FORT MYERS, Fla. — The St. Bonaventure men’s basketball team joins Michigan State and North Carolina as part of the 2025 Fort Myers Tip-Off Beach Division field, with games set for Nov. 25 and 27 at Suncoast Credit Union Arena on the campus of Florida SouthWestern State College. The fourth team participating in the event will be announced in the coming weeks.

The eighth annual Fort Myers Tip-Off will feature a set of four pre-determined matchups as part of its Beach Division schedule. St. Bonaventure will face North Carolina on Nov. 25, while the Tar Heels will face the Spartans on Thanksgiving Day, Nov. 27. The Spartans’ matchup on Nov. 25 and the Bonnies’ matchup on Nov. 27 will be revealed at a later date. Each game of the Fort Myers Tip-Off Beach Division will air on the FOX Sports family of networks, with tip times and TV designations to be announced.

It will be just the second all-time meeting between St. Bonaventure and North Carolina, with the Tar Heels scoring a 91-72 victory over the Bonnies in the 1968 NCAA Tournament.

Led by head coach Mark Schmidt, who will be entering his 19th season with the program in 2025-26, St. Bonaventure has been one of the most consistent programs in the Atlantic 10 in his tenure. The Bonnies have won 324 games in Schmidt’s 18 seasons, reached the 20-wins mark in three of the last four seasons

Washington D.C.

Atlantic 10 Conference and advanced to postseason play five times in the last nine years (not including COVID season). Last year, the Bonnies finished with 22 wins — tied for thirdmost in the Schmidt era and tied for seventh-most in single-season program history — and earned an NIT bid.

“We are excited for the opportunity to compete in one of the premier early season MTE’s at the Fort Myers Tip-Off in November,” Schmidt said. “Getting North Carolina on a neutral floor to open the event will be a great test for our guys and a good chance to showcase our brand on the national stage. The second game will provide us with another quality opponent as well. I’m sure our strong alumni base in the Southwest Florida area and Bonnies fans all over the country will show up in packs to support the guys on the floor. Thanks to Mark Starsiak and Intersport for putting this together for the Bonnies.

It will be a great holiday week in Fort Myers!”

The Tournament also announced travel packages for the 2025 event will be available beginning June 12. Official fan travel packages include tickets to both of a chosen team’s games, hotel accommodations and parking at Suncoast Credit Union Arena. For complete travel package information and to register for priority access, log on to www. fortmyerstipoff.com/ travel. At this time, the only way to guarantee tickets to the Fort Myers Tip-Off, which sold out last year, is through official fan travel packages, which offer a variety of hotel night options. Ticket packages, if available, will go on sale this fall.

The Westin Cape Coral Resort at Marina Village and the Marriott Sanibel Harbor Resort and Spa will serve as the host hotels for the Beach Division teams of the Fort Myers Tip-Off, allowing fans to stay where the teams stay and experience resort life to the fullest. Additionally, the Luminary Hotel & Co., a boutique hotel located in downtown Fort Myers, and the Pink Shell Resort and Margaritaville Beach Resort, resort destinations located on beautiful Fort Myers Beach, are available lodging options for fans to choose their ideal vacation experience.

The Fort Myers Tip-Off, launched in 2018, has become a staple of the early season college basketball calendar, regularly bringing championship- caliber programs to Southwest Florida on an annual basis. Gonzaga, Kansas, Auburn, 2025 national champion Florida, Ohio State, Marquette, Wisconsin, Virginia and Michigan, among others, have recently participated in the event.