Could be short-lived at the Barclays Center

[JoeFedorowicz]

sportsillustrated.cnn.com/college-basketball/news/20140314/acc-tournament-barclays-center-2017/

The looming issue with playing at the Barclays Center in 2017 is the Atlantic 10 Tournament, as 2017 is the final installment of the A-10's five-year agreement with the Barclays Center. The details of how the ACC and A-10 will navigate that have not been finalized and are expected to be discussed in the Atlantic 10's presidents and athletic directors meetings on Friday morning.


I've always been a vocal critic of the move to Brooklyn, as I thought it was a money grab by the conference. McGlade has done some good things, like the latest ad campaign, but playing in front of a 2/3rds empty arena on Saturday and Sunday isn't worth it, even if you are there for cheap.

I hope they end up in AC again. I thought the fit was great. I worry that it will end up in Richmond though. If the ACC wants the Barclays, they are going to get it.

[stlexplorer]

[stlexplorer]

Should have never left AC, needs to go back

[MisterD]

Whats the right way to say "Atlantic City is pretty trashy and just having our tourney there reflects poorly on the conference"?

[stlexplorer]

m.espn.go.com/ncb/story?storyId=10606349&src=desktop

A-10 telling ACC if you want Brooklyn we want non-conf games

[MisterD]

Over/under set at 14 phone calls Fordham has received in the past 24 hours from ACC teams looking to matchup.

[durenduren]

Mar 14, 2014 8:04:12 GMT -5 MisterD said:

Whats the right way to say "Atlantic City is pretty trashy and just having our tourney there reflects poorly on the conference"?

I'm huge on this take. And frankly, nothing screams basketball in AC, nor is it convenient in the very least.

Pipe dream - The Palestra.

[1stflooredwards]

Mar 14, 2014 8:31:07 GMT -5 stlexplorer said:

m.espn.go.com/ncb/story?storyId=10606349&src=desktop

A-10 telling ACC if you want Brooklyn we want non-conf games

Negotiation 101 - Everybody has a price.

[MisterD]

Mar 14, 2014 8:53:16 GMT -5 durenduren said:

I'm huge on this take. And frankly, nothing screams basketball in AC, nor is it convenient in the very least.

Right, atleast Brooklyn is awesome once you're over the effort of getting there. AC is a pain in the ass to get to then it makes you sad.

[lasalle69bestever]

#1 Palestra, #2 Atlantic City.

If the Palestra, the A-10 has to be VERY careful with seat allotment, etc.

[durenduren]

Mar 14, 2014 9:19:43 GMT -5 MisterD said:

Mar 14, 2014 8:53:16 GMT -5 durenduren said:

I'm huge on this take. And frankly, nothing screams basketball in AC, nor is it convenient in the very least.

Right, atleast Brooklyn is awesome once you're over the effort of getting there. AC is a pain in the ass to get to then it makes you sad.

I'm not like Khaliff - Strip Clubs, Casinos, and Crumbling Infrastructure aren't exactly alluring. And 69 is right, there's no easy answer in the Palestra with seating issues. Is AC the lesser of the evils?

[theneumann64]

I love doing it in AC. But I understand, if not agree, why some would have a problem with it. But if not there, where?

The Palestra is not an option for a conference tournament in 2014. I love that building but for what you need in terms of locker rooms, media facilities, etc. it's not feasible.

We know NBA arenas should be off the table, so what does that leave? Back to Dayton? Down in Richmond? I actually hate Richmond idea less than others but still. I think Atlantic City is the best option.

[golasalle]

Mar 14, 2014 9:39:27 GMT -5 theneumann64 said:

I love doing it in AC. But I understand, if not agree, why some would have a problem with it. But if not there, where?

The Palestra is not an option for a conference tournament in 2014. I love that building but for what you need in terms of locker rooms, media facilities, etc. it's not feasible.

We know NBA arenas should be off the table, so what does that leave? Back to Dayton? Down in Richmond? I actually hate Richmond idea less than others but still. I think Atlantic City is the best option.

Why should NBA arenas be off the table? Barclays Center is an NBA arena. While not optimal because of the size, accommodation can be made. For the opening games they curtained off the upper reaches of Barclays. What about Wells Fargo Center? Philly is centrally located for the conference and is a destination city. The area now has the Xfinity Live and there are growing restaurant entertainment options in the area.

Hard to find facilities that are just the right size without going to some more out of the way towns (in terms of central location) like Dayton or Richmond. Those cities are not exactly destination cities either (all due respect).

[mts]

Tournament alternates between Albany (make north teams happy) and Richmond (makes south teams happy) once Siena is added to the A10.

[durenduren]

I've always believed that AC could really be an A10-kinda thing, really make it our own in some unique way. I think the way the Mountain West does Las Vegas could be a decent model. Just felt after departing Dayton, it was never capitalized on fully and I'd be curious to see how McGlade & Co. would market it after their last pretty impressive media rollout.

Richmond isn't a bad option, truthfully. And it probably would be an easy sell for the Newport News crew, along with VCU and Richmond. I'd just be upset I'd have to travel further than AC or NYC.

[coachd]

Maybe if Parx Casino, Delaware Park or Harrah's Chester built an 8,500 seat venue that could host basketball it would make more sense as some find AC inconvenient. If I bought Parx I would build an arena, attached to a hotel, to host concerts and hoops and other events and have an agreement with at least one AC casino where comps would carry over between the casinos.

The positives for AC is that Rooms in AC are free during the week to those who gamble, Friday rates are cheaper during the off-summer season and only Saturday rates are unaffordable to some.

The negatives for the Palestra is that you have to pay rent to Penn and the A10 is not in the business of providing supplemental income to an Ivy League school.

[durenduren]

Mar 14, 2014 10:00:38 GMT -5 mts said:

Tournament alternates between Albany (make north teams happy) and Richmond (makes south teams happy) once Siena is added to the A10.

anyone speaking at Siena on moving?

[Deleted]

The difficulty with all venues we have experienced is that the only really good seats are in the Whole Series package. So you have to either commit to 4 days, now up to 5 days, or you have to buy/sell in the after market. It is better to be a buyer than a seller, due to the surplus of tickets. But in 2013, I was able to net about $90 for two tickets to the final, once the two teams were decided.

1. Campus sites first round- I think we should have a top three seed byes and 4 vs 13, 5-12, 6-11, 7-10, 8-9. When you're done the first round, you have 8 teams left that can go to Brooklyn or AC or whatever. Travel organizers hate not knowing where they will play next, but hear me out. In the days of charter planes, which could be subsidized partially by TV revenue and gate revenue, I say let's do this. We need to get the home crowds interested in the playoff system.
The A10 has tried this model and abandoned it, but it is BEST FOR THE FANS and accomplishes the objective of incentivizing teams that finish well in the REGULAR SEASON. For instance, this year as the 8 seed, La Salle should have earned a home game with Bonaventure at the Gola Arena. But the way it worked out, we played a neutral site game, rendering the regular season records literally OUT THE WINDOW. Dr G hates this. We must let the better record team have an advantage and play at home! Otherwise, the purpose of the regular season is greatly diminished. Some people like the parity that is on a neutral court, but I don't like giving that much of a free advantage to the underdog.


2. BROOKLYN- I have a feeling we could all like this place even more if we weren't going 0-for-2 there. Transportation is much easier to this point than most people who remember the old Brooklyn understand. It's barely 20-25 minutes from Manhattan by train. The only problem I have getting to Brooklyn is deciding which of the 15 train lines may arrive the quickest, because I don't usually have enough time to waste on less than perfect public transit when the game's about to start. In order for this to be ideal location though, more fans must still buy in. They need to be sold that this is a once a year, special occasion that you just can't miss just because it's on TV or radio. At $35 for transportation and $35 for a nosebleed game ticket (at least twice that for a decent seat), we don't have many that will pay, unfortunately. I hate that getting tickets through the schools is such a gamble because someone else chooses where you sit. Before this year, we never even sit together, but the other fan bases tend to, making conf tourneys feel like games at the Pavilion. I somewhat agree with Neumann and the others that if it is 2/3 empty, that we are not taking full advantage of the arena and it defeats the purpose of leaving AC, which was a more appropriate venue for the crowds we have shown we can bring in. I won't be surprised if the ACC buys us out a few years early.


3. Atlantic City - for selfish reasons, I like being able to get down there from work in 45 minutes. Easy to daytrip for fans of the NY and PA teams, but to a lesser extent the other teams. I feel the destination, while less than perfect, is just good enough to get some people to stay longer than for basketball. But the overnight costs can run away from you if you're not careful.


4./5. Wells Fargo Center, Phila or Sprint Center, DC. Maybe alternate between the two. Good chance to scoop up alumni from many of the schools in DC, second only to NYC.

I do not want Richmond or Ohio to happen. Going to Ohio was a disaster that no one involved wants to repeat. Also, I do like Richmond but we are not the CAA. For some reasons, Consol Energy Center, Pittsburgh is a fine consideration, but I don't think they can bring in the fans as well as Brooklyn, Philly or DC.


***Off topic: Richmond, Dayton and St Joe's should alternate for the site of the women's A10 tournament. I don't like neutral sites for women's tournament because the fan bases simply don't travel, with few exceptions.

[MisterD]

With campus 1st round games, don't you (1) increase the cost to the teams traveling and (2) risk creating a disadvantage for the teams traveling later and/or further?

[MisterD]

Philadelphia really is the epicenter, huh? Maybe we can build a new arena and become the forever home and win the tournament every year!!!

[durenduren]

But isn't that's the point of ranked seeding? I'm not saying it's ideal, but it'll add the layer of heightened stakes to those last few regular season games. I mean we were playing for jersey color versus SJU, bragging rights and momentum aside.

[stlexplorer]

The reason you don't do NBA arenas is you can't have 1/2 the arena empty for your conference tournament

[Deleted]

Mar 14, 2014 10:23:08 GMT -5 MisterD said:

With campus 1st round games, don't you (1) increase the cost to the teams traveling and (2) risk creating a disadvantage for the teams traveling later and/or further?

Yes and no. This extra cost is not a financial burden on the traveling team. Remember that always gets subsidized either partially or in full by TV revenue. 13 trips to one site, compared to 5 first round trips and 8 second round trips could involve similar cost, right? The pickup you get is on the revenue side, with many more tickets, at least in theory, being sold.

Travel to Brooklyn is not cheap either, except that some teams like La Salle and St Joe's and Fordham (perhaps Umass too but I don't actually know) could bus it instead of flying.

[La Salle 08]

My gut tells me it'll be in DC or Richmond in 2018.

[stlexplorer]

Story is updated with possible doubleheaders scheduled

m.espn.go.com/ncb/story?storyId=10606349&src=desktop

[Deleted]

An almost identical thread exists on the Hawk board. The only difference is they still have a stake in this year's and we're just talking about where we go from here. The similarity is, we all miss when it was in Philly, though attendance numbers at the Spectrum towards the end failed reflected that geocentric advantage, didn't they? Then again, I'm not sure that they advertised sufficiently in those days, and the conference was less of a draw than it is currently.

[durenduren]

Nassau Colloseium?! Renovations or not, A10-ACC alliance or not, kill me right now.

[mts]

Mar 14, 2014 10:15:14 GMT -5 durenduren said:

Mar 14, 2014 10:00:38 GMT -5 mts said:

Tournament alternates between Albany (make north teams happy) and Richmond (makes south teams happy) once Siena is added to the A10.

anyone speaking at Siena on moving?

Siena is prepared to go just need the invite. Maybe Explorerman can help us on one where we standing in regards to Siena to the A10?

[coqui900]

I would love if they returned to the old A-10 format before we were in the conference. All tournament games are at the Palestra, save for the finals, which is at the home court of the highest remaining seed.

My all-time favorite would be just to make it all on campus.

[belfieldhappyhour]

As Neumann said, the Palestra won't be back because of the behind the scenes type things that aren't good enough (locker rooms, media setup and biggest of off all suites for sponsors).

I wonder if Temple would ever allow the A10 to play in the Forum of the Apollo of whatever its called this week. That arena is the ideal size - 10,000 - and has all the amenities needed. Doubt it would happen, so anyone else know a good 10,000 seat arena we could use? (Xavier's place is prefect too, but same thing with Temple, would they want it?) Is there a Richmond Coliseum about that size?