A buffet from the basketball gods: Ranking 6 best 'Feast Week' tournaments

College basketball results are trickling in and giving us an early read on how things will play out on the journey to March Madness. But for many college hoops junkies, the best part of November isn't the sport's relatively soft beginning. Instead, it's the basketball buffet that comes later in the month during a time affectionally known as Feast Week. 

College basketball is set for a long list of multi-team events leading up to and following Thanksgiving. Without question, the headliner is the Players Era Men's Championship. The 18-team Las Vegas event will be showering players with a pot of more than $20 million in NIL-related payment, sources told Matt Norlander of CBS Sports this summer.

Some of college basketball's top brands opted to be part of the second-year event as they seek to maximize compensation opportunities for their players. The tournament also features an unorthodox structure. After two scheduled matchups, each team will play a third opponent that will be determined from the results of the first two days. Given that there will likely be multiple 2-0 teams, a "championship" matchup will be decided by factors like point differential, total points scored and points allowed.

While the Players Era Men's Championship has established itself as the new MTE (multi-team event) king, there are several other good tournaments in store for late November. Here's our look at the best in-season tournaments as November madness approaches.

1. Players Era Men's Championship

Date: Nov. 24-27

Location: Las Vegas, Nev

Matchups: No. 14 St. John's vs. No. 16 Iowa State, No. 11 Alabama vs. No. 19 Gonzaga,  No. 7 Michigan vs. San Diego State, No. 2 Houston vs. No. 20 Tennessee (see full list here)

Breakdown: The Players Era Men's Championship is loaded with quality teams and appetizing matchups. Among those in the fray is No. 1 Houston, which will open against a Syracuse team led by freshman phenom Kiyan Anthony, the son of Carmelo Anthony. The Cougars will then have a rematch of last year's Elite Eight game with Tennessee. This event has emerged as the dean of MTEs. Among the best games will be a showdown between Alabama and Gonzaga. Both have already established themselves as elite offensive squads, and their meeting could be a race to 90. This will also be an important week for St. John's, as the Red Storm look to recover from a loss to Alabama. Coach Rick Pitino's squad plays Iowa State and Baylor in its first two games.

2. Baha Mar Championship

Date: Nov. 20-21

Location: Nassau, Bahamas

Matchups: No. 1 Purdue vs. Memphis (6 p.m. ET, CBSSN), No. 14 Texas Tech vs. Wake Forest (8:30 p.m. ET, CBSSN)

Breakdown: A potential title game matchup between Purdue and Texas Tech would be a must-see battle involving two All-American candidates at point guard. Braden Smith of the Boilermakers and Christian Anderson of the Red Raiders are each small, but they are wizards with the basketball and great scorers as well. The hypothetical matchup would also bring a banger of a frontcourt showdown between Purdue's Trey Kaufman-Renn and Texas Tech's JT Toppin. But don't discount the possibility of a surprise in the first round. Memphis is a deep team that will bring relentless pressure against Purdue. Wake Forest took Michigan to overtime on Nov. 11 and will be a test for Texas Tech. Regardless of how the results fall, this event will provide four interesting matchups.

3. Rady Children's Invitational

Date: Nov. 27-28

Location: San Diego, California

Matchups: No. 10 Florida vs. TCU, No. 23 Wisconsin vs. Providence

Breakdown: Florida is off to an uneven start in the quest to defend the national title. The Gators began with a season-opening loss to Arizona, then struggled at home before squeaking out a 78-76 win over a rebuilding Florida State team on Nov. 11. Seeing how the Gators perform in back-to-back tests against against high-major opposition will be insightful. A potential matchup with Wisconsin would be a great battle of the bigs, as both teams get tremendous production from their strong-bodied front courts.

4. ESPN Events Invitational (Magic Bracket)

Date: Nov. 27-28

Location: Lake Buena Vista, Florida

Matchups: No. 9 BYU vs. Miami, Georgetown vs. Dayton

Breakdown: This event is all about getting an extended look at heralded BYU freshman AJ Dybantsa. The No. 2 overall prospect from the Class of 2025 is squarely in the mix to be the No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 NBA Draft. In the meantime, he's got the potential to further elevate a Cougars program that is thriving under second-year coach Kevin Young. This event is also a great proving ground for Georgetown, which is striving to make the NCAA Tournament for the first time under third-year coach Ed Cooley.

5. Maui Invitational

Date: Nov. 24-26

Location: Lahaina, Hawai'i

Matchups: Seton Hall vs. No. 25 NC State, USC vs. Boise State, Washington State vs. Chaminade, Arizona State vs. Texas

Breakdown: The Maui Invitational has undoubtedly been diminished by the advent of the Players Era event, but this should still be a fun tournament. The best stories are with big-name coaches trying to jumpstart programs with dormant potential. Winning the Maui Invitational would be a massive early jolt for first-year coaches like Will Wade at NC State or Sean Miller at Texas. The same could be said for USC under second-year coach Eric Musselman.

6. Battle 4 Atlantis

Date: Nov. 26-28

Location: Paradise Island, Bahamas

Matchups: Vanderbilt vs. Western Kentucky, VCU vs. South Florida, Colorado State vs. Virginia Tech, Wichita State vs. Saint Mary's

Breakdown: The Battle 4 Atlantis field isn't quite as loaded with big-name programs as in past seasons, but true college hoops junkies will love some of these matchups. Vanderbilt is the team to watch from the top half of the bracket as the Commodores continue their rise under second-year coach Mark Byington. The most interesting player is Virginia Tech guard Neoklis Avdalas, a Greek freshman who could help carry the Hokies through the bracket's bottom half.