Tournament bracket revealed for K-State, KU alumni basketball teams in Kansas City
Years after they played against each other in the Sunflower Showdown, several former Kansas State Wildcats and Kansas Jayhawks are ready to renew their basketball rivalry at Municipal Auditorium.
Tyshawn Taylor will lead JHX Hoops, a team comprised mostly of KU alums, into the Kansas City Regional of The Basketball Tournament. This unique summer event features a $1 million winner-take-all prize for the champion.
Jordan Henriquez, DJ Johnson and Martavious Irving is organizing Purple Reign, a team made up of mostly former K-State players.
Both teams will compete in the KC Regional. Games will begin on July 19 and run through July 23 at historic Municipal Arena in the heart of downtown.
Tickets are already on sale for the sale and they can be purchased for as low as $15.
JHX Hoops will be the No. 2 seed at the KC Regional and begin play against OffDaHook at 3 p.m. on July 19. David McCormack is the biggest name of alums on the KU squad.
Purple Reign will be the No. 3 seed and face No. 6 seed The Shine at 1 p.m. on that same day. Jacob Pullen is back once again to lead the K-State alumni team.
If both teams win their first games, they will meet in a new kind of Sunflower Showdown in the second round of the regional at 8 p.m. on July 21.
Other teams in the regional include No. 1 seed Heartfire, No. 6 seed The Shine and No. 7 seed OffDaHook.
Heartfire will receive a bye in the opening round.
Here are the players currently committed to JHX Hoops:
Nick Timberlake (2023-24)
David McCormack (2018–2022)
LaGerald Vick (2015-19)
Billy Preston (2016–2018)
Jamari Traylor (2012-16)
Cliff Alexander (2014–2015)
Kevin Young (2011-13)
And here is the roster for Purple Reign:
Spencer Bain (2024-25)
Abayomi Iyiola (2022-23)
DaJuan Gordon (2019-21)
Cartier Diarra (2017-20)
Justin Edwards (2013-16)
Jacob Pullen (2007-11)
John Florevus (Georgia)
Cam Martin (Kansas, Boise State, Jacksonville State)
Jordan Parks (NC Central)
Additional player announcements for both JHX Hoops and Purple Reign will be announced via TBT and the team’s social media channels as the tournament approaches.
This story was originally published June 24, 2025 at 10:01 AM with the headline "Tournament bracket revealed for K-State, KU alumni basketball teams in Kansas City."