The Pac-12 Conference is “seriously looking to move” its college basketball tournament “to Las Vegas, probably at the MGM Arena, and could make the announcement this spring,” according to Mike Sorensen of the DESERET NEWS. The tournament would “be played on the second weekend in March when the Mountain West Conference Tournament is being played at the Thomas & Mack Center and the WAC is at the Orleans.” The Pac-12 tournament has been played at the Staples Center in L.A. “for the past decade, but it hasn't drawn very good crowds, hitting a peak of 84,000 for the week in 2007, but dropping to under 60,000 last year.” The contract with Staples Center “is up after this week's tournament and Las Vegas is one of several cities being looked at, along with Salt Lake City” (DESERET NEWS, 3/5).
ENDLESS OPTIONS: In Atlanta, Tim Tucker wrote the ACC men’s basketball tournament comes to Atlanta “for the sixth time this week, the first time to Philips Arena, amid indications that it’ll be even harder to lure the event back in the future.” The ACC’s footprint “will expand with the impending additions of Syracuse and Pittsburgh to the league, opening new options … as potential hosts for the tournament in the years that it strays from its North Carolina roots.” The tournament is “committed to Greensboro, N.C., in 2013, 2014 and 2015,” and ACC Associate Commissioner for Men’s Basketball Operations Karl Hicks said that the conference “plans to send out a request for proposals (RFP) for the 2016 through 2021 events in a month or so.” Atlanta Sports Council Exec Dir Dan Corso said that the city “will respond to the RFP with a bid for one or more years.” Atlanta's next bid “also will include Philips Arena as the site.” ACC Commissioner John Swofford said that he “expects the conference’s general philosophy in awarding the event to remain the same as for the past decade or so -- ‘moving the tournament around some to be in different parts of our geographic footprint ... while maintaining North Carolina, either Greensboro or Charlotte, as sort of the home base for the tournament.’” He added that he expects this week’s tournament “to sell out, although some schools still have tickets available” (ATLANTA CONSTITUTION, 3/5).
