http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2017/mar/14/big-sky-reno-optimistic-about-future-tournaments/
Big Sky, Reno optimistic about future tournaments
The Big Sky Conference believes it’s on a winning streak in the Biggest Little City on the World.
The conference just completed the second of a three-year deal to hold its postseason basketball tournaments in Reno, Nev. By all accounts, the event is trending upward – on and off the court.
“I think our folks are really pleased with Year Two,” said Big Sky commissioner Andrea Williams, who was hired last summer.
“Last year was creating and building a foundation. This year it was setting our expectations a little bit higher in terms of what our fans and participants should experience when they come in for the Big Sky championship,” Williams said.
Neither the Big Sky nor the Reno Sparks Visitors and Convention Authority reported any major glitches during the six-day, 23-team event at the Reno Events Center.
“This being our second year of a neutral site, predetermined location, it’s been going very well,” Williams said. The fact that all of our schools and teams can come and compete and you have men’s and women’s in the same city, same venue, same week, it creates a camaraderie across our conference.”
It also boosted interest. Final numbers aren’t in, but ticket sales were up from last year, according to Jason Ashcraft, director of communications for the conference.
Shelli Fine, director of sports development for the Reno Sparks Visitors and Convention Authority, said everything ran smoother this year.
“I have dealt with the gamut from A to Z of the tournament, from the marketing side, from the tickets to the hotels, to the rooms – all that,” Fine said.
“I will tell you that with most events of this magnitude everything in Year 2 goes twice as smooth,” Fine said.
So what about Year 3, which is the final year of the current contract?
“Going into Year 3 we want to build on that in terms of butts in seats,” Williams said. “We want to increase our attendance and create that great electric atmosphere for our student athletes. We’ve had incredible games.”
At the same time, the conference needs to have a backup plan for 2019 and beyond.
Williams said the league will entertain bids from other cities. Two years ago the Big Sky received bids from Spokane, Billings, Missoula, Ogden, Utah; and Loveland-Greeley, Colo.
Fine hopes that Reno continues to be at the top of that list.
“If ticket sales continue to gain strength … I would absolutely hope we have an opportunity to look at (2019) and beyond. To put all this work into three years and then let it go would seem kind of silly,” Fine said.
