The Big 12 Conference has extended its multi-year agreement to hold the Phillips 66 men’s and women’s basketball tournaments in downtown Kansas City, Missouri through 2025.
Kansas City has a long tradition as host of the event, with the Big 12 Championships played at Kemper Arena from 1997 to 2002, and again in 2005. With the opening of Sprint Center in 2008, the Big 12 Tournament has been played at that facility since 2010, in addition to 2008.
In March, the men’s tournament was two games into its run when the COVID-19 pandemic shutdown all of college basketball for the season. The 2020 women’s tournament was cancelled, never having played its first game.
With the men’s tournament entrenched at Sprint, the women’s tournament has been played in recent years at nearby Municipal Auditorium, a relationship boosted by recent improvements to the aging facility, including $5 million that includes work with new video boards, LED scorer’s tables, a sound system, lighting, electrical upgrades, and lower level seating.
