Providence College preparing for for March Madness. And we don’t mean the basketball team

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It’s been nine years since the NCAA Basketball Tournament has been in Providence, but the capital city will once again host eight of the top men’s basketball teams in the country next week.

Providence College will be the host school after winning a bid to host games in the first and second rounds this year. Providence was set to host the tournament in 2021, as well, but that event was cancelled because of the COVID pandemic.

Providence College Athletic Director Steve Napolillo and Associate Athletic Director Dave Longo, who also serves as the local tournament manager, are excited about the games returning to Rhode Island.

Grayson Allen (3) of Duke tries to block a shot by Craig Ponder (0) of UNC-Wilmington as Duke prevails 93-85 over UNCW in the 2016 NCAA Tournament at the then-Dunkin’ Donuts Center in Providence.

“We have such a passionate fan base for basketball that anytime you can bring a premier event like this to our home building, it just magnifies what basketball means to Providence, what Providence College means to the NCAA and to the Big East,” Napolillo said.

“It’s obviously a great event for the city and state, it’s going to bring thousands of people to this great state and city and it’s going to generate millions of dollars of revenue.”

Which schools will be coming won’t be revealed until Selection Sunday this weekend, but regardless of the teams heading to Rhode Island, the demands won’t change. Providence College has a lot to do to ensure a smooth and successful tournament.

“We have about 125 positions that we have to staff. It’s a combination of volunteer and paid staff,” explained Longo, who noted that other area schools such as Brown and Bryant universities are helping to staff the event, as well.

The host school must coordinate transportation for each visiting school, making sure each team has transportation from the airport to their team hotel, to practices, to the games at the Amica Mutual Pavilion and anywhere else. That also requires working with state and…

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Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/article/providence-college-preparing-march-madness-091902661.html

Author : The Providence Journal

Publish date : 2025-03-11 09:19:00

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