From our friends at GW Athletics...
Colonials to Vie for Conference Crown in Front of Hometown Fans
The Atlantic 10 Conference announced on Thursday that the 2018 men's basketball championship will take place at Verizon Center in downtown Washington, D.C., just two miles from GW's Foggy Bottom campus.
"The announcement of the 2018 men's basketball championship coming to D.C., just days after the news of our record number of national television games ahead in 2014-15, is yet another sign of the strong, upward trajectory of our program and conference, and should be very pleasing to our fans both locally and across the country," said George Washington Director of Athletics Patrick Nero. "This is an incredible city to live in and to visit, and we're thrilled that D.C. will play host to this marquee event."
The 2018 event will mark the first time that the country's eighth largest media market will host the A-10 Championship. The home arena for the Washington Wizards (NBA), Washington Mystics (WNBA), and Washington Capitals (NHL), Verizon Center has also hosted a number of regular-season men's college basketball events and tournaments, including the annual BB&T Classic, as well as six NCAA Men's Basketball Championship events.
"Having grown up locally I have great memories of watching basketball games at the many venues around the city and in the area," said Head Men's Basketball Coach Mike Lonergan. "To have this opportunity to compete for a championship at Verizon Center in front of our loyal fan base, family and friends will be very special for me. I've always thought that the best high school basketball in the country is played in the DMV, so having the A-10 Championship here should aid our efforts to recruit locally and be attractive to players who can now try to win a championship at home."
The Atlantic 10 is coming off its most successful men's basketball season ever, with six teams having earned an NCAA Tournament bid, including GW which won 24 games - the second-most all-time in 100 seasons of men's basketball. The Colonials have won the Atlantic 10 Championship twice, in Cincinnati in 2005 and in Atlantic City in 2007.
The 2018 A-10 Men's Basketball Championship hosted in Washington, D.C. comes after a number of other conference championships hosted by GW. In the spring of 2015, GW baseball and GW lacrosse will host their respective A-10 Championships, while the GW gymnastics program will play host to the EAGL Championships at the Charles E. Smith Center. GW volleyball and softball will also host A-10 Championships during the 2015-16 seasons.
The announcement solidifies the A-10 Men's Basketball Championship sites through 2021. The championship will continue to be held at Barclays Center in Brooklyn through 2016, then will move to Pittsburgh's CONSOL Energy Center in 2017, and to our nation's capital in 2018 before returning to Barclays Center for three additional years through 2021.
