In its 12th year, the BB&T Classic featured three local teams in a one-day event at Verizon Center, but players and media are voicing their support for the creation of a tournament that would crown the D.C.-area basketball champion.
Last season, D.C. college basketball reached a pinnacle, as GW owned the nation’s best regular-season record, Georgetown qualified for the Sweet 16 and George Mason advanced to the Final Four. Carl Elliott, GW’s senior point guard, said he has lobbied his coaches for a tournament between the three teams and Maryland.
“I have no idea,” Elliott said, when asked why the tournament does not exist. “We ask the (coaches) the same question. We don’t get any answers.”
Jack Kvancz, GW’s director of athletics, said Maryland’s refusal to play GW after two consecutive losses and Georgetown’s refusal to play in the event has placed an impenetrable obstacle in the way of planning the championship.
George Mason head coach Jim Larranaga is one of the proponents of the event. Larranaga said he would strongly favor an all-area tournament but said teams would be hesitant to sign on because a neutral court requires teams to relinquish home games.
“Because we don’t get many home games, I’d love to play close to home,” Larranaga said after his team’s 60-57 loss to Bucknell Sunday. “We wouldn’t have to travel. Our guys will be home tonight at 6.”
Mason has trouble drawing desirable opponents to the 9,523-seat Patriot Center, so the tournament gives his squad a chance to play in the D.C. area, Larranaga said.
An intra-city championship is not unheard of in college basketball. The Big 5 in Philadelphia, a yearlong event, consists of Saint Joseph’s, the University of Pennsylvania, Villanova, Temple and La Salle. The team with the best record is the de-facto city champion.
In Washington, the city lines are slightly blurrier. While Georgetown and GW both play in the District, Maryland and George Mason are outside of the city. Virginia Tech’s fans, located 270 miles from Washington, are considered part of the D.C. sports community, Washington Post writer Dan Steinberg said.
Steinberg, who writes a D.C. sports blog, will begin to publish a 10-team local college basketball poll on washingtonpost.com. Approximately 40 fans and 35 local college basketball writers are invited to submit their top teams, Steinberg said.
Despite his support for the tournament, Larranaga isn’t holding his breath.
He said, “In all honesty, no, I don’t think it will happen.”
