LAHAINA, Maui — There will be no cliff diving, North Carolina coach Roy Williams has told his players. Not until the top-ranked Tar Heels finish playing in the 25th annual Maui Invitational.

Then Williams will be fine with it, he said Sunday.

Four years ago, about half his players took turns plunging from a small cliff into the foamy waves of the Pacific Ocean, a celebratory leap after winning the tournament. The championship was a prelude to UNC's NCAA tournament title less than five months later.

Star forward Tyler Hansbrough and reserve Bobby Frasor might take the leap this year. "We were making jokes about which cliff we want to jump off," Hansbrough said with a laugh. He and Frasor made waves on campus last spring for jumping into a pool from a second-floor balcony at a fraternity house.

In this setting, no one would blame them if they jumped. Part of the allure here is fun in the sun. The bigger draw, though, is humbling competition.

UNC headlines a field that includes three top-10 teams. The Tar Heels play Chaminade, the Division II host school, Monday night at 9:30 ET, followed by Oregon vs. Alabama.

The early session features Saint Joseph's vs. No. 8 Texas at 3 p.m. ET, followed by Indiana vs. No. 9 Notre Dame. The final is Wednesday.

College holiday tournaments are all the rage in November and December, from the Paradise Jam in the U.S. Virgin Islands to Hawaii and Alaska. In 2006, the NCAA eliminated a rule that limited teams to two exempted tournaments over four years, and the floodgates opened for corporate-branded events.

Consequently, there's a saturation of tournaments that threatens to water down events. The Great Alaska Shootout, a longtime staple in college basketball, already is having trouble attracting top teams.

"This tournament is at its zenith but will continue to face competition for teams," Maui tournament chairman emeritus Wayne Duke said.

Maui tournament officials are working to keep their lofty status behind title sponsor EA Sports. They have locked in teams through 2010 and are charting candidates through 2017 with a simple formula: Each year there's a school from each of the six major conferences, preferably one with a strong fan following to fill the Lahaina Civic Center (capacity 2,400). The field is completed with a top mid-major (Maui newcomer Saint Joseph's this year) and host Chaminade.

The tournament's roots date to December 1982, when Chaminade, then an NAIA school, stunned No. 1 Virginia and 7-4 center Ralph Sampson. That put Chaminade on the basketball map, and hosting this tournament kept the Honolulu-based school there.

The school's victory against Virginia led to the tournament's start in 1984. Chaminade hasn't been to the title game since '84, but the event is a financial boon for the school's athletic department. Last year Chaminade netted $250,000 from the event, which annually provides 20 percent to 25 percent of the athletic department's budget, said Diane Peters-Nguyen, Chaminade's vice president for institutional advancement.

There is a weekend buildup as fans arrive and teams attend parties. Coaches even trade lighthearted jabs (Texas coach Rick Barnes dared Williams to wear a Speedo). And maybe for some, there will be cliff diving. After all, Hansbrough and Frasor, as Williams said, "have some experience."

Hansbrough update: As long as Hansbrough is pain-free, he will play, the 6-9 senior said. The question is whether he can play three consecutive games. Hansbrough, recovering from a stress reaction in his right shin, made his season debut Friday with 13 points in a win at UC-Santa Barbara.