The Great American Conference held a press conference on Thursday, Aug. 18, to announce that it will conduct its men’s and women’s championship basketball tournaments in Bartlesville, Okla., for the next two years.
Arkansas Tech is one of nine charter members of the GAC, a new NCAA Division II league that begins competition this fall.
The first postseason basketball tournaments in GAC history will be contested March 1-4, 2012, at 2,300-seat Bruin Fieldhouse (photographed) in Bartlesville.
The top eight teams in the final 2011-12 GAC regular season standings for both men’s and women’s basketball will participate in the event.
Bartlesville developed a reputation as a March Madness destination by hosting postseason men’s and women’s tournaments for another NCAA Division II league — the Lone Star Conference — in recent years.
“It’s certainly an exciting day for the Great American Conference,” said GAC Commissioner Will Prewitt. “We could not have found a better site to host this event. The Lone Star Conference tournaments have been thought of as one of the premier championship events in the country, and we are excited to be continuing that with the GAC.”
The contract between the GAC and the Bartlesville Sports Commission (BSC) calls for Bruin Fieldhouse to host the GAC Basketball Tournaments in 2012 and 2013, with an option for 2014.
“We are very appreciative to the city of Bartlesville with what all they have offered to get this tournament, and we want to give back,” said Prewitt. “The community engagement programs that the BSC has put together in the past four years have been incredible and we are excited to be able to continue and grow those.”
Arkansas Tech has been home to the top overall NCAA Division II basketball program in America two years running. The Wonder Boys and the Golden Suns have a combined overall record of 116-14 since the beginning of the 2009-10 season.
Click here to learn more about the Great American Conference.
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