Looking Forward to AAC First Tournament....Where Will It Be

[upstater]

Palestra? Nothing says minor league more than using an antiquated, second rate facility. Put it in Orlando, make it a tourist destination with easy access from all conference locations & run with it. Or, throw Memphis a bone & get bigtime FedEx sponsorship. Nip the Palestra idea in the bud.

The vast majority of conferences have half-filled arenas or less. All the fans traveling are not going to stick around when their team loses in the early rounds.

 

[UC990411]

Mark Blaudschun covered college basketball for the Boston Globe for 25 years and provided what I thought was fair and balanced coverage. Now he has his own blog http://ajerseyguy.com , and with his connections and inside knowledge, I find it informative/interesting. eg. He had a good take on the Rutgers situation.

In any event, today he speculates about next year's AAC 1st tournament location:

"With the men’s college basketball season down to one game–Monday night’s championship game between Louisville and Michigan–it is time to jump back into the silly season of coaching/athletic director changes and other rumors.
Let’s start with the newly named American Athletic Conference, which now has a name–a corporate logo will be unveiled in a few weeks–but still needs sites for its men’s and women’s basketball tournaments next year.
Sources at the American, say that Philadelphia and the Palestra are very much in the target zone for the tournament which will be rotated.
American Commissioner Mike Aresco likes the historic nature of the Palestra, a location in Philadelphia, which is a college basketball city and the fact that with a smaller capacity (8,722) which will create a sold out arena and a ticket demand. There are other issues which must be examined, but The Palestra remains very much in the mix of what will be a revolving site situation for the first few years at least. The other sites that will receive serious consideration are Memphis, Hartford and Orlando."

Since I start driving back from Florida March 1st every year on my way to Southern Maryland, I could certainly arrange my trip to include Orlando and Memphis, or speed it up and do Philly. So, if Hartford doesn't get it, the other three are fine by me.

Jersey guy has a blog!?

 

[seanmc94]

Put in in Hartford; short drive for me.

 

[gtcam]

What if 3 teams from the national top 10 are in it?

tulsa, east carolina and smu

 

[upstater]

tulsa, east carolina and smu

Tulsa and East Carolina aren't in the basketball conference next season. That starts in 2014.
I was thinking Lousiville, Memphis and UConn.

 

[gtcam]

What if 3 teams from the national top 10 are in it?

Actually you could have UCONN, Lville, Memphis, Cincy and Temple all in the mix(top 25) - Houston looks like it may be tough also

 

[gtcam]

Tulsa and East Carolina aren't in the basketball conference next season. That starts in 2014.
I was thinking Lousiville, Memphis and UConn.

i was playing stupid

 

[RS9999X]

The semifinals and finals would be an OK draw. Thursday afternoon round of 8 with UCF, Houston against Cincy and Memphis? $25 tickets at the Palestra might not sell out. Move it to Wells for the semis? Maybe. The A10 and CUSA tried several formats..

 

[Husky1972]

Jersey guy has a blog!?

http://ajerseyguy.com/?cat=14

 

[Matt (Chicago)]

Yes - 2nd rate. Most of its seating is bench and it lacks the modern amenities that most newer venues have. There are no video scoreboards, the concourse is small, and the bathrooms are very dated. It may have history but it has little else. The A-10 abandoned it years ago for its tournament.

Do you have a reading comprehension issue? You quoted my post, which blatantly states "..putting the tourney there is a bad call..", yet you continue to argue that point. Watching a game at the Palestra is a great experience, and that's all I'm saying. If you need to be coddled with a soft chair back seat and luxury bathrooms when you go to a game then you have other issues, aside from your lack of basic reading skills.

 

[upstater]

If the place is a pit, the tourney shouldn't be held there.

Bleachers versus seatback is a big deal for a conference tourney. Not so much for a single game, but you simply cannot hold a tourney in such a place.