Xavier alumni Matt Stainbrook, Brad Redford, Dante Jackson, and Erik Stenger entering The Basketball Tournament

The Basketball Tournament is an open-enrollment, 5-on-5 tournament that plays out through July and early August each year. I love this concept; basically anyone who is over 18 and has the chops to hang can take a shot at the winner-take-all purse. Last year it was $500k; this year it's an even million.

To be eligible for the tournament, a team has to have at least 7 players and at least 100 fan votes. The 18 teams in each region with the most fan votes are automatically entered; then 6 additional teams can receive at-large bids. Confused yet? Check out the details here. Teams will be seeded in each region 1-8 based on popularity, followed by 9-24 based on how good the organizers think they are.

The takeaway message in all of this is that your favorite Xavier players are back in the mix for another shot at glory and - for most of them - their first shot at being paid for their efforts on the court. They need your help to be eligible for entry, so support them by voting for them here (Facebook) or here (Twitter).