The Big Ten Basketball Tournament, which has been held in Indianapolis or Chicago every year since its inception in 1998, is heading for the Big Apple.
As first reported by Sports Illustrated's Pete Thamel, multiple sources claim the 2018 tournament is set to be held Madison Square Garden. Though the initial report does not address whether it the men's or women's tournaments, the Big Ten has almost always held the tournaments in the same city.
One would think the location of tournament is intended to establish the Big Ten in the Northeast, part of "commissioner Jim Delany’s push to position the conference better in vital East Coast media markets," as Thamel puts it. Delany had implied that he would muscle in on New York City after pillaging Rutgers from the Big East, and now it appears he has.
Two other interesting things about this report: the 2017 Big Ten tournament will be held in Washington D.C., and the 2018 tournament is scheduled one week before the NCAA selection. If the Big Ten Tournament is no longer going to lead into the selection show, might it might mean the tournament will rotate through more host cities in the future?
