Why doesn't Boston bid for regionals/Final 4?

[ASweet3781]

The 2006 Final 4 was held in Boston and was a huge success both on the court and off it. I was so upset that the one year the Final 4 was being held within easy driving distance UConn failed to make it. It shocks me to see so many areas that aren't exactly WCBB hot beds like St. Louis, Indianapolis, and New Orleans land multiple Final 4's. And the empty seats I saw at those sites especially in the upper decks makes the Final 4 site selections even more curious. Meanwhile Boston right down the road from the biggest WCBB super power has not hosted since 2006. Seems odd. I am curious why that is. Perhaps they are not placing bids?

TD Bank Garden is not hosting any mens tournament games next year. I would love if they would place a bid for the east regional for the women. I and many Husky fans would love to have a trip to the Back Bay, have some sea food, and than to see the ladies make the Final 4! Of course instead it will be held at Kingston, RI, Bridgeport, or Trenton or some other cow town!

I also noticed that when they selected the Final 4 cities that Dallas failed to be selected even though Baylor and Texas A&M were coming off titles! But Tampa and Indy made it again? If it weren't for the Tennessee fans in 2008, that arena would have been nearly empty. Very odd selections IMO.

 

[triaddukefan]

The 2006 Final 4 was held in Boston and was a huge success both on the court and off it. I was so upset that the one year the Final 4 was being held within easy driving distance UConn failed to make it. It shocks me to see so many areas that aren't exactly WCBB hot beds like St. Louis, Indianapolis, and New Orleans land multiple Final 4's. And the empty seats I saw at those sites especially in the upper decks makes the Final 4 site selections even more curious. Meanwhile Boston right down the road from the biggest WCBB super power has not hosted since 2006. Seems odd. I am curious why that is. Perhaps they are not placing bids?

TD Bank Garden is not hosting any mens tournament games next year. I would love if they would place a bid for the east regional for the women. I and many Husky fans would love to have a trip to the Back Bay, have some sea food, and than to see the ladies make the Final 4! Of course instead it will be held at Kingston, RI, Bridgeport, or Trenton or some other cow town!

I also noticed that when they selected the Final 4 cities that Dallas failed to be selected even though Baylor and Texas A&M were coming off titles! But Tampa and Indy made it again? If it weren't for the Tennessee fans in 2008, that arena would have been nearly empty. Very odd selections IMO.

Meh... personally I'd rather not have the women's final four held in Boston ever again...


Anyway.... I'd love to see the final four return to Charlotte. Its a tremendous location for such an event. It was there in 1996.... Sold out the old coliseum.. 23,000 + (still one of the higher attended final 4's) . Now they have one of the nicest arena's in the country... great location in the middle of downtown. Thousands of hotel rooms within walking distance. The Convention Center... tons of restaurants... entertainment spots.. surrounding the arena. Great weather usually...... very easy city to get to via air or road... I'd wish they would bid to host again..... Im sure they would be selected if they did.

 

[Phil]

Good question. I just assumed it was because Boston is more of a pro oriented city, with not so much of a college presence. But that doesn't explain why they went after the FF in 2006, and it sure seemed like a success.

As for Charlotte, would second that.

 

[triaddukefan]

Good question. I just assumed it was because Boston is more of a pro oriented city, with not so much of a college presence. But that doesn't explain why they went after the FF in 2006, and it sure seemed like a success.

As for Charlotte, would second that.

I remember during the 2007 regionals here .. that Greensboro was gonna explore the possibility of submitting a bid to host a final 4... think it was gonna be the 2014. Obviously that didnt go anywhere. Greensboro does a better job of hosting tournaments, but Charlotte has the superior arena, location, and infrastructure to host.

Personally I dont see a need to go back to a Dome..... unless its San Antonio... In theory you could go back to San Antonio and have it in the Spurs Arena.... but that might be too far away from the Riverwalk, and all of its hotels, restaurants, and et al.


Just read that Dallas is gonna bid for the 2017 final four.
http://collegesportsblog.dallasnews...al-four-bid-planned-for-2017-and-beyond.html/
http://collegesportsblog.dallasnews.com/2013/03/dallas-american-airlines-center-gets-thumbs-up-for-hosting-big-12-womens-tourney-final-four-bid-planned-for-2017-and-beyond.html/

 

[pppggg]

Personally, I thought San Antonio was a perfect venue and they did a great job of hosting the event.

 

[ASweet3781]

Personally, I thought San Antonio was a perfect venue and they did a great job of hosting the event.

San Antonio like Dallas were one of the 3 finalists not selected last round of bids. Inexplicable considering the buzz in that state with Griner/Baylor and A&M becoming a power.

It's no secret which programs are in the hunt every year for the Final 4. It would make most sense to pick a city near one of them. Some cities like New Orleans will always be picked. An area like Seattle seems to be very supportive of the Seattle Storm when I see their games on TV. Sometimes when you pick a new city that's never hosted like Denver they are so excited the community really embraces it. You get in trouble when you pick a city that takes hosting for granted and has no area teams that make it. That was the case in 2009 with St. Louis. Seems to me the best choices would be-

UCONN- Boston/Philly/ maybe the new Barclay Center in Brooklyn?
Tennessee- Nashville/Memphis/Atlanta
Baylor/Texas A&M- San Antonio or Dallas
Stanford/Cal- San Jose or Oakland
Notre Dame- Indianapolis (not a sell out in 2011)/Chicago
Duke/UNC- Charlotte, Raleigh
Oklahoma- Oklahoma City
Maryland- Washington, DC

The Tampa selection is baffling unless there is a heavy SEC flavor like last time. No major WCBB powers near there.

 

[KnightBridgeAZ]

The Final 4 is an event. The fans that attend a final 4 for most schools is a different group than normally travels. Generally, they can afford to go anywhere, because they couldn't get tix if they were not big decent givers. The rest of the folks in the stands buy their tickets long before they know who is in it.

I "third" Charlotte. That was the only Final Four my wife and I went to apart from Rutgers. It was also the next to last year that you could buy tickets without a lottery. And the seats were lower bowl (behind the basket, but still).

 

[triaddukefan]

There are certain cities that I wouldnt have a Women's Final Four in... NYC, Chicago, LA..... too big.... No.. DC, Miami, Phoenix, or Houston. Indianapolis will always be in the rotation... Seattle could work........ Raleigh is too spread out... The Arena is on the outskirts of town... the convention center and major hotels are downtown or along the beltline. I think Oklahoma City would be a good place... I think Nashville will be a success... whether TN is in it or not. It will never be considered, but Albuquerque would most likely support it very well. A sure sellout.

 

[triaddukefan]

The Final 4 is an event. The fans that attend a final 4 for most schools is a different group than normally travels. Generally, they can afford to go anywhere, because they couldn't get tix if they were not big decent givers. The rest of the folks in the stands buy their tickets long before they know who is in it.

I "third" Charlotte. That was the only Final Four my wife and I went to apart from Rutgers. It was also the next to last year that you could buy tickets without a lottery. And the seats were lower bowl (behind the basket, but still).

Not that it matters now, since it no longer exists... but did you find the Coliseum to be too remote from the heart of the City? I would think that the NCAA would want the Final 4 arenas in the heart of a city within walking distance of the hotels, convention center, restaurants, et al. Charlotte has grown up immensely since 1996. Its a real city now
This is a pic of the interior of the New Charlotte Arena.... well newer..

 

[KnightBridgeAZ]

Not that it matters now, since it no longer exists... but did you find the Coliseum to be too remote from the heart of the City? I would think that the NCAA would want the Final 4 arenas in the heart of a city within walking distance of the hotels, convention center, restaurants, et al. Charlotte has grown up immensely since 1996. Its a real city now

Well, its an interesting point. For us, parking was a plus. Any arena with good parking is a plus, for example, the Philadelphia Final Four, as opposed to the Cleveland one. Not everyone is in a "local" hotel, and the restaurant situation isn't so vital as in conference tourneys (and the 8 team sites they tried) where you have all day at the arena and need to eat between sessions.

Yes, I think they would want to hold the WBCA convention near the arena, but I know they shuttle the coaches in any case.

I was only recommending Charlotte because we had a good time at the event itself. Actually, the city didn't thrill us, we liked Greensboro better.

 

[alexrgct]

It may be slightly more logistically challenging for arenas that host two pro teams, as TD Garden does, but that didn't stop Denver from hosting last year.

The only other logistical thing I could think of is that Boston isn't the best town for hotels. Rooms are relatively unplentiful and expensive.

Otherwise, there's no compelling reason not to do it there. Since I'm 90 minutes door-to-door from TD and have free places to stay in Boston, I certainly wouldn't complain.

 

[Wbbfan1]

Can't see Oakland or San Jose supporting the Women's Final Four. If the goal is to have the Women's Final Four in California, then I'd choose San Diego as it would be a big draw for fans. It has plenty to do outside of Basketball. Some fans would go out early or stay later just to see the San Diego tourist attractions and enjoy the weather.

If held in NYC, got to go after Madison Square Garden. Many would think the Women's Final Four has finally made it, if they could get to the Garden. Wouldn't like to see what the Ticket Prices would be if it was held in New York City or Brooklyn. Never mind the hotel prices.

 

[Phil]

Can't see Oakland or San Jose supporting the Women's Final Four.

It was held in San Jose in 99.

 

[Phil]

If held in NYC, got to go after Madison Square Garden. Many would think the Women's Final Four has finally made it, if they could get to the Garden. Wouldn't like to see what the Ticket Prices would be if it was held in New York City or Brooklyn. Never mind the hotel prices.

Not sure I'm following this.

The Maggie Dixon Classic is held there every year.

Immaculata played Queens in the Garden in 1975. It was a big event at the time, but not quite following why playing there 38 years later would be a milestone.

 

[rockyno1]

Does MSG have the seating capacity? I believe they only hold about 20,000 for basketball. I agree NYC would be a great spot especially given their mass transit system and the high likelihood you would be reverse commuting to games. No doubt it would be a sellout given its proximity to CT, PA, NJ, VA, DC, MA, etc.

 

[Phil]

I think the cost of meeting rooms and hotel rooms for the WBCA convention would make the finances untenable for an MSG option.

 

[Vowelguy]

I think the cost of meeting rooms and hotel rooms for the WBCA convention would make the finances untenable for an MSG option.

It's probably also difficult to get several consecutive open dates at MSG.

 

[Vowelguy]

3 probs with Boston: expensive hotels, geographically far from much of the country, and if the date remains the 2nd week of April then it bumps into the start of baseball season

 

[meyers7]

Well New Orleans, San Antonio, St. Louis, Atlanta, Philadelphia or Minneapolis all work for me.

 

[Wally East]

It was held in San Jose in 99.

My wife and I went to this. Went to the Friday night games and then drove south to Big Sur and checked out that area until Sunday's game. The facility was nice but I have no idea how San Jose was a host-city. Between SF and Big Sur, did anyone stay in San Jose?

 

[triaddukefan]

Does MSG have the seating capacity? I believe they only hold about 20,000 for basketball. I agree NYC would be a great spot especially given their mass transit system and the high likelihood you would be reverse commuting to games. No doubt it would be a sellout given its proximity to CT, PA, NJ, VA, DC, MA, etc.

Only 20,000 ?? Thats definitely big enough for the Women's Final Four. Other than the domes..... there arent that many off-campus arenas that seat more than 20,000.

 

[Vowelguy]

The next 3 years are already locked up -- Nashville, Tampa, and Indianapolis.
Not sure when 2017 site will be announced.

 

[Phil]

They are thinking about some alternatives, supposed to decide in May, so my guess is we may hear something at the end of next month