This year’s Fourth Region basketball tournaments will be played in high school gyms rather than the traditional site of Western Kentucky University’s Diddle Arena.
Julian Tackett, commissioner of the Kentucky High School Athletic Association, notified the 16 athletic directors in the region Thursday that the girls tournament will be played at Allen County-Scottsville High School while the boys will play at Barren County High School.
Tackett had met with representatives of each school as a group in Bowling Green in the late fall. “The fact that each of you was represented was critically important to me and to the Association, and in-person discussion is much preferred on issues like this to email trails, etc. Deciding the sites of the regional basketball tournaments is one of the more complex decisions that must be made, and that is particularly illustrated by this last discussion,” Tackett wrote.
The commissioner said that instead of consensus and unanimity, he found the schools to be divided into three almost equal groups. “There are a group of schools (whose members) feel the event is best served at a local school host, from both a financial standpoint and various other aspects including the cost to fans. There is also a group of a similar number that would prefer to play at WKU regardless of cost, attributing their support to a different but equally understandable set of factors. There also exists a third group that frankly, appears to not be passionate either way.”
Chief concerns of those wanting to move the tournament from WKU are the costs of using the facility, the price of concessions and parking, and the lack of availability of Diddle Arena at times because of conflicts with the university’s own teams. Logan County Athletic Director Hugh McReynolds, who sees both sides of the issue, notes that with WKU’s move to Conference USA next year, the postseason tournaments will be a week later than they have been in the Sun Belt Conference, causing more conflicts.
Those who favor staying at WKU like the atmosphere of the college setting, the neutrality of the court, and the experience champions get in playing in a big gym before going to state. The girls state tournament, in fact, is played at this same Diddle Arena. They also believe attendance will be significantly decreased through the use of the high school gyms.
Nine KHSAA state tournaments are played in Bowling Green, seven of them (girls basketball, six football) on the WKU campus. The other two, boys and girls golf, are played at Bowling Green Country Club. Tackett said future long term hosting of these events is to be considered by the Board of Controls at its spring meeting this year.
“WKU has been supportive both to its regional schools and to the KHSAA for many years. I realize that a significant portion of its enrolled student body comes from the counties that comprise the 4th region, so it is always in their best interest to work cooperatively,” Tackett noted. “WKU has opened its collective arms to many of the events of the KHSAA as well, and has been a great partner. I truly believe the University realizes the value not just to athletics, but to admissions and community relations, of having these events on campus.”
Tackett said he made his decision based on the costs to fans. “While I think some of the internal charges being charged by WKU are negotiable and may simply need on-campus collaboration of administrators and the like, it is of particular concern to me the charges that are being passed directly to the fans (parking, concession pricing, etc.) that while not impacting the bottom line payout to the schools, do have an impact on the overall tournament satisfaction.”
The 2014 Boys' Basketball Tournament will be set for Barren County High School, with play to be conducted on Wednesday 3/5, Thursday 3/6, Monday 3/10 and Tuesday 3/11; and the 2014 Girls' Basketball Tournament will be set for Allen County Scottsville High School, with play to be conducted on Monday 3/3, Tuesday 3/4, Friday 3/7 and Saturday 3/8. “The collective group of administrators may desire to make slight adjustments to this schedule, but (members) are reminded to schedule with the order of the state tournaments in mind, and bear in mind that the regions may not hold games on the same day at different sites,” Tackett noted.
Tackett concluded, “It is my hope that a more unified consensus can be achieved within the region for future years, and that these discussions can be held to where a decision can be made prior to the finalization of the men’s' and women’s' basketball schedules for WKU, so that all options can be considered. It would be my intention to have this determination final by September 2014. I offer my own (or a member of our staff) intervention in the discussions, and will be sure and bring these issues to light to the Board..”