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Billings Metra pulling out all the stops for BSC

bincitysioux said:
Grizbeer said:
What kind of attendance do you think the tournament would get in Billings, especially if UM or MSU was out on the first day? MSU Billings draws a couple hundred people for their games, and Billings hosted the conference tournament for MSUB's conference and attendance in the Championship was 500 people. Of course that was D-II, but do most people in Billings differentiate between D-II and Big Sky Conference teams like Sac State and Southern Utah?

Do you think Billings in March is a tourist draw so people will go for reasons in addition to basketball? Is Billings willing to stop hosting the AA basketball tournament to host this tournament?
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I am curious what all of you that are familiar with the area realistically think attendance would be like for this thing in Billings. Would there be 5,000 on hand for games that the Griz or Cats are involved in? That is really what this boils down to I think. How many Montana and Montana St. fans are going to buy tickets.

As for me, Billings is just an 8 hour drive, so if North Dakota were to ever get the #1 seed, I would probably make the trip in hopes of seeing my favorite squad make the dance, but likely only under that circumstance. The destination is after all Billings, MT. I can't ever see myself in September saying I need to start making travel plans so I can whoop it up Billings for a weekend next spring.
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Says the guy that lives in North Dakota!
 
Grizbeer said:
What kind of attendance do you think the tournament would get in Billings, especially if UM or MSU was out on the first day? MSU Billings draws a couple hundred people for their games, and Billings hosted the conference tournament for MSUB's conference and attendance in the Championship was 500 people. Of course that was D-II, but do most people in Billings differentiate between D-II and Big Sky Conference teams like Sac State and Southern Utah?

Do you think Billings in March is a tourist draw so people will go for reasons in addition to basketball? Is Billings willing to stop hosting the AA basketball tournament to host this tournament?
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There isn't much support in the community for MSU-B since they left the Frontier Conference and dropped football to concentrate on basketball. Every three or four years there is an attempt to resurrect football at MSU-B but the administration always seems to put it down.

There is always something going on every weekend in Billings. Great microbrews, excellent dining, some of the best retail in Montana etc. The new Scheels store alone is pretty much a destination store and is easy to spend an afternoon there alone. Red Lodge Mountain is open until Easter and their spring snow is as good as any in Montana. Add to that RLM is a fun mountain to ski and you won't be tripping over spoiled trust fund babies, out of control yuppies and the likes of kardashians running off the road.
The METRA is an excellent basketball venue with good concessions, plenty of cold beer, and comfortable seating. It is easy to get to from the major hotels and has plenty of parking.
 
Was just talking to as friend who lives in billings who doesn't give a shit about BSC sports and he was actually somewhat excited about the prospect of billings landing the tourney. He actually brought it up and said he would go irregardless of which teams showed up. So that is something. It at least shows its on their radar.
 
http://billingsgazette.com/sports/college/big-sky-conference/welsch-column-billings-gives-big-sky-conference-every-reason-to/article_173329a5-90c8-5376-8995-af2e6f6dfec6.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
 
Blgs Griz Fan said:
Says the guy that lives in North Dakota!
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Well that is kind of my point. I have to sell this trip to my wife. Other than the tournament, what does Billings offer that Fargo or even Bismarck doesn't?
 
I think Billings would have pretty good attendance regardless of who is playing. Of course you will get more people when UM and MSU are participating. This area likes basketball. We pack the gym for Eastern A tournaments. MSU-B doesn't get huge crowds because it doesn't have the college atmosphere. People just don't have a lot of pride for that school. I think Spokane, Reno or Billings would be a good choice. And you can tell Billings wants it by the presentation they put on this week.
 
I actually go back and forth on Billings as the host. On one hand it would good for... nothing. On the other hand, my freshman year in Elrod I had a roomie who has such a homer for Billings, I can still hear that whiney voice, we are going to be just like Denver only better! I would actually prefer the way it is now with Reno a distant second place!
 
The tourney needs to stay as it is now. Regular season team hosts. However, I think that they should start making the host team put up a guarantee kind of like they do in fcs football. If the host school cannot front the guarantee, then the runner up team(s) can put in a bid. Billings has a great arena, that is all. There is nothing else that the city has to offer that would draw many fans. No more than any of the other major cities in Montana. I would prefer Missoula over Billings in a heartbeat. College atmosphere. Billings would have none of that.
 
GrizzleMoose said:
The tourney needs to stay as it is now. Regular season team hosts. However, I think that they should start making the host team put up a guarantee kind of like they do in fcs football. If the host school cannot front the guarantee, then the runner up team(s) can put in a bid.
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That would be kind of hard to do in 5 days.IMO.
 
GrizzleMoose said:
The tourney needs to stay as it is now. Regular season team hosts. However, I think that they should start making the host team put up a guarantee kind of like they do in fcs football. If the host school cannot front the guarantee, then the runner up team(s) can put in a bid. Billings has a great arena, that is all. There is nothing else that the city has to offer that would draw many fans. No more than any of the other major cities in Montana. I would prefer Missoula over Billings in a heartbeat. College atmosphere. Billings would have none of that.
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You do realize that the thought behind going to a predetermined tournament site is more about the cost and difficulty making arrangements for the individual schools on short notice than the finances of the tournament.
 
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