KENTUCKY AND MARYLAND BECOME CORNERSTONES OF THE BROOKLYN HOOPS™ COLLEGE BASKETBALL PLATFORM AT BARCLAYS CENTER WITH MULTI-YEAR DEALS

BROOKLYN (March 16, 2013) -- Major college basketball will continue to flourish in Brooklyn as Barclays Center has signed multi-year agreements to host the Kentucky and Maryland men’s basketball teams.

The 2013-14 college basketball season at Barclays Center will include a dynamic match-up when Kentucky faces Providence on Dec. 1, while Maryland will also be on the BROOKLYN HOOPS™ schedule. Kentucky and Maryland have already experienced Barclays Center when they played each other this season in a nationally televised sold-out game during the venue’s inaugural college basketball event.

"We are excited to return to Barclays Center next year to play Providence,” said Kentucky Head Coach John Calipari. “This season’s game against Maryland was an NCAA Tournament environment in November. It's a great building and a great city. We're looking forward to being back in Brooklyn next season and beyond."

“We’re looking forward to returning to Barclays Center,” Maryland Head Coach Mark Turgeon said. “We had a great atmosphere up there this year and Barclays Center is a first-class arena. I know our student-athletes and coaches enjoyed the experience in Brooklyn and appreciated the outstanding support our fans provided us in a great opening game. We’ll look to repeat that again.”

“Some of the premier college basketball teams will be calling Barclays Center home for several years and we are delighted to continue to develop into a significant national collegiate sports venue,” said Barclays Center CEO Brett Yormark. “There was exciting basketball and a great atmosphere in the inaugural season of BROOKLYN HOOPS™ at Barclays Center. Next year will be even better.”

The extensive Barclays Center college basketball lineup continues with St. John’s, Georgia Tech, Ole Miss, and Penn State participating in the 2nd annual Barclays Center Classic men’s basketball tournament on Nov. 29 and 30, 2013. Occurring on the same days will be the inaugural Barclays Center Women’s Invitational tournament, featuring Rutgers, Texas Tech, Michigan, and LSU. BROOKLYN HOOPS™ is presented by Ticketmaster.

Tickets for the Barclays Center Classic will go on sale March 22 and the Barclays Center Women’s Invitational will go on sale March 29. Tickets for the Kentucky-Providence game will go on sale April 19. Tickets are available through Ticketmaster by visiting www.barclayscenter.com or www.ticketmaster.com, or by calling 800-745-3000. Tickets are also available at the American Express Box Office at Barclays Center.

Brooklyn Nets All Access season ticket buyers have the opportunity to purchase tickets for Barclays Center events before the general public. For more information, visit www.barclayscenter.com and follow @BarclaysCenter on Twitter and Facebook  for the latest updates and special pre-sale offers.

For the second consecutive year, Barclays Center will host the BROOKLYN HOOPS™ Winter Festival presented by Honda and the BROOKLYN HOOPS™ Holiday Invitational (dates to be determined), along with Coaches vs. Cancer (Nov. 22-23) and Legends Classic. (Nov. 25-26). The teams for all four events will be announced soon.

The always competitive Atlantic 10 Tournament will return to Barclays Center from March 13-16, 2014. Additionally, LIU Brooklyn, this season’s Northeast Conference Tournament champion, will continue to play multiple games at Barclays Center next season.

The Barclays Center college basketball franchise BROOKLYN HOOPS™ presented by Ticketmaster is proud to partner with Applebee’s, GEICO, Honda, High Point Solutions, McDonald’s, Modell’s, and Powerade.