Another View
Just like last week, downtown Minneapolis remains the epicenter for Big Ten basketball. This week, for the first time in league history, the Big Ten MBB Tournament champion will be crowned here this Sunday after four days of games that begin on Wednesday, March 13.
“Minneapolis is a hotbed for basketball [with] a lot of good coaches in the area,” said former Gopher and NBA player John Thomas, a Minneapolis Roosevelt graduate and former Minnesota Timberwolves executive. “I think it’s important” to have the conference tournament held here.
U of M Athletics Director Mark Coyle concurs with Thomas: “Our fans are showing up to support this great tournament. I know the Big Ten is super excited to have a tournament here.”
There are 107 Black players, 30 Black coaches including three Black head coaches, and eight local former Black prep stars:
- ILL – Dain Dainja, 6-9 redshirt junior (Brooklyn Center) – 5.4 ppg, 3.3 rpg
- OSU – Jamison Battle, 6-4 grad student (Robbinsdale) – 14.6 ppg, 5.0 rpg; and Taison Chatman, 6-4 freshman (Minneapolis) – 0.4 ppg, 0.5 rpg
- PSU – RayQuandis Mitchell, 6-5 grad student (Blaine) – 2.9 ppg, 1.4 rpg
- MIN – Joshua Ola-Joseph, 6-7 soph (Brooklyn Park) – 8.8 ppg, 2.5 rpg; Braeden Carrington, 6-4 soph (Brooklyn Park) – 5.0 ppg, 3.4 rpg; and Pharrel Payne, 6-9 soph (Cottage Grove) – 10.0 ppg, 6.2 rpg
- MSU – Tre Holloman, 6-2 soph (Minneapolis) – 5.8 ppg, 1.4 rpg, 2.9 ast
State Coach Tom Izzo told me last month on Holloman, “He proved a lot. I think he’s gonna continue to get stronger.” The sophomore guard concurred with his coach that he must get stronger in order to be consistent on the court, especially in making “contested threes,” Holloman said.
Both he and Ola-Joseph are glad that the conference post-season starts and ends in downtown Minneapolis. “It’s really cool being able to play at home…and having family and friends here to watch us play,” said Ola-Joseph. I’m super excited.”
Officials are expecting large crowds this week—last week’s WBB tournament was a historic sellout. We have walked around downtown and visiting fans have told us that they are having a wonderful time watching hoops and visiting the sites in and around downtown.
“We know how to roll out the red carpet” for players, their family members and fans, declared Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey during the Big Ten Kickoff event in January.
“Having both men’s and women’s Big Ten basketball tournaments is a big win for the city,” Meet Minneapolis Executive Director Melvin Tennant said after his organization’s annual meeting at Minneapolis Convention Center last month. Tennant is one of the key Black people who have been heavily involved in attracting big-scale sporting events to the city for over a decade. “Our hospitality industry is really going to benefit from it.”
The non-downtown area also will benefit from having the two Big Ten tourneys. Minnesota Sports and Events (MNSE) teamed up with the Big Ten to support Twin Cities youth in several activities, including basketball-related upgrades to two local community centers.
A celebratory event for a new upgraded scoreboard and sport technology at North Minneapolis’ Farview Rec Center is planned for this Saturday at 9:30 a.m. A new mural and hoop unveiling was held last Saturday at the MLK Rec Center in St. Paul.
It is Minnesota Food Share Month, and MNSE is partnering with HandsOn Twin Cities to provide 3,500 snack packs to local youth through the “Big Ten Gives Back” initiative. The second of this snack pack bundling event will take place at City Center in Minneapolis on Thursday, 3:30 to 5 p.m.