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Story by Alan Snel Photos by J. Tyge O’Donnell
It’s mid-March in Las Vegas and that means only one thing — March Madness has sprung in arenas across the Las Vegas metro region.
The West Coast Conference has taken over Orleans Arena. The Pac-12 Conference is saying so long forever at its final basketball tourney at T-Mobile Arena. The Mountain West Conference, which is having a banner hoops year, is holding its tourney at Thomas & Mack Center. And the Big West Basketball Championships are calling The Dollar Loan Center arena home in Henderson this week.
The WCC — also known as the Gonzaga vs Saint Mary’s in the tourney final conference — has a deal with Orleans Arena through 2025. The Mountain West, the conference that includes UNLV, will be at Thomas & Mack on the UNLV campus through 2025, as well.
With the Pac-12 disintegrating, who will play in T-Mobile Arena in 2025? Will the Big 12 with new additions Arizona, Arizona State, Colorado and Utah — and BYU already in the conference — make a run for T-Mobile Arena in 2025? The Big 12 has already lined up Allegiant Stadium for its football media days later this year on July 9 and 10.
Las Vegas Events, the non-profit events arm of the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA), is again paying six-figure amounts to sponsor the Pac-12, Mountain West and WCC tourneys:
^ Pac-12 — $500,000
^ Mountain West — $300,000
^ West Coast Conference — $300,000