Big Ten Daily: Michigan Basketball to Participate in Jumpman Invitational

The Charlotte Sports Foundation announced a three-year deal with Jordan Brand on Thursday to host the Jumpman Invitational, a holiday college basketball event featuring four schools sponsored by Jordan Brand.

Florida, Oklahoma, Michigan, and North Carolina will headline the first ever Jumpman Invitational, per release. Event will be held in Charlotte in 2022 and feature both men's and women's programs.
— Jon Rothstein (@JonRothstein) July 8, 2021

The four schools to sign partnership deals for both football and basketball were Michigan, Florida, North Carolina and Oklahoma. The inaugural gathering for these programs is scheduled for Dec. 20-21, 2022, and will include the men's and women's basketball teams.

“We’re incredibly excited to bring what we believe will quickly become the marquee college basketball event of the holiday season to the Queen City,” Executive Director of the Charlotte Sports Foundation Danny Morrison said in a release. “These are four of the most storied and competitive programs in the game, and we’re looking forward to the interconference play.”

The games will be held at the Spectrum Center, the home of the NBA's Charlotte Hornets. The event will take place in 2023 and 2024 as well.

The schedule will have two games each night, meaning every team will play one game at the event. Matchups and game times are still yet to be determined, but the games will be aired on ESPN Networks.

Rutgers Basketball Stars Make NBA Draft Decisions

After testing the 2021 NBA Draft process, Rutgers basketball players Ron Harper Jr. and Geo Baker are returning to the Scarlet Knights next season. The program earned a trip to the NCAA Tournament last season.

Harper and Baker were two of the team's top-three scorers last season. The third, Jacob Young, elected to transfer to Oregon.

Harper started all 27 games for the team during the 2020-21 season. He averaged a team-high 14.9 points per game while also recording career-highs with 5.9 rebounds and 1.6 assists per contest.

Rutgers' Ron Harper Jr. tells me that he's withdrawing from the NBA Draft process and returning to school next season.
— Jon Rothstein (@JonRothstein) July 7, 2021

Baker has averaged at least 10 points per game in all four of his seasons with the Scarlet Knights. Last season, he averaged 10.4 points, 3.2 assists and 3.1 rebounds per game. He also notched 1.2 steals per contest.

Baker announced his decision to return to Rutgers in a Tweet below.

If Rutgers can make the NCAA Tournament next season, it would be its first time earning appearances in back-to-back seasons since 1974-75 and 1975-76. The 1976 team recorded a 31-2 overall record and made it to the Final Four.

Illinois Guard Ayo Dosunumu Works Out with Indiana Pacers

The Indiana Pacers continued their pre-draft workouts on Wednesday, and Illinois guard Ayo Dosunmu was among six players working out with the team. He sat down with the Pacers to record an interview in a Tweet below.

Ayo Dosunmu (ayodos_11) had a great season for @IlliniMBB and thinks his playmaking and ability to guard multiple positions sets up him up well for the NBA.#GoldOnTheClock pic.twitter.com/uNVePSZv5S
— Indiana Pacers (@Pacers) July 7, 2021

Dosunmu was a consensus All-American after the 2020-21 basketball season. He averaged 20.1 points, 6.3 rebounds and 5.3 assists per game. He recorded the first triple-double for Illinois since 2001 and joined Magic Johnson as the only players with multiple triple-doubles during Big Ten play.

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