There is a strong likelihood that the 2016-17, 2017-18 America East women’s basketball championships will be held at the Cross Insurance Arena in Portland.
It would be the first time the AE women’s basketball championships have come to Maine since the 1997-98 season, when the University of Maine captured the tournament by beating Vermont in the title game at the Alfond Arena in Orono.
“There has been a proposal to hold it at the Cross Insurance Arena and the league’s athletic directors are intrigued by it. But there are still details to be worked out,” said Matt Bourque, America East’s senior associate commissioner for external relations.
Shamrock Sports and Entertainment, a Portland-based sports marketing firm founded by Old Orchard Beach native Brian Corcoran, would host the event and the Maine Sports Commission would be working closely with America East to promote it.
The Maine Sports Commission issued an invitation to media members on Tuesday to attend a press conference on Dec. 10 in Portland where it said America East would announce the America East championships coming to the Cross Insurance Arena. But Bourque said the league will send out a press release if the final details of hosting the tourney are worked out.
The University of Maine will not be involved in hosting the tourneys.
Karlton Creech, the University of Maine’s athletic director, said he preferred to wait until the America East press release comes out before he comments on the tourney coming to Portland.
The tournament was held at Binghamton University’s Events Center in Vestal, New York, last season and will be held there again on March 5-6.
Under the current tournament format, the quarterfinals and semifinals will be held at the Events Center and the championship game will be hosted by the higher seed.
Last year, second seed Albany hosted the final after top seed Maine was upset by Hartford in the semifinals, 65-54.
Albany topped Hartford 84-75 to capture its fourth consecutive AE tournament title.
Bourque indicated that the league’s athletic directors are likely to stick with the current format.
The Cross Insurance Arena and the University of Maine co-hosted the Ice Breaker hockey tournament in October, which involved North Dakota, Michigan State and Lake Superior State in addition to UMaine. North Dakota won the tournament.
Creech said following the Ice Breaker Tournament that UMaine expected to submit a bid to host a hockey regional in Portland. The earliest UMaine could host one was for the 2017-18 season and those sites aren’t expected to be announced until next September.