The Pearl Harbor Invitational of 2015 featured a Final Four preview and another team that would go on to earn a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament.

Eventual national champion Villanova, Oklahoma, Oregon and Navy shot off plenty of fireworks in the cramped confines of historic Bloch Arena, to the delight of the several hundred service members who attended the Dec. 7 doubleheader.

Hawaii coach Eran Ganot marveled at the height of the bar, then reached for it. UH will take on Seton Hall and Princeton in the FS1-televised 2016 edition put on Dec. 6 and 7 by Fox Sports and the 75th Commemoration of Pearl Harbor Committee, it was announced Tuesday.

“It’s huge,” Ganot said. “No. 1, it’s Pearl Harbor. Now you’re talking about the 75th anniversary. This is not something that’s an annual event. It’s a very special deal. Then it’s about honor and awareness. We’re remembering a very tragic thing in our history, by honoring those who sacrificed and lost their lives. By honoring our veterans. By honoring our active duty service members. From that standpoint, that’s significant. It’s bigger than the game. And also, Pearl Harbor’s in Hawaii. We’re the school from Hawaii. And so there’s a lot of mutual interest and we’re very honored to be a part of it.”

UH is still in the process of plugging “a couple of pukas” in its schedule, the coach said, but the opportunity to play in such a unique event was worth moving some other games around. It was in the works since last year’s event.

There was no concrete date in the UH media guide for the Rainbow Warriors’ last appearance at Bloch — which withstood the attack by Japan in 1941 — but one longtime watcher thought “it had to be in the ’50s,” predating the start of UH games at the Blaisdell in 1964.

The games last Dec. 7 were described as “sweltering” at the Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam venue, which seats roughly a couple thousand. It wasn’t a totally packed house, as seating was reserved for military personnel only.

It appears that despite UH’s appearance this year, entry will again be closed to the general public.

“Right now it’s being positioned as a private event,” a spokesperson for the event said.

But Ganot, a New Jersey native, was enthused on the prospect of playing two teams from his home state. California, the team UH upset in the NCAA Tournament in March, is also playing in the event but will not meet the ‘Bows.

“It is interesting we are in the same event, having just played each other recently,” Ganot said. “A lot of mutual respect there. … The matchups are above us.”

Seton Hall won the Big East tournament and advanced to the Big Dance, where the No. 6-seeded Pirates lost to 11th-seeded Gonzaga. That 25-9 squad returns nearly its entire roster, minus guard Isaiah Whitehead, who went 42nd in the NBA Draft.

Princeton finished runner-up in the Ivy League and was invited to the NIT. The 22-7 Tigers are set to return essentially their entire roster. UH, by contrast, was forced to rebuild heavily following a mass player exodus coming off its 28-6 season.

UH last faced Seton in 1994, a 96-88 home win by the ‘Bows. Princeton and UH have never met, though the Tigers have played in two Rainbow Classics.

UH also will play in the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic on Dec. 22, 23 and 25. Its only other announced game on the 2016-17 schedule is a meeting with North Carolina at the Stan Sheriff Center on Nov. 18; the four-team Rainbow Classic field has yet to be revealed.