UCF athletics director Terry Mohajir and members of his staff traveled to Kansas City to take in the Big 12 men’s basketball championship last week. They witnessed first hand what the Knights can expect when officially joining the league July 1.
“It’s the best basketball conference in the United States by far, bar none,” Mohajir said a few days after returning to Orlando.
Kansas City had hosted the Big 12 basketball championships for 13 consecutive seasons (minus the 2020 season when it was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic) and 21 years combined. Outside of Texas (2003-04, 2006) and Oklahoma (2007, 2009), it’s been the primary home for the men’s and women’s tournaments.
As Orlando expands its reputation as a sports tourist destination by hosting the NCAA Tournament’s first and second rounds Thursday and Saturday at Amway Center, area officials continue to pursue high-profile events. The former Amway Arena and current Amway Center have hosted several conference basketball tournaments (SEC, AAC) along with previous first- and second-round NCAA games.
Does UCF’s impending move to the Big 12 open the door for Orlando to host the basketball tournament? Jason Siegel, president and CEO of the Greater Orlando Sports Commission, sees a chance to create a new partnership with the league.
“We met with the Big 12 a year ago to start that conversation to make sure they understood how interested we are in many of their championships that we could host here in Orlando,” said Siegel. “We’re going to meet with them again in a couple of weeks to talk further, but we’re bullish and excited for the opportunity to look at several different sports potentially.
“We’d love to host anything they’re going to put out for bid if there’s an opportunity for us in Orlando to host it.”
But Mohajir, a Kansas native who was at the University of Kansas as an athlete, coach and later administrator, doesn’t believe now is the right time.
“It needs to stay in Kansas City,” he said. “It’s the best basketball tournament in America, and I can tell you it’s second to none and it’s been there for many, many years. They’ve tried to move it before to Texas and it hasn’t done as well. Our fans are going to absolutely love it.
“It’s not that I wouldn’t advocate if they decided to move it, but I don’t think they want to move it right now. It produces a lot of money and has a great flavor for basketball.”
Kansas City is set to remain host through the 2027 season and all indications are new Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark isn’t in a hurry to relocate the event.
“I haven’t considered moving this tournament,” Yormark told reporters last week. “This is my first experience, and I’ve heard wonderful things about the fan support, the community, the engagement, and how they rally around this tournament.
“From what I’ve seen and from the people I’ve spoken to, it’s a great fit for our conference.”
And the numbers seem to support Yormark’s assessment.
The Big 12 announced Tuesday that its conference basketball championship was the highest-grossing in conference history.
Attendance for the men’s tournament increased nearly 13% from last season, averaging 18,022 fans per session, while the women’s tournament increased by 24% with an average of 5,077 fans.
The Kansas City Sports Commission estimates the economic impact of the men’s and women’s championships was $21 million.
While the Big 12 basketball tournament may be off the table, that doesn’t mean that Orlando won’t be aggressive with conference championships in other sports.
“We have to manage the schedule, of course, and there have to be windows whether it’s the Amway Center, Camping World Stadium or any other of the 40 venues we work on behalf of,” said Siegel. “It’s almost like Tetris. The pieces can fall, but we must find a place to put them.
“Now that it’s official [UCF joining the Big 12], we can start working on bringing some of their big events here to Orlando which is great because then the families of our UCF student-athletes don’t have to travel.”
Even though Mohajir believes it’s unlikely the Big 12 moves its basketball tournament anytime soon, he’d advocate for Orlando.
“If the Big 12 were looking to shop it, I would be the first in line to say let’s move it to Orlando, absolutely,” he said. “I just don’t see it happening in the next eight or nine years.”
This article first appeared on OrlandoSentinel.com. Email Matt Murschel at mmurschel@orlandosentinel.com or follow him on Twitter at @osmattmurschel.
