Big 12 Selects Kansas City for Future Basketball Championships
The Big 12 Conference has selected Kansas City to serve as the host site for the Phillips 66 Men’s and Women’s Basketball Championships in a multi-year agreement that will run from 2021-24.
Kansas City was the initial host of both championships in the first six years of the Conference from 1997-2002, and again in 2005, 2008 and 2010-12. The men’s postseason event has continued its run in Kansas City since 2010 while the women’s championship will return in 2020.
“Kansas City has become synonymous with Big 12 basketball,” said Commissioner Bob Bowlsby. “The excitement around the men’s championship is contagious with the crowds inside Sprint Center and the surrounding Power & Light District. We look forward to bringing our men’s and women’s championships back together and continuing to build upon this atmosphere in Kansas City.”
“We couldn’t be more proud to have been selected to host the Big 12 Men’s & Women’s Basketball Championships from 2021 through 2024,” said Kathy Nelson, President and CEO of the Kansas City Sports Commission. “2020 will be the 11th-consecutive year that the men’s event has been held in Kansas City. To welcome the women back and host both championships concurrently is really special.”
The Phillips 66 Big 12 Men’s Basketball Championship played seven of its events in Kemper Arena before moving to the newly-opened Sprint Center in 2008. The men’s championship has been contested in Sprint Center annually since 2010 with crowds averaging near 18,000 each year.
“Being selected as the host venue for the Phillips 66 Big 12 Men’s Basketball Championship is an honor for Sprint Center and an incredible source of pride for Kansas City,” said Brenda Tinnen, Sprint Center General Manager and Senior Vice President. “The Big 12 Basketball Championship demonstrates Sprint Center’s commitment to diverse sports and entertainment programming and the importance of signature events to the regional economy. Together with our partners from Visit KC, the City of Kansas City and the Kansas City Sports Commission, we look forward to rolling out the red carpet for basketball fans from throughout Big 12 country and across America.”
Municipal Auditorium has hosted the Phillips 66 Women’s Championship each year that it has been played in Kansas City and will continue to do so through the term of the new agreement. Since the Big 12 women last played in Municipal Auditorium, it has undergone $5 million in renovations to include new video boards, LED scorer’s table, sound system, lighting, electrical upgrades and lower level seating.
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