The Mountain East Conference basketball tournament will stay at the Charleston Civic Center in 2017 - and operate under a new format. After 2017, though, the tournament site is up for grabs.
Following the summer meeting of the MEC's board of directors, the conference decided to finish its three-year contract with the city of Charleston to play the men's and women's tournaments at the Civic Center. Following the 2017 edition, sites for future tournaments will go out to bid.
MEC commissioner Reid Amos said Thursday that, in working with Charleston officials since the 2016 tournament, the city wants to put its best foot forward in hopes of keeping the event for years to come.
"Since the 2016 MEC basketball tournament, the city of Charleston and its (Convention and Visitors Bureau) have committed to renew their efforts to develop and grow the event in the final year of a three-year contract in 2017," Amos said. "These commitments, including the development of a local organizing committee, will help to make the operation of the event in Charleston more cost effective for the MEC and will enhance local engagement to increase attendance by local fans and involvement from local businesses."
That organizing committee is filled with members of the community who "care a lot about special events in the community and understand the value of special events in Charleston," said Rod Blackstone, senior assistant to Charleston Mayor Danny Jones. They'll be brainstorming ways to make the tournament site more attractive to the MEC, its schools, their fans and the entire Kanawha Valley.
"It's a great tournament," Blackstone said. "We're working hard to keep it here. We want to make a strong lasting impression in the final year of our current contract."
A clause in that agreement - ticket revenue from the event falling below $60,000 - allowed the MEC an early exit to the contract. Ticket revenue for the 2016 tournament reached $52,511, but the conference decided stay in the Civic Center for the final year.
The MEC will introduce a new format to the tournament for next season, one it hopes will make it easier for fans to attend the event. The top 10 teams at the end of the regular season on both the men's and women's sides will qualify for the tournament and all 10 will play at the Civic Center. The top six teams will earn a first-round bye. The seventh through 10th seeds will play first-round games on Wednesday, March 1.
The women will play their quarterfinals on Thursday, March 2, with the men playing their quarterfinals on Friday, March 3. Men's and women's semifinals both will tip off Saturday, March 4, with the title games Sunday, March 5.
In previous seasons, the top four seeds earned a bye to the Civic Center, and the fifth through 12th seeds played first-round games at campus sites. Amos said the new format should provide motivation throughout the season for teams to finish in the top 10, and also should give fans of those teams a better opportunity to book their trips.
"The shift from opening round games on campus to all tournament games at one centralized location will allow the MEC to significantly enhance marketing efforts," Amos said. "This approach allows teams and their fans to have a much longer period of time to make plans for the event as teams clinch spots and will additionally enhance opportunities for institutions to engage with their alumni."
In other news from the meetings, the MEC supported an exit-fee structure for departing the league. The conference requires advance notification of three years to exit, or the departing school is subject to exit fees up to $150,000. Also, with women's soccer added at Glenville State, the MEC will adopt divisional play starting in 2017.