Lethbridge will host four NCAA Division One basketball teams in November, 2024 for the inaugural Western Slam event.
Tournament Director Jeff Dunlap says the tournament has been in the works for over a year and comes on the heels of planning the Atlantic Slam that will take place in Moncton, New Brunswick, later this month. He explains when looking for a home for the Western Canada event, they kept hearing about the Alberta basketball frenzy, which has City of Lethbridge officials, ENMAX Centre staff and organizers optimistic about seeing a sold-out event next year.
“We are going to look at slightly smaller markets that really embrace it, take it and run with it. More so a Vancouver would, or a Montreal, you get into some of those big cities that have so much stuff going on, not sure how popular we’d be. But to Moncton, Canada, they are thrilled, and to Lethbridge, we are hoping on you guys being thrilled,” Dunlap says.
He adds the unique thing about this event is it provides a bonding opportunity for these teams to go on a road trip, stay in a hotel for a few days and build camaraderie while also giving not only Lethbridge but the Alberta community the opportunity to watch an NCAA game in person when they may have only been able to watch on television before.
“When you are sitting there on the sidelines, and you watch, and you see how fast the athletes are, how skilled they are, hopefully, it will motivate more and more Canadians to hone their skills.”
Lethbridge Mayor Blaine Hyggen says to have this event come to Lethbridge is an exciting one and explains having these sorts of events is important for the city, not only for the increased positive impact it has on the economy but on the community as well. He explains these big events, like the upcoming Western Grand Slam or the March 2022 Tim Hortons Brier men’s curling championship, can drive residents to get involved at the local level of the sport.
“This is exactly that, when they start to see that this could be me one day, I could be playing this sport, it gets them out there. I know our local Lethbridge basketball clubs will be so involved in this because kids will see this.”
The event will run from November 27th to 30th, November 2024, as a round-robin style tournament with two games daily. Dunlap says the idea is to make this an event everyone can attend, so he expects tickets to be around $40 a day.
