CAA to Host Basketball Tournaments in Washington Through 2027

The Coastal Athletic Association has agreed to a four-year contract with Events DC to host the CAA Men’s and Women’s Basketball Championships at the Entertainment & Sports Arena in Washington, D.C.

The two tournaments will run back-to-back starting at the conclusion of the 2023–2024 season and the agreement goes through the 2026–2027 season. The Entertainment & Sports Arena is home to the WNBA’s Washington Mystics and is the practice facility for the NBA’s Washington Wizards, the home court for the NBA G League Capital City Go-Go.

The CAA Women’s Basketball Championship will move to a neutral site for the first time since 2016 after being conducted at campus sites over the past seven years; it was previously held in D.C. in 1988. The 2024 men’s tournament will be held March 8–12, 2024, followed by the women’s tournament from March 13­–17.

“Being able to bring our men’s and women’s basketball championships together at the same venue will make for an outstanding experience for our student-athletes and fans,” CAA Commissioner Joe D’Antonio said. “The Entertainment & Sports Arena is a basketball centric venue that is centrally located within the geographic footprint of the conference, and the Washington, D.C. area provides plenty of historical and unique opportunities for out-of-town visitors. This incredible opportunity also gives the conference the ability to brand and promote both championships to basketball fans in the area.”

The CAA, which has expanded to 14 members with the addition of Campbell University, first held the CAA men’s tournament in D.C. in 2020. It has since also held the men’s tournament at the end of the 2021-2022 and 2022-2023 seasons, most recently with Charleston beating UNC Wilmington in the title game. The men’s tournament was held at various locations throughout Virginia from 1980 through 2013 before moving to Baltimore from 2014-2016, North Charleston, South Carolina, from 2017-2019 and in Harrisonburg, Virginia, in 2021.