Poor Coordination to Host Rotating Big Ten Women's Basketball Tournament and Rotating WCHA Women's Hockey Tournament the Same Year on Same Weekend

[Bfan]

Minneapolis will be host city this weekend to both the rotating Big Ten women's basketball tournament and the rotating WCHA Final Facebook women's hockey tournament.

Next time Minnesota hosts these tournaments they should stagger the years and definitely not on the same weekend the same year.

 

[Bfan]

Big Ten schools Minnesota, Wisconsin and Ohio State play in both tournaments this weekend.

In the future please stager the tournaments so they come in differing years.

 

[NateDawgUM]

The overlap for these two events is like 17 people.

 

[Bfan]

The overlap for these two events is like 17 people.

That could be. I understand they are not the same. There is more to that, though.

Recently the Minnesota-Wisconsin women's hockey series sold out for the first time, both games. Some people are working to build interest.

I saw U of M students at the game including athletes from other sports attending. So now the other tournament is one less reason for people to not go to a tournament because they are watching the other one. I also saw Wisconsin people there, and outside someone yelled "Go Badgers! Maybe such people would come but instead are at the other.

As for me, I would attend both on Friday and Saturday but cannot because I can only be at one or the other. Some of us do follow multiple sports.

The Minnesota Gophers women's hockey team is a championship-caliber team with players who play for their national teams (like team USA) but still fighting to get more attendance. Everything helps.

And this last point is comical. Ohio State on Friday plays at both tournaments at the same time of day. And if Wisconsin wins their first basketball game they will then play at the same time as the Wisconsin hockey game. You can't go to one and the other. Maybe someone may come to town to see both but now can't. Maybe an entire team would go over to the other tournament after their game but instead they are at the same time. Or maybe someone in town to see one tournament now can't go over to see their school at the other one.

Anyway, attendance will be suppressed. Maybe it's just 17. Maybe it's more. Everything helps or hurts.

 

[Gophers_4life]

Yeah, no offense, but hockey people are not basketball people. I know some who are openly against basketball, for whatever reasons.

 

[DarrenTheGreek]

In a perfect world, BFan is correct. A conference should not book two conference tournaments in the same city for the same weekend. However, we know the caveat is that WCHA and Big Ten are different conferences. Should they have communicated? Maybe, but they are probably relying on the host school being able to support THEIR tournament, after all....the host school presumably submitted a bid. It's quite possible that the Gophers were in the "we'll take what we can get, just let us host" type of mentality.

As others have said, when it's all said and done, I don't think it will impact the attendance too much. So perfect world yes, they would be staggered. But still probably not a huge deal.

 

[bleedsmaroonandgold]

If the basketball team wins enough to have a scheduling conflict with the hockey team's semifinal on Friday, I'll be pretty pleased with that run.