion (1984, 1999–2000) Market Square Arena (1986–1988, 1993) University of Dayton Arena (1989–1991) Hinkle Fieldhouse (1994, 2004, 2008–2010) Nutter Center (1995–1997, 2001, 2007) Brown County Veterans Memorial Arena (1998) CSU Convocation Center (2002) U.S. Cellular Arena (2003–2006, 2011) Athletics–Recreation Center (2012–2013, 2015) Resch Center (2014) Joe Louis Arena (2016–2017) Little Caesars Arena (2018–2019) Indiana Farmers Coliseum (2020–present) | |
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Through 2002, the entire tournament was hosted at a single venue. From 2003 through 2015, all first-round matches were played at the home court of the higher-seeded team involved. Hosting rights for the quarterfinals and semifinals were awarded to the winner of the regular season championship. The championship game was played at the home arena of the higher remaining seed. This format rewarded the regular-season champion and runner-up with a double-bye into the semifinals. The regular-season champion received the added benefit of home-court advantage in the semifinals, plus a home-court final if it won its semifinal.
Beginning in 2009, the Horizon League secured an entitlement sponsorship of its men's and women's basketball tournaments with Speedway SuperAmerica, a major gas and convenience store chain throughout the midwest United States, officially changing the name of the tournaments to "The Speedway Horizon League Men's/Women's Basketball Championship".
From 2016 to 2019, the Horizon League tournament was held in Detroit under a five-year deal, beginning at Joe Louis Arena, adding the women's tournament in 2017 (with both events marketed under the title Motor City Madness), and moving to the newly-opened Little Caesars Arena beginning in 2018.[1][2][3][4]
However, the contract with Detroit was ended a year early;[5] the league reopened bidding for the men's and women's tournaments in 2018, with the new contract taking effect with the 2019–20 season.[6] On January 25, 2019, the conference announced that Indianapolis would host the men's and women's semifinals and final from 2020 to 2022, with Indiana Farmers Coliseum as the venue.[7] In 2022, the deal was extended through 2026.[8]
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| Team | Championships | Years |
|---|---|---|
| Butler | 7 | 1997, 1998, 2000, 2001, 2008, 2010, 2011 |
| Xavier | 6 | 1983, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1991 |
| Milwaukee | 4 | 2003, 2005, 2006, 2014 |
| Northern Kentucky | 4 | 2017, 2019, 2020, 2023 |
| Wright State | 3 | 2007, 2018, 2022 |
| Detroit Mercy | 3 | 1994, 1999, 2012 |
| Evansville | 3 | 1982, 1992, 1993 |
| Cleveland State | 2 | 2009, 2021 |
| Green Bay | 2 | 1995, 2016 |
| Oral Roberts | 2 | 1980, 1984 |
| UIC | 2 | 2002, 2004 |
| Valparaiso | 2 | 2013, 2015 |
| Dayton | 1 | 1990 |
| Loyola | 1 | 1985 |
| Northern Illinois | 1 | 1996 |
| Oakland | 1 | 2024 |
| Oklahoma City | 1 | 1981 |
| Duquesne | 0 | |
| IU Indy | 0 | |
| La Salle | 0 | |
| Marquette | 0 | |
| Purdue Fort Wayne | 0 | |
| Robert Morris | 0 | |
| Saint Louis | 0 | |
| Youngstown State | 0 |
- Notes
- Current conference members in bold.
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Current members
- Through 2020 tournament finals
| School | Record | Winning pct | Championships |
|---|---|---|---|
| Detroit | 33–37 | .471 | 3 |
| Wright State | 28–24 | .538 | 3 |
| Green Bay | 24–25 | .490 | 2 |
| Milwaukee | 23–20 | .535 | 4 |
| Cleveland State | 19–23 | .452 | 3 |
| Northern Kentucky | 10–3 | .769 | 3 |
| Oakland | 7–9 | .438 | 0 |
| Youngstown State | 7–21 | .250 | 0 |
| Purdue Fort Wayne | 2–2 | .500 | 0 |
| Robert Morris | 1–2 | .333 | 0 |
| IU Indy | 0–5 | .000 | 0 |
Former members
| School | Record | Winning pct | Championships |
|---|---|---|---|
| Butler | 30–25 | .545 | 7 |
| Loyola | 25–32 | .439 | 1 |
| Xavier | 24–10 | .706 | 6 |
| UIC | 24–25 | .490 | 2 |
| Evansville | 15–12 | .556 | 3 |
| Valparaiso | 8–6 | .571 | 2 |
| Oral Roberts | 7–6 | .538 | 2 |
| Saint Louis | 7–8 | .467 | 0 |
| Northern Illinois | 5–2 | .714 | 1 |
| Dayton | 5–4 | .556 | 1 |
| Oklahoma City | 5–4 | .556 | 1 |
| Duquesne | 1–1 | .500 | 0 |
| Marquette | 0–2 | .000 | 0 |
| La Salle | 0–3 | .000 | 0 |
| Year | Champion | Seed | Score | Runner-up | Seed | Tournament MVP | Site |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | Oral Roberts | 2 | 103–93 | Loyola | 1 | Calvin Garrett, Oral Roberts | Roberts Municipal Stadium – Evansville, IN |
| 1981 | Oklahoma City | 2 | 82–76 | Xavier | 1 | Anthony Hicks, Xavier | Opening round: campus locations Semifinals: Frederickson Fieldhouse – Oklahoma City, OK Championship: Riverfront Coliseum – Cincinnati, OH |
| 1982 | Evansville | 1 | 81–72 | Loyola | 3 | Brad Leaf, Evansville | Mabee Center – Tulsa, OK |
| 1983 | Xavier | 2 | 82–76 | Loyola | 1 | Alfredrick Hughes, Loyola | Roberts Municipal Stadium – Evansville, IN |
| 1984 | Oral Roberts | 1 | 82–76 | Xavier | 3 | Sam Potter, Oral Roberts | UIC Pavilion – Chicago, IL |
| 1985 | Loyola | 1 | 89–83 | Oral Roberts | 3 | Alfredrick Hughes, Loyola | Mabee Center – Tulsa, OK |
| 1986 | Xavier | 1 | 74–66 | Saint Louis | 2 | Byron Larkin, Xavier | Market Square Arena – Indianapolis, IN |
| 1987 | Xavier | 3 | 81–69 | Saint Louis | 4 | ||
| 1988 | Xavier | 1 | 122–96 | Detroit | 6 | ||
| 1989 | Xavier | 3 | 85–78 | Evansville | 1 | Tyrone Hill, Xavier | University of Dayton Arena – Dayton, OH |
| 1990 | Dayton | 2 | 98–89 | Xavier | 1 | Negele Knight, Dayton | |
| 1991 | Xavier | 1 | 81–68 | Saint Louis | 3 | Jamie Gladden, Xavier | |
| 1992 | Evansville | 2 | 95–76 | Butler | 3 | Parrish Casebier, Evansville | Riverfront Coliseum – Cincinnati, OH |
| 1993 | Evansville | 2 | 80–69 | Xavier | 1 | Market Square Arena – Indianapolis, IN | |
| 1994 | Detroit | 4 | 72–63 | Evansville | 2 | Andy Elkins, Evansville | Hinkle Fieldhouse – Indianapolis, IN |
| 1995 | Green Bay | 3 | 73–59 | Wright State | 8 | Jeff Nordgaard, Green Bay | Nutter Center – Dayton, OH |
| 1996 | Northern Illinois | 3 | 84–63 | Detroit | 5 | Chris Coleman, Northern Illinois | |
| 1997 | Butler | 1 | 69–68 | UIC | 3 | Kelsey Wilson, Butler | |
| 1998 | Butler | 3 | 70–51 | Green Bay | 4 | Jon Neuhouser, Butler | Brown County Veterans Memorial Arena – Green Bay, WI |
| 1999 | Detroit | 1 | 72–65 | Butler | 2 | Rashad Phillips, Detroit | UIC Pavilion – Chicago, IL |
| 2000 | Butler | 1 | 62–43 | Detroit | 3 | Mike Marshall, Butler | |
| 2001 | Butler | 1 | 53–38 | Detroit | 2 | LaVall Jordan, Butler | Nutter Center – Dayton, OH |
| 2002 | UIC | 6 | 76–75 (OT) | Loyola | 5 | Cedrick Banks, UIC | CSU Convocation Center – Cleveland, OH |
| 2003 | Milwaukee | 2 | 69–52 | Butler | 1 | Clay Tucker, Milwaukee | Opening round: campus locations Quarterfinals, Semifinals, Championship: U.S. Cellular Arena – Milwaukee, WI |
| 2004 | UIC | 2 | 65–62 | Milwaukee | 1 | Armond Williams, UIC | Opening round: campus locations Quarterfinals, Semifinals: Hinkle Fieldhouse – Indianapolis, IN Championship: U.S. Cellular Arena – Milwaukee, WI |
| 2005 | Milwaukee | 1 | 59–58 | Detroit | 3 | Joah Tucker, Milwaukee | Opening round: campus locations Quarterfinals, Semifinals, Championship: U.S. Cellular Arena – Milwaukee, WI |
| 2006 | Milwaukee | 1 | 87–71 | Butler | 2 | Adrian Tigert, Milwaukee | |
| 2007 | Wright State | 1 | 60–55 | Butler | 2 | DaShaun Wood, Wright State | Opening round: campus locations Quarterfinals, Semifinals, Championship: Nutter Center – Dayton, OH |
| 2008 | Butler | 1 | 70–55 | Cleveland State | 2 | Mike Green, Butler | Opening round: campus locations Quarterfinals, Semifinals, Championship: Hinkle Fieldhouse – Indianapolis, IN |
| 2009 | Cleveland State | 3 | 57–54 | Butler | 1 | Cedric Jackson, Cleveland State | |
| 2010 | Butler | 1 | 70–45 | Wright State | 2 | Matt Howard, Butler | |
| 2011 | Butler | 2 | 59–44 | Milwaukee | 1 | Opening round: campus locations Quarterfinals, Semifinals, Championship: U.S. Cellular Arena – Milwaukee, WI | |
| 2012 | Detroit | 3 | 70–50 | Valparaiso | 1 | Ray McCallum, Jr., Detroit | Opening round: campus locations Quarterfinals, Semifinals, Championship: Athletics–Recreation Center – Valparaiso, IN |
| 2013 | Valparaiso | 1 | 62–54 | Wright State | 3 | Erik Buggs, Valparaiso | |
| 2014 | Milwaukee | 5 | 69–63 | Wright State | 3 | Jordan Aaron, Milwaukee | Opening round: campus locations Quarterfinals, Semifinals: Resch Center – Green Bay, WI Championship: Nutter Center – Dayton, OH |
| 2015 | Valparaiso | 1 | 54–44 | Green Bay | 2 | Alec Peters, Valparaiso | Opening round: campus locations Quarterfinals, Semifinals, Championship: Athletics–Recreation Center – Valparaiso, IN |
| 2016 | Green Bay | 4 | 78–69 | Wright State | 3 | Jordan Fouse, Green Bay | Joe Louis Arena – Detroit, MI |
| 2017 | Northern Kentucky | 4 | 59–53 | Milwaukee | 10 | Lavone Holland II, Northern Kentucky | |
| 2018 | Wright State | 2 | 74–57 | Cleveland State | 8 | Grant Benzinger, Wright State | Little Caesars Arena – Detroit, MI |
| 2019 | Northern Kentucky | 2 | 77–66 | Wright State | 1 | Drew McDonald, Northern Kentucky | Opening round: campus locations Semifinals, Championship: Little Caesars Arena – Detroit, MI |
| 2020 | Northern Kentucky | 2 | 71–62 | UIC | 4 | Jalen Tate, Northern Kentucky | Opening round: campus locations Semifinals, Championship: Indiana Farmers Coliseum – Indianapolis, IN |
| 2021 | Cleveland State | 1 | 80–69 | Oakland | 3 | Torrey Patton, Cleveland State | |
| 2022 | Wright State | 4 | 72–71 | Northern Kentucky | 3 | Grant Basile, Wright State | |
| 2023 | Northern Kentucky | 4 | 63–61 | Cleveland State | 3 | Marques Warrick, Northern Kentucky | |
| 2024 | Oakland | 1 | 83–76 | Milwaukee | 6 | Trey Townsend, Oakland |
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Horizon League members past and present have made several Sweet 16, Elite Eight, and Final Four appearances. Charter member Loyola also won the 1963 NCAA tournament.
Current tournaments
| Season | NCAA Tournament | National Invitation Tournament | College Basketball Invitational | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team (seed) | Finish | Team (seed) | Finish | Team (seed) | Finish | |
| 1980 | Loyola | First round | Tournament not held | |||
| 1981 | ||||||
| 1982 | Evansville (10) | First round | Oral Roberts | First round | ||
| 1983 | Xavier (12) | Preliminary round | ||||
| 1984 | Oral Roberts (11) | First round | Xavier | Quarterfinals | ||
| 1985 | Loyola (4) | Sweet 16 | Butler | First round | ||
| 1986 | Xavier (12) | First round | ||||
| 1987 | Xavier (13) | Second round | St. Louis | Second round | ||
| 1988 | Xavier (11) | First round | Evansville | First round | ||
| 1989 | Evansville (11) | Second round | St. Louis | Runner-Up | ||
| Xavier (14) | Second round | |||||
| 1990 | Xavier (6) | Sweet 16 | St. Louis | Runner-Up | ||
| Dayton (12) | Second round | Marquette | First round | |||
| 1991 | Xavier (14) | Second round | Butler | First round | ||
| 1992 | Evansville (8) | First round | Butler | First round | ||
| 1993 | Xavier (9) | Second round | ||||
| Evansville (14) | First round | |||||
| 1994 | Xavier | Quarterfinals | ||||
| Evansville | First round | |||||
| 1995 | Green Bay (14) | First round | ||||
| Xavier (11) | First round | |||||
| 1996 | Green Bay (8) | First round | ||||
| Northern Illinois (14) | First round | |||||
| 1997 | Butler (14) | First round | ||||
| 1998 | UIC (9) | First round | ||||
| Detroit (10) | Second round | |||||
| Butler (13) | First round | |||||
| 1999 | Detroit (12) | First round | Butler | Quarterfinals | ||
| 2000 | Butler (12) | First round | ||||
| 2001 | Butler (10) | First round | Detroit | Semifinals | ||
| 2002 | UIC (15) | First round | Butler | Second round | ||
| Detroit | First round | |||||
| 2003 | Butler (12) | Sweet 16 | UIC | First round | ||
| Milwaukee (12) | First round | |||||
| 2004 | UIC (13) | First round | Milwaukee | First round | ||
| 2005 | Milwaukee (12) | Sweet 16 | ||||
| 2006 | Milwaukee (11) | Second round | Butler (8) | First round | ||
| 2007 | Butler (5) | Sweet 16 | ||||
| Wright State (14) | First round | |||||
| 2008 | Butler (7) | Second round | Cleveland State (6) | First round | Valparaiso (4) | Second round |
| 2009 | Butler (9) | First round | Green Bay (2) | First round | ||
| Cleveland State (13) | Second round | |||||
| 2010 | Butler (5) | Nat'l Runner-Up | Green Bay (3) | Second round | ||
| 2011 | Butler (8) | Nat'l Runner-Up | Cleveland State (2) | Second round | ||
| Milwaukee (5) | First round | |||||
| 2012 | Detroit (15) | First round | Cleveland State (6) | First round | Butler | Semifinals |
| Valparaiso (7) | First round | Milwaukee | First round | |||
| 2013 | Valparaiso (14) | First round | Detroit (6) | First round | Wright State | Semifinals |
| 2014 | Milwaukee (15) | First round | Green Bay (4) | First round | ||
| 2015 | Valparaiso (13) | First round | Green Bay (5) | First round | ||
| 2016 | Green Bay (14) | First round | Valparaiso (1) | Runner-Up | ||
| 2017 | Northern Kentucky (15) | First round | Oakland (7) | Second round | Green Bay | First round |
| Valparaiso (7) | First round | UIC | First round | |||
| 2018 | Wright State (13) | First round | Northern Kentucky (7) | First round | ||
| 2019 | Northern Kentucky (14) | First round | Wright State (7) | First round | ||
| 2020 | Canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic | |||||
| 2021 | Cleveland State (15) | First round | ||||
| 2022 | Wright State (16) | First round | Cleveland State (7) | First round | Purdue Fort Wayne (16) | First round |
| 2023 | Northern Kentucky (16) | First round | Youngstown State (8) | First round | Cleveland State (9) | First round |
| Milwaukee (11) | Quarterfinals | |||||
Defunct tournaments
| Season | CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament | Vegas 16 | The Basketball Classic | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | Finish | Team | Finish | Team | Finish | |
| 2009 | Tournament not held |
Tournament not held | ||||
| 2010 | ||||||
| 2011 | Valparaiso | First round | ||||
| 2012 | ||||||
| 2013 | Youngstown State | Second round | ||||
| UIC | Second round | |||||
| Green Bay | First round | |||||
| 2014 | Valparaiso | First round | ||||
| Wright State | Second round | |||||
| Cleveland State | First round | |||||
| 2015 | Cleveland State | Second round | ||||
| Oakland | First round | |||||
| 2016 | Oakland | Runner-Up | ||||
| 2017 | Tournament not held | |||||
| 2018 | UIC | Runner-Up | ||||
| 2019 | Green Bay | Runner-Up | ||||
| 2020 | Tournament not held | |||||
| 2021 | ||||||
| 2022 | Detroit Mercy | First round | ||||
| Youngstown State | Quarterfinals | |||||
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Television
| Year | Network | Play-by-play | Analyst |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | ESPN | Jordan Bernfield | David Padgett |
| 2023 | Mark Adams | ||
| 2022 | Bob Wischusen | ||
| 2021 | Jason Benetti | Chris Spatola | |
| 2020 | Dan Dakich | ||
| 2019 | Rich Hollenberg | Fran Fraschilla | |
| 2018 | |||
| 2017 | Bob Wischusen | ||
| 2016 | Mike Tirico | Dan Dakich | |
| 2015 | Bob Wischusen | Jim Calhoun | |
| 2014 | Malcolm Huckaby | ||
| 2013[9] | Stephen Bardo | ||
| 2012[10] | Mark Jones | ||
| 2011[11] | Bob Wischusen | ||
| 2010[12] | Jon Sciambi | LaPhonso Ellis | |
| 2009[13] | Ron Franklin | Fran Fraschilla | |
| 2008[14] | Terry Gannon | Stephen Bardo | |
| 2007[15] | |||
| 2006[16] | Dave Barnett | Tim McCormick and Jason Williams | |
| 2005[17] | Dave Strader | Stephen Bardo | |
| 2004[18] | Dave Revsine | Bob Valvano | |
| 2003[19] |
Radio
| Year | Network | Play-by-play | Analyst |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Westwood One | Wayne Larrivee | Will Perdue |
| 2012 [20] | Dave Ryan | Pete Gillen | |
| 2011[21] | Wayne Larrivee | ||
| 2010[22] | |||
| 2009[23] | Mark Champion |
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