NCAA basketball tournaments returning to the TU Center
A rendering of what the arena's exterior will look like after the current atrium renovation is finished.
The NCAA announced the sites for its 2019-2022 tournaments Tuesday and the Times Union Center was awarded two events:
+ The TU Center will host a women's basketball region March 29-April 1, 2019. (It's also hosting a regional in 2018.)
+ And the arena will be a site for the first and second round of the men's basketball tournament in March 19 and 21 in 2020.
Getting these sorts tournaments to return to Albany has been a longtime goal for the TU Center's management and local officials. Some of the aspects of the Albany Capital Center -- specifically the high-ceiling multi-purpose room, which can hold three full-size practice basketball courts -- were designed with this goal in mind. The hope has been that adding the Capital Center to the mix, along with the atrium upgrade project, would make Albany a more competitive site.
The last time the NCAA men's basketball tournament was in Albany was in 2003, when the then-Pepsi Arena hosted the east regional. (That was the same year Syracuse -- out of the east bracket -- won the national championship.)
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Comments
genuinely excited at this news! The Capital region(notice I didn't limit it to a particular city?) is a hidden gem---those who grew up here don't know it (ha ha) but we "transplants" do! As I noticed when I first moved here: the Region has a ton of potential, all of the right ingredients, but...highly resistant to change.
... said jsc on Apr 19, 2017 at 9:53 AM | link
Very much looking forward to this as well. College bball tourney games, even if you're not a basketball fan, are an amazing atmosphere that you can't help but get caught-up in.
... said Sean on Apr 19, 2017 at 10:48 AM | link
Thanks North Carolina !!
... said -R. on Apr 19, 2017 at 12:24 PM | link